Neonicotinoids and Our Commitment
Greetings from the Garden Center,
This week, we spotted a few swallowtail caterpillars happily munching on some dill in our herb section. It brings us so much joy to witness thriving pollinators at Gateway! We have been advocates for native plants since 1979, providing our pollinator population with food and shelter, but I want to bring up a lesser known, but very important, conversation about pesticides. Neonicotinoids are powerful pesticides that impact a wide range of important species. In small doses, they impair our native pollinator’s navigation and foraging abilities, weaken colonies, and contribute to population declines. There is also increasing concern for these pesticides impacting birds and mammals that also forage on nectar and fruit of treated plants.
It’s paramount to us that all our plant suppliers and growers avoid these harmful pesticides.
By shopping at Gateway, you’re not just beautifying your garden — you’re actively supporting pollinator conservation.
If you do happen to be shopping at other garden centers, please don’t be afraid to ask what their policy is regarding their vendor’s neonicotinoid use. Let’s all do our part in pollinator conservation and help push the industry forward to a neonicotinoid-free future!
