Spring is right around the corner. You might be dusting off the gardening equipment, eagerly anticipating getting your spring gardening underway. As you plan your garden, have you considered planting a pollinator garden?
What Is a Pollinator and a Pollinator Garden?
Pollinator gardens are planted with flowers that provide food and shelter to insects and small critters that pollinate plants and support the local ecosystem. Choosing plants with pollinators in mind is a relatively new idea, but it’s essential for the environment.
What is a pollinator?
A pollinator is any animal, bird, or insect that helps carry pollen from one flower to another. The pollen must travel from the stamen (the “male” part of the flower) to the stigma (the female part of a flower) for the flowers to produce fruits, seeds, and other plants.
Some pollinators, like many types of bees, intentionally collect pollen as they go from flower to flower. Other pollinators like butterflies, birds, beetles, or bats move pollen by accident as they go about their daily lives. The pollen sticks to their bodies when they are eating nectar in the flowers. Then, when they fly to the next flower, some of the pollen gets transferred, pollinating the flower.
Why are pollinators important?
Did you know that 75% of all the flowering plants in the world and about 35% of all the food crops in the world depend on pollinators to keep reproducing? All kinds of crops and food, from apples and sunflowers to coffee and cacao plants, depend on pollinators.
Nearly one in three bites of food you eat come from plants that rely on pollinators!
Additionally, having a healthy, diverse plant life helps stabilize the soil, supplies vital oxygen, helps clean the air, and provides critical food and shelter for other wildlife. Pollinators play a crucial role in keeping our ecosystem healthy.
Sadly, many pollinators are in trouble. Many important pollinators face challenges like habitat loss, disease, environmental contamination, non-native plant species, and other threats leading to their decline.
In many regions, pollinators can’t find enough food (nectar and pollen from blooming plants within flight range). There aren’t enough pollinator plants to keep them alive and healthy. This is where pollinator gardens come in and can be vital to the survival of pollinators in your area.
How To Plant a Pollinator Garden
Planting a successful pollinator garden is surprisingly easy!
Step 1: Choose your pollinator garden location.
Things to consider:
- Sunny
- Protection from wind
- Optional: an area for you to sit and admire the garden and the pollinators at work
While many flowering plants can grow in both shady and sunny locations, it’s essential to consider your “target audience” for your pollinator garden. Most butterflies and other pollinators prefer nice sunny areas. Their favorite flowers grow best in full or partial sun with a bit of protection from the wind.
Most pollinating insects need warmth to be active. If you decide to put your pollinator garden in a shady area, pollinators will likely find a spot close by to warm up, then visit your flowers in the shade.
Once your garden is blooming and full of busy pollinators, it might be nice to have a comfy place to sit and enjoy the fruits of your labor. Is there an area to put your pollinator garden near some existing seating in your yard? Or you could add some seating to your new little garden.
Step 2: Choose plants that support local pollinators.
Things to consider:
- What plants are native to your region?
- What other plants grow well that support pollinators?
- Exotic, non-native plants can be harmful to local plants and pollinators.
Remember, the goal of planting a pollinator garden is to cultivate a natural ecosystem with native insects and pollinators that rely on safe and native plants. Not every plant in your pollinator garden must be “native” to your region. Still, native plants tend to bring in more pollinators.
The safest way to create a pollinator garden is to choose native plants. Not only are they safer for pollinators, but they’re also low-maintenance and more sustainable! The National Wildlife Foundation has a convenient Native Plant Finder that allows you to discover the best native plants that support pollinators and birds in your area!
When choosing native plants for your pollinator garden, try to stick with reputable gardeners or seed companies to ensure you receive what you expect. Never gather native plants from the wild without permission. They are usually protected and serve an essential role right where they’re planted!
Consider choosing various plants that bloom at different times and offer a varied source of nectar. For example, shrubs and trees like dogwood, plum, blueberry, and cherry offer pollen or nectar early in the spring. Then other flowers offer continuous bloom later in the spring, summer, and fall so pollinators can stay healthy and fueled.
Expert gardeners recommend planting in clusters to create a “target” for pollinators. No matter how big or small your pollinator garden is, every little bit helps!
Step 3: Weed and mulch frequently and avoid chemicals.
Don’t be surprised if your pollinator garden is initially slow to grow. Most native plants must grow strong roots before emerging and developing above ground. While you’re waiting, weed and mulch frequently to prevent weeds from choking out your plants.
It’s important to avoid using chemicals or fertilizers in your pollinator garden. Insects, birds, and small animals are very sensitive to chemicals, and many pesticides and fertilizers harm pollinators. It’s best to keep things as natural as possible.
Step 4: Don’t clean up dead material in the fall or too early in the spring.
Leave your pollinator garden as natural as possible. Many insects hibernate in dead plant materials during the winter. Allow materials from dead plants and branches to stay on the ground through the fall and winter as a welcome nesting area for beetles, bees, and other hibernating insects.
Allowing plants to die and remain on the ground naturally can also reduce your need for mulch in the spring and returns valuable nutrients to the soil.
Now that you’ve established your pollinator garden, it’s time to sit back and enjoy the beauty of nature at work!
Even the small act of creating a little pollinator garden in the corner of your yard can make a huge difference in preserving and protecting local ecosystems.
