Creating a pollinator-friendly garden
At long last, spring is here! This is always my favourite time of year as the air warms, the sun returns and nature comes back to life before our eyes. When we look around us, it is easy to see the living growth of plants on a daily basis. First we may notice the snowdrops, crocus, scilla and witch hazel. Next we see forsythia, rhododendron, maple blossoms, muscari and daffodil. These are followed by magnolia, serviceberry, hellebore, creeping phlox and tulip. As you are reading this; cherry, apple, quince and heather are unfolding their blossoms — full of hope for the sea- son ahead. These showy spring blooms are hard to miss and take centre stage at this time of year, with new foliage as their developing backdrop. But what do we see if we look a bit closer? Or better yet, listen?
Bzzzz .. hearing that may make you itch with phantom black fly bites, but for me it calls to mind the early spring insect pollinators searching for their beloved blooms. Insect pollinators include bees, wasps, butterflies, moths, flies and beetles. These critters are crucial to the health of our ecosystems. Each type of insect pollinator works in partnership with a different type of plant because they are gathering food for themselves and fertilizing the flowers that produce food for people and animals at the same time. When animals and birds eat fruit and nuts, they distribute seeds that are fertilized by their droppings. Insect pollinators are small but mighty, and we have them to thank for the food we eat, the flowers we enjoy and the biodiversity of our natural spaces.
Globally, our insect pollinators are on the decline. This is likely due to a combination of reasons including pesticide use, loss of biodiversity and habitat destruction. As gardeners and land stewards, we can help protect our winged friends using pollinator-friendly gardening practices. Here are some easy tips to ensure your garden is pollinator-friendly:
1. Avoid pesticides and herbicides. They will kill the beneficial insects along with the ‘pests’ and ‘weeds.’
3. Plant native species. Our native pollinators have co-evolved with these plants and need them to survive.
4. Don’t touch those dandelions. They are creating diversity and an early pollination source in the ecological desert known as turf grass. Plus I always think they look pretty.
5. Leave a few small patches of bare soil in the garden. This allows solitary groundnesting bees such as bumblebees and several species of native bees to find homes.
6. Design your garden so that something is always blooming throughout the growing season. The spring flowering plants mentioned at the start of this article are especially important.
7. Leave natural spaces in your landscape that allow for wild ecosystems to grow up, especially meadows and forest edge areas.