The buzz on pollinators: Planting with purpose

Gardening should be a fun and rewarding pastime, and by adding native flowers and plants that will attract beneficial insects like bees and butterflies, your yard will soon be filled with song birds and other beautiful creatures for your enjoyment.

January is the perfect time to start planning for spring, so consider creating a pollinator patch or adding some native pollinator plants to your existing garden. Every plant you add will help expand the pollinator corridor where insects can find food and refuge. It is wise to plan your plant selections before heading to the nursery so you choose purposefully, not impulsively.

Choose plants that serve a purpose, such as providing food, pollen, nectar or habitat for pollinating insects, birds and small animals. Purposeful planting requires a shift in thinking. Choose native plants that haven’t been treated with pesticides, that are pollinator-friendly, and support the ecosystem.

It can be overwhelming to get started, so I asked two local experts, George Scott, beekeeper and pollinator conservationist, and Betty Knight, Master Gardener, about their approach to planning and planting a more pollinator-friendly garden. They each have a very different strategy, so choose which one suits your taste.

Scott starts by considering the needs of the wildlife he wants to attract. His main aim is to provide proper habitat for the bees and wildlife on his property, so he chooses his planting accordingly. “As a beekeeper, my goal is to make sure there will be an abundant nectar and pollen supply throughout the entire season. Beekeepers understand the interdependence between insect and plant life cycles, and we plant strategically to ensure both wild bees and honey bees will have ample food throughout each stage of their life. The key is to have plants that provide a nutritious food supply from the minute the bees emerge in spring, right up until they seal up their hives for winter hibernation,” he said.

“When you have created a biodiverse habitat for bees, the butterflies just naturally show up to feast on the pollen and nectar too. Once you have bees and butterflies, other insects will also move in, which attracts birds who feed on the tasty bugs, caterpillars, insects, seeds and berries. It doesn’t take long before your yard is filled with beauty and life.”

When choosing plants, his first consideration is their blooming periods, he said. “We select a variety of trees, shrubs and wildflowers that will bloom at different times.  I start with keystone trees and plants; these will provide everything an insect needs to support its entire life-cycle.” Then he add shrubs, ground cover, grasses and wildflowers to provide more rare sources of pollen. “This will attract the specialty bees, butterflies, moths and hummingbirds. It’s also important to provide clean water in a shallow container with stones for bees and flying insects to perch upon while drinking.”

Adding bird nesting boxes will encourage birds to set up house and raise their young in your yard, he adds.

“Twenty years ago, we purchased a barren soybean field and began to restore it as a wildlife habitat. Today the field is full of trees, shrubs, grasses, flowers, bees, butterflies, song birds, rare field birds, raptors, frogs, fish, turtles, deer and wild turkeys who roam freely at Niagara Beeway. It’s been very rewarding.”

Scott’s favourite plants that are particularly good for attracting bees, and hosting caterpillars:

Eastern redbuds — bumblebees, butterflies, moths and leaf rollers;

Pale purple coneflower — bees, butterflies, hummingbirds and other pollinators. The seeds are consumed by finches;

Butterfly milkweed — butterflies, bees, host plant for the monarch butterfly larvae;

Black-eyed Susan — butterflies, hummingbirds, insects and songbirds, caterpillar host;

Big Bluestem tall prairie grass — butterflies, pollinators, habitat for songbirds;

Tall ironwood — attracts butterflies and bees;

Common elderberry — favourite of more than 48 species of birds;

Spicebush — host to the spicebush swallowtail butterfly, and used by songbirds, upland game birds and white-tailed deer;

Bloodroot — various kinds of bees, including honeybees;

Serviceberry — berries attract birds, pollinating insects, small mammals, larval host to many moths and butterfly species, leaf rollers and sphinx moths;

Fruit trees — wild cherry, native plum, apple attract bees and pollinators, bird nesting habitat;

Borage — used for bee medicine;

Parsley and dill — habitat for butterflies to lay their eggs;

Clover — ground cover attracts bumble bees, honeybees who make delicious honey from it.

Master Gardener Betty Knight takes a more integrated approach to creating a pollinator garden. “Most people already have established gardens, so my approach is to introduce a few new native plant species every year, gradually replacing invasive and exotic plants with eco-friendly choices. We have to redefine beauty when it comes to the outdoors. If your garden isn’t being eaten, it isn’t contributing to the ecosystem.”

Start by surveying your yard and determining which plants are non-native. Many imported plants and trees, which were once considered exotic, may now be regarded as invasive species, said Knight.

“For example, English ivy is now considered invasive because nothing eats it, so it can eventually take over your entire garden by choking out other plants and trees and even destroying brick siding as it climbs. A great replacement is Virginia creeper. This native vine is a nice substitute that will provide a luxurious green carpet in summer, and if left to climb will turn brilliant colours in the fall without destroying the brickwork.”

It acts as a caterpillar host for sphinx moths and attracts fruit feeding birds, such as chickadees, nuthatches, catbirds, finches, flycatchers, woodpeckers, tanagers, swallows, vireos, warblers, mockingbirds, and thrushes, explained Knight.

“Replacing a few plants and shrubs, and gradually converting more and more lawn to garden each year makes for an easy transition. I love flowers, so I plant a large variety of unique native species that are aesthetically pleasing, then wait to see who shows up to feed on them. An unchewed garden is not a useful garden — I love watching the leaf cutter bees make burrito blankets out of redbud leaves for their larvae.”

Starting seeds or plant plugs in a little nursery bed alongside your house is a great way to get to know the plants, their blooming period, shape and size. Once they are established you can transplant them to your main garden according to height, sun exposure, and blossom colours

Some of Knight’s favourite pollinator plants:

Prairie smoke — bumbles love them and the flowers have personality;

Kinnikinnik — attracts moths, including brown elfin, hoary elfin and Freija fritillary butterflies;

Wild columbine — duskywing butterfly, pink patched looper, tobacco budworm and moths;

Wild strawberry — specialist bees, Andrena melanochroa, skippers, darts and butterflies.

To find list of the plants listed visit npca.ca/images/uploads/common/Native_Plant_Guide.pdf

Tip of the week: Create more purposeful and natural gardens, and mother nature will thank you!

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