Every gardener knows how important pollinators are in the natural world. Bees, butterflies and hummingbirds are essential to our gardens and local habitats, so it’s important for gardeners to ensure we’re creating gardens that can support pollinator populations.
If you’d like to do your part in creating a sanctuary for pollinators, here are a couple of easy tips for turning your garden into a pollinator’s paradise:
1. Plant pollinator-friendly plants
The simplest thing you can do to create a pollinator garden is to choose plants that are pollinator-friendly. You can turn one section of your garden into a pollinator-friendly zone. Plants like aster, phlox, black-eyed Susan, butterfly weed, goldenrod, dill, marjoram, catnip, lavender and parsley are all excellent choices for pollinator gardens.
2. Choose plants for different seasons
Bees, butterflies, hummingbirds and other pollinators need to have access to food throughout the growing season, not just the height of the summer. Make sure you’re choosing plants that bloom at different times of the year, from early spring to late fall.
3. Choose plants based on colour, fragrance and shape
Pollinators are attracted to certain colours, shapes and fragrances of flowers. Butterflies are attracted to red, orange and yellow flowers with a flat surface they can land on, while hummingbirds are attracted to red, fuschia and purple flowers with a tubular shape. Fragrant flowers can help to attract moths and bats at night.
4. Create nesting structures
Creating a pollinator garden isn’t just about making sure there’s enough food for bees, butterflies and hummingbirds; they need somewhere to live too. This can be as simple as leaving some space in the soil for bees to nest or as involved as creating a bee hotel.
5. Avoid using pesticides
One of the most important parts of maintaining a pollinator garden is to avoid the use of pesticides and herbicides that could be harmful to the wildlife you’re trying to attract. Even pesticides that claim to be organic can be harmful to insects and birds.
This article was sourced from oscseeds.com
