As I walk through my garden, I’m amazed at all the flying creatures moving about. Birds, bees, butterflies, and moths make their way to the flowers and plants growing around the garden. The garden is like a giant smorgasbord for these creatures. Growing a diverse garden of plants provides a lovely display for you, but a feast for these wonderful pollinators.

As many of us know, pollination is vital to our food supply. That’s true whether it’s our national crops or our backyard gardens. Attracting pollinators to your garden increases the opportunity for your fruits and vegetables to get the pollen they need for producing an abundant amount of produce. Even your flowers benefit from pollination to create seeds you can save and use for next year.

Pollination Basics…

What is Pollination, and Why is it Important?

Pollination is the process of transferring pollen particles within flowers or from flower to flower. Pollinators move pollen from the male anther to the female stigma. This process fertilizes the plant, helping to create its offspring. When this process occurs, the plant can grow viable fruit and vegetables and create new seeds for the next generation (next year’s plants).

In your garden, pollination helps your tomatoes and zucchini to grow. It encourages your blooming fruit trees to set and grow fruit. When your flowers are pollinated, you end up with abundant, viable seeds that can grow into beautiful flowers.

READ: How to Save Flower Seeds From Your Garden

Pollinators moving around your garden are on a mission. The flowers contain nectar that supplies fuel for their activities. This nectar provides sugars that contribute energy to their bodies. Pollen contains protein that some pollinators will also use. While they’re supporting their needs, these pollinators are spreading various pollen from plant to plant to help support our needs as well.

On a national level, pollination is critical to helping provide many of the fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, fibers, herbs, spices and even medicines we rely on. Having a wide variety of pollinators is critical to many foods and substances that we use regularly.

Pollinators on the Decline…

Studies have shown that the population of pollinators is decreasing worldwide. Several things have contributed to the decline, including…

• Loss of habitat
• Harmful chemicals that injure or kill pollinators
• Invasive plants and animals
• Diseases
• Parasites
• Geoengineering

While we might not solve this worldwide problem ourselves, with a little effort we can do our part to increase the pollinators in our corner of the world. By increasing the pollinators in your garden, you help to encourage a healthier environment and boost the production of these wonderful creatures.

Types of Pollinators…

We typically think of the honeybee as our main pollinator. However, honeybees are just one of 1000s of creatures that help pollinate our plants. Here are some of the main pollinators that are useful for your garden.

Native Bees

While the agricultural industry focuses on using honeybees, there are literally thousands of native bees throughout the world that do much of the work of pollinating. Even if you don’t have a lot of honeybees available, encouraging these native bees is critical. Mason bees, bumblebees, and leaf-cutter bees are some prime examples of native bees that you can find in your garden.

Butterflies

What a beautiful way to pollinate your plants. Butterflies flit about from flower to flower. You can find them enjoying many blooms, but they especially like flat-topped flowers. Some butterflies rely heavily on specific native plants. The Monarch butterfly, for example, needs milkweed to lay their eggs.

Moths

Moths are nocturnal creatures. Flowers that bloom at night, especially white varieties, attract moths. Watch your flowers at dusk and you might see hummingbird moths enjoying the blooms.

Insects

Beetles such as lady beetles and soldier beetles are helpful in pollinating many plants. Although they aren’t as prolific at pollination as bees and butterflies, there are so many of them available that they can help with pollination.

Birds

Hummingbirds are a valuable bird for spreading pollen. They seek bright red flowers and trumpet shaped blooms. Planting foxglove, canna lilies, trumpet vine, and petunias are particularly inviting.

10 Ways to Attract Pollinators to Your Garden…

Many people feel we can’t do much to encourage the pollinator population. That couldn’t be farther from the truth. When you help to encourage pollinators in your own backyard, you help to support the pollinators. Every little thing you do can have a positive impact. Here are 10 proven ways to get started encouraging a bounty of pollinators in your garden.

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1. Grow a Diverse Selection of Flowers and Plants in Your Garden

Focus on adding flowering plants from early spring to late fall rather than just the height of summer. Having continuous blooms throughout the growing season offers more opportunity for pollinators to do their job. Each pollinator has its own flower preference, so growing a variety of flowers means more types of pollinators. Include perennials, hardy annuals, tender annuals, bulbs, flowering shrubs and trees in your landscape to provide a long-term food supply for the pollinators.

When selecting your flowers and plants, keep in mind that hybridized plants often contain less nectar and pollen. So be sure to include plenty of non-hybridized flowers. Your heirloom plants or those passed down through the years offer a larger dose of the food that pollinators need.

READ: Grow the Best Old-fashioned Flowers for Cutting

2. Include More Native Plants in Your Garden

Many pollinators are attracted to native species for their food. If you are unsure of plants that are native to your region, here is a resource for the US and Canada that will give you a general idea of your native pollinators… Ecoregional Planting Guides. You can also find some great native flower ideas in this book from the Xerces Society, 100 Plants to Feed the Bees.

3. Choose Plants That Offer Colorful Flowers in Your Garden Beds and Pots

Pollinators are better able to find these colorful flowers. Bright colors are like a beacon to draw in the pollinators. Many flowers include spots, stripes and variegated markings to attract the various pollinators.

4. Add Flowers With Fragrance

Many pollinators are attracted to the aroma of the flowers and plants. Include fragrant herbs such as sage, thyme, rosemary, dill, fennel, oregano, and basil in your flowerbeds to encourage more pollinators. To further attract pollinators, allow some of your herbs to flower.

5. Grow Your Flower Varieties in Small Groupings Rather Than Single Plants

Place small drifts of flowers together, rather than a single flower. This will encourage the pollinators to move from flower to flower and group to group, spreading more pollen among your blooms. The pollinators might have difficulty locating a single blooming plant, but when grown in a small grouping they are more likely to find the flowers.

6. Grow Flowers That Provide Different Shapes and Sizes to Attract a Greater Variety of Pollinators

Pollinators have their favorite shapes and sizes of flowers they seek. Hummingbirds love long, tubular flowers while bees enjoy round shapes. Butterflies prefer flat-topped flowers. By offering a wider selection, you encourage a larger array of pollinators.

7. Provide Water Throughout Your Garden for the Pollinators

Pollinators need a regular supply of water that’s easily accessible. Birdbaths, ponds, and small water bowls can all supply water regularly. Keep these water sources available throughout the growing season.

8. Create Areas That Pollinators Can Turn Into Homes

Set up areas around your yard and garden that provide places for pollinators to survive and thrive. Create specific areas such as shrub borders or just leave small piles of yard waste for the pollinators to hide in. Make bee houses or purchase a ready-made bee house. These bee houses provide a place for native bees to lay their eggs. Leave small areas of open ground to give ground-dwellers a place to live. If you cover all your beds in mulch, the pollinators that make their nests underground will struggle to make a home.

9. Avoid Using Chemicals in Your Garden

Try using non-chemical options whenever possible. If you must use a chemical, choose the least toxic product you need and spray at dusk when pollinators are less active. Avoid spraying plants with chemicals when they are in full bloom. Little imperfections on your leaves and blooms is a small price to pay for knowing that you are supporting these helpful pollinators.

10. Let Creatures Overwinter in Your Garden

Rather than clean up all the garden debris this fall, leave some plant material for pollinators to hole up in. Leaf piles, branches, bare ground and dried flower stalks offer a place for pollinators to shelter during the cold winter months.

Resources to Learn More About Pollinators…

• The Pollinator Victory Garden by Kim Eierman
• Pollinator Friendly Gardening by Rhonda Flemming Hayes
• Our Native Bees by Paige Embry
• Attracting Native Pollinators by The Xerces Society

Encouraging pollinators to come to your yard and garden is easy when you understand what they need to thrive. The next time you enjoy a bite of a delicious red tomato from your garden, you eat a warm slice of freshly baked zucchini bread, or you harvest seeds from your zinnias, remember the lowly pollinator that made it possible.

As you wander through the garden, watch out for all those flying creatures that help to provide such wonderful benefits. They’re on a mission to find the most delicious meal in your garden. We can do our part to encourage pollinators by creating a buffet for them to feast upon. It’s easy to attract pollinators to your garden with a just a little planning and these 10 simple steps.