Here’s What You Can Do for National Pollinator Week
Get involved with events June 19 to 25 to help bees, butterflies and moths thrive
Pollinator gardens, such as this one in Cleveland, have something in bloom every day throughout the growing season.
How you can get involved. There’s so much you can do to make a difference. First, explore the event map on the Pollinator Partnership’s website to see what events are occurring near you. If you don’t see anything, now’s the time to consider getting involved for this year and next. Anything is possible: sustainable-garden tours, classes, citizen-scientist fieldwork, a weeding or planting day — even a neighborhood festival. The sky’s the limit.
Each state also has its own designated Pollinator Week, which may or may not coincide with the national event. Some states even have a Wildflower Week, complete with even more impactful events. Isn’t it exciting to see how we’re coming together to help pollinators, wildlife and nature in general?
How you can get involved. There’s so much you can do to make a difference. First, explore the event map on the Pollinator Partnership’s website to see what events are occurring near you. If you don’t see anything, now’s the time to consider getting involved for this year and next. Anything is possible: sustainable-garden tours, classes, citizen-scientist fieldwork, a weeding or planting day — even a neighborhood festival. The sky’s the limit.
Each state also has its own designated Pollinator Week, which may or may not coincide with the national event. Some states even have a Wildflower Week, complete with even more impactful events. Isn’t it exciting to see how we’re coming together to help pollinators, wildlife and nature in general?
Coneflowers (Echinacea spp.) and other native plants support pollinators by being host plants for their young.
Five tips for creating a pollinator-friendly landscape. Even if you don’t make it out to one of the events occurring for National Pollinator Week, there are many ways you can contribute on your own, starting with making your garden pollinator-friendly. Here are ideas to get you started.
Five tips for creating a pollinator-friendly landscape. Even if you don’t make it out to one of the events occurring for National Pollinator Week, there are many ways you can contribute on your own, starting with making your garden pollinator-friendly. Here are ideas to get you started.
- Do not use pesticides or herbicides. And if you must use them to control invasive exotic pests or plants, consider using them in the late evening when the wind has died down.
- Include native plants, which have coevolved with many pollinator species. In fact, there are plenty of native bee species that feed only the pollen of certain native plants to their young.
- Ensure there are various types of plants in bloom from spring through fall. Usually shallow flowers, like asters and mountain mints (Pycnanthemum spp.), will support the most pollinators, while longer flowers, such as penstemons and sages, are accessible primarily to those with longer tongues, like butterflies, bumblebees and some moths.
Milkweed (Asclepias sp.), common boneset (Eupatorium perfoliatum), black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta) and various grasses provide food and refuge for a diversity of insects in this Philadelphia garden.
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- Create a diverse habitat. Plant trees, shrubs, flowers that grow in sun and flowers that grow in shade. This plant diversity provides for a greater multitude of pollinators, including adults, who use blooms, and their larvae, who eat the leaves. Don’t forget that many tree and shrub species not only provide flowers but are host plants to all manner of pollinators and beneficial predator bugs.
- Leave the garden standing in winter, which helps protect overwintering insects. Also, cut back stems to only 15 inches in spring to provide nesting sites for insects like carpenter and mason bees, who are highly efficient pollinators.
More
How to Design a Garden for Native Bees
4 Tips for Designing a Wildlife-Friendly Small Garden
Create a Container Wildlife Habitat for Hummingbirds and Butterflies
How to Use and Celebrate the Native Plants in Your Region
In 2007 the U.S. Senate unanimously approved one week in June each year to be National Pollinator Week. This year, National Pollinator Week takes place from June 19 to 25. Spearheaded by the Pollinator Partnership — a nonprofit dedicated to promoting and protecting pollinators and their ecosystems — cities, businesses, churches, schools and environmental groups around the country will celebrate with all manner of events. This week is a time to come together to help pollinators who not only are critical to our food supply, but who also help the flowers in our gardens, prairies, forests and deserts reproduce and thrive.