Supporting Pollinators

Honey bees get most of the attention, but they’re far from the only pollinators. Native bees, flies, wasps, butterflies, moths and beetles all pollinate plants, and some native bees pollinate certain crops and wildflowers more effectively than honey bees do. Protecting the whole pollinator community starts with habitat.

Why pollinators need help

Pollinator populations are under pressure from habitat loss, development, disease, some agricultural practices and pesticide use. The United States is home to roughly 4,000 species of native bees, most of them solitary and many with specific needs for food and nesting sites, and about a third of the food we eat depends on pollinators.

What makes a pollinator-friendly planting

Plant natives. Native flowers, shrubs and trees attract native pollinators, and honey bees forage on them too. Many ornamental cultivars have been bred for showy doubled flowers that make pollen and nectar hard to reach, or produce less of them, so they offer pollinators far less than the native species they resemble.

Bloom from spring to fall. Pollinators need food throughout the growing season, so choose a mix of species that flower early, mid and late in the year.

Use fewer chemicals. Cut back on pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers, and spot-treat weeds rather than spraying broadly.

Mow less. Mowing less often, and mowing only part of a site in any one year, leaves flowers in bloom and shelter in place.

Leave nesting habitat. Most native bees don’t live in hives. Many nest in the ground, and others nest in hollow stems, dead wood or plant debris. Leaving some bare, undisturbed soil and some standing stems and woody debris gives them places to raise their young.