Every time you admire your favorite flower or take a bite of fresh produce, have you wondered how it got here? Chances are, you have a pollinator to thank! Birds, bees, butterflies, moths, and even bats all serve as pollinators that fertilize plants by carrying pollen from one flower to another. This act of pollination aids in plant reproduction and is responsible for 35% of agricultural food production.
Benefits of a Pollinator Garden
Help Wildlife
Pollinators face declining habitat and loss of food sources. By converting a small patch of your yard to local flowering plants you can help combat habitat loss.
Support Other Plants
Attracting pollinators can help even your nonnative plants reproduce and produce fruit. Attracting pollinators like ladybugs can help control some pest populations.
Save Water
California native plants tend to be more drought tolerant and require less water than other nonnative plants.
Year Round Flowers
Providing pollen and nectar throughout every season not only feeds butterflies, bees, and other pollinators, it will bring bright blooming flowers into your yard all year long.
Creating a Pollinator Garden
Before installing new plants observe the conditions of your property, taking note of how much sun the area gets, the characteristics of the soil, and the size of the area. Fall through early spring are the best time of year to install native plants, this gives the roots time to establish before the hot summer months. During the first year, water when the first three inches of soil are dry. Generally native plants prefer infrequent, penetrating soaks rather than frequent but short sprays of water.
To determine the best suited plant species for your area visit: Your local botanic garden, Calscape.org, and bloomcalifornia.org. Remember— If you live in a high fire risk zone, remember to place vegetation at least 5ft away from your structure.
Native Plant Ideas for Year Round Blooms
Hummingbird Sage
California Fuchsia
Common Yarrow
To learn more about VCRCD’s pollinator and habitat restoration work, visit vcrcd.org/pollinators.
