Happy Pollinator Month!
Pollinator 101:
What are pollinators? Pollinators are animals that help with plant reproduction by moving pollen (and therefore genetic material) from one plant to another using their bodies. Between 75-95% of all flowering plants on Earth reproduce via the help of pollinators, which include birds, bats, small mammals, bees, flies, butterflies, moths, wasps, and beetles (http://pollinatorpartnership.org). Pollinators come in all shapes and sizes, and it is guaranteed that you have at least several types of pollinators in your very own urban garden. This month, think about spending a few minutes looking at the flowers in your garden and observing what you see - can you spot some butterflies, bees, or wasps? Perhaps even a fly that looks just like a bee or a bee that’s a surprising color, like the bright green sweat bee? There’s a whole tiny world in our gardens that we don’t always notice unless we spend the time to look for it.
Why plant native?
Native plants are plants that have grown for thousands of years in a region, developing relationships with surrounding flora and fauna as well as adapting to the local climate (Grow Native MA). These plants often require less intensive care than non-native plants, as they have grown resilient to local weather conditions such as the harsh New England winters (Penn State Extension). Native plants have also developed co-evolutionary relationships with animals of the area, becoming an integral part of the local ecosystem (Homegrown National Park).
Native plants are vital for the health and survival of the native wildlife that have co-evolved alongside them for thousands of years. Certain insects, especially moths and butterflies, can only feed on specific plants also known as host plants. Some can feed on many different plants such as black swallowtail butterflies, which feed on the leaves of a variety of plants in the carrot family like dill, carrots, and fennel. Other species require a very specific species of plant to feed their caterpillars. Host plants are necessary for the long-term survival of species - without host plants many species of butterflies and moths would no longer be able to reproduce. Beyond the value of conserving these moth and butterfly species, the caterpillars also provide a necessary food source for many of the birds found in the area. In short, without butterflies and moths, the local bird populations will also decline. Some host plants that are found in gardens under our care or that we have been focusing on planting more include:
Pussytoes (Antennaria plantaginifolia) is the host for the American lady butterfly
Swamp milkweed (Asclepias syriaca) or butterfly weed (Asclepias tuberosa) are host plants for the well known monarch butterfly, which cannot reproduce on any other plant types
Violets (Viola spp.) host fritillary butterflies - we’ve been making an effort to leave these lovely ground cover natives around properties!
Asters such as heart-leaved aster (Aster cordifolious) are host plants for the pearl crescent butterfly
Various false indigo plants (Baptisia spp.) host the frosted elfin butterfly
Buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis) is the host plant for the beautiful wood nymph, a moth that mimics bird droppings to avoid getting eaten
Rudbeckia plants host the silvery checkerspot butterfly and the wavy-lined emerald moth
Species spotlight: the monarch butterfly:
You have certainly heard of the monarch butterfly - the charismatic, bright orange butterfly that migrates all the way from Canada to Central Mexico every year. Every spring, over the course of four generations, this butterfly species makes its way back up the eastern coast of the United States and the first monarchs will be arriving in New England soon. As mentioned above, monarchs require milkweed to reproduce, so it is important to include milkweed plants in gardens to provide the butterflies with the tools to survive. However, it also goes beyond just providing a host plant. Monarch females expend a lot of energy flying around finding milkweed plants to lay their eggs on and need to refuel frequently. Adult monarchs do not just feed on milkweed plants - instead they require nectar from various flowering plants that bloom throughout the summer and into the fall to survive. It is especially important to plant fall blooms like Aster, Goldenrod, Liatris Ligulistylis (Meadow Gayfeather), Sedum, Ironweed, Joe-Pye Weed, and Yarrow to support the generation of monarch butterflies flying up to 3,000 miles to Central Mexico between August-October. You can read more about monarch butterflies, how to find them on your milkweed plants, and how to continue supporting the species in this blog post written by Karen.
Ground nesting bees - more common than you’d think
As our last newsletter demonstrated, bees can come in all shapes in sizes and nest in unexpected places! 77% of bees are solitary, meaning one female bee “raises” young in an independent nest rather than a colony like honeybees or bumblebees. 65-80% of bees are ground nesting bees, meaning they nest in small holes they dig in the ground. These ground nesting bees prefer untouched, bare, sandy soil close to potential food sources (your flowers!) as their ideal nesting site. We have noticed that the addition of ground covers possibly helps to ensure that certain areas of gardens remain protected and untouched from human activity, allowing for ground nesting bees to safely build their nests out of harm’s way. These solitary bees are gentle and non-aggressive as they do not have a hive to protect like honeybees do, so they rarely sting and won’t bother you in your garden. Some of these bees even have a tendency to return to nesting sites from year to year, so we are working on noting nesting areas in clients’ gardens to avoid disruption in future years as best as possible. Feel free to ask our team if we’ve noticed any ground nesting bees in your garden!
Did you know that over 370 different species of bees live in Massachusetts?
Read more about the different species of bees and wasps on the Mass Auduban site here: www.massaudubon.org/nature-wildlife/insects-arachnids/bees-wasps
