Plant for pollinators this growing season

WORLAND – Eight hundred species of bees pollinate the state of Wyoming, and University of Wyoming Extension Small Acreage Outreach Coordinator Jenny Thompson taught how to attract them all to your yard during the Grow Washakie Workshop at Washakie Museum and Cultural Center on Saturday, March 4.

Native bees encourage honeybees to be better pollinators through competition and help a wider variety of plants. Bumble bees, for example, are excellent tomato pollinators, as their large bodies are effective in shaking pollen from its flowers. Alkali bees are top pollinators of alfalfa, and some growers have even built stretches of salty soil into their farmland to provide nesting habitat. Mason bees, mining bees and sweat bees all contribute to pollination. Most of Wyoming’s bees are solitary ground nesting bees, and Thompson suggested protecting known nest areas from tillage to preserve young bees and their food supplies.

To attract pollinators, Thompson said, “Give ‘em what they want!” Leaving spaces for bees to nest – either in the ground or crevices, allows them to pollinate nearby plants. Butterflies and moths need leaf litter to overwinter and pupate in, as well as plants for their caterpillars to eat and shelter them from predators. For example, swallowtail caterpillars enjoy cottonwood, aspen, willows, wild cherry, serviceberry and ash as their hosts. Monarchs are known milkweed lovers, and Thompson reported she has had the most luck with the swamp milkweed variety, which is shorter to the ground to protect it from wind. Those gorgeous adult butterflies are attracted to some less savory things, and Thompson suggested leaving rotting fruit, animal waste and mud puddles in your yard could provide the pollinators with extra food and minerals, especially toward the beginning and end of growing seasons.

Give and take is an important aspect of pollinator attraction, Thompson noted. Larvae may need to eat some plants as a sacrifice for others. Cutter bees, known to cut into roses, apple and cherry stems to make their homes, may cause destruction, but could provide pollinating benefits. To dissuade pollinators from laying their eggs on plants, Thompson suggested using a thin cover. In the case of leafcutter bees or hungry caterpillars, using sacrificial plants to keep them out of the garden was suggested over treatment.

When pesticides are used, they should be applied when bees and other insects are less active, about 30 minutes before dusk. Flowering plants should be skipped when applying pesticides that are highly toxic to bees, and to avoid pesticide drifting onto flowering plants, a 20-foot no spray buffer zone at the edge of crop fields can reduce impact.

The most important thing to bring pollinators into your yard or garden is a variety of plants that will bloom over various seasons, Thompson said. Perennials that Thompson noted to be especially attractive to pollinators include Agastache, catmints, goldenrods, globethistle, lavender, aster, oregano, penstemon, purple coneflower, purple prairie clover, salvia, sedium, and thymes. Annuals such as calendula, cilantro, cleome, cosmos, phacella, poppies and sunflowers are also popular. Herbs seem to be especially magnetic to bees, Thompson said. Choosing plants that will bloom in early spring and late fall gives pollinators a more stable food source. A pollinator meadow of wildflowers and foraging plants, such as grasses, is an extra boost.

To learn more about “Promoting Pollinators on Your Place,” visit uwyo.edu/barnbackyard. UW Extension’s “Plants with Altitude” guide may offer additional information on plant selection as well as information on where native plants can be

purchased.