Bee Kind to Pollinators
The warmth of spring and summer allows insect pollinators and native plants to thrive in our gardens. Flowering plants have evolved unique symbiotic relationships with insects during the planet’s history. Some of the first flowering plants used beetles. Because beetles tend to be large, clumsy and strong, plants like Tulip Poplar, Sweetshrub, Flowering Dogwood and Magnolias evolved large, strong, thick flower parts that can stand great abuse. Instead of providing nectar, early plants provided pollen as food—some, like Magnolias, even grow an extra flower part just for their pollinators to eat! More recent plants, however, use nectar to entice a wide variety of animals. Various wasps, bees, flies, butterflies, moths and birds are dependent upon sources of nectar or pollen, while still others—spiders, dragonflies, assassin bugs and many other predators—prey upon the insects that visit flowers for food. Without pollinators, flowering plants would be almost completely unable to produce seeds and make offspring. Spring and summer are the best times of the year to observe or photograph pollinators and plants interacting.
Viewer Tip: Providing insects with habitat is one of the best ways to attract and observe them. A native plant garden is the perfect habitat for many pollinators. To provide food, plant native plants with different flower sizes, shapes, smells, colors and bloom times. To provide habitat, construct and install nesting boxes, create brush piles and plant native trees, shrubs and grasses. Do not use pesticides, as they can kill pollinators.
For more information and recommendations for specific plants, visit the Georgia Wildlife Federation’s Online Guide to the Native Plants of Georgia for Wildlife www.gwf.org.
This information is provided by the Georgia Wildlife Federation. Learn more at www.gwf.org.
