Build a Pollinator Garden

Introduction

Pollinator gardens help watersheds by preventing runoff pollution, reducing erosion, and improving soil health through the use of native plants. The deep roots of these plants absorb and filter rainwater, slowing its flow and cleaning it before it reaches creeks and rivers. This process also helps reduce flooding and holds soil in place.

To make a pollinator garden, select a sunny spot and prepare the soil by removing grass and weeds. Then, plant a diverse mix of native flowers in groups to provide continuous blooms, food, and nesting habitats for pollinators like bees, butterflies, and birds. Finally, add a water source and avoid using pesticides to create a safe and thriving environment.

Step By Step

1. Prepare your garden space
Choose a sunny location: Select an area that receives at least six hours of sunlight per day.
Clear the area: Remove existing lawn and weeds. You can do this by digging, using a sod cutter, or sheet mulching with cardboard, which is a great method that helps build healthy soil over time.
Avoid amending soil: Native plants are well-adapted to their natural soil, so you typically don't need to add fertilizer. 

2. Select the right plants
Go native: Choose plants native to your region, as they are most beneficial for local pollinators and will thrive in your soil.
Provide variety: Select a diverse range of plants with different colors, shapes, and heights.
Ensure continuous blooms: Choose plants that bloom in early, mid, and late seasons to provide a consistent food source throughout the year.
Include host plants: Add host plants for butterfly and moth caterpillars, which are a vital food source for baby birds. 

3. Add essential habitats and water 
Plant in groups: Arrange plants in masses or clumps of three to five to create a larger, more appealing target for pollinators.
Provide a water source: Place a shallow dish, birdbath, or a "puddling" area with pebbles or stones to give pollinators a safe place to drink without drowning.
Offer shelter and nesting sites: Leave some areas of bare soil for ground-nesting bees, and consider adding a small log, rock pile, or bee house for overwintering insects. 

4. Maintain your garden without pesticides 

Minimize chemical use: Avoid using pesticides, as they can harm or kill pollinators.

Embrace natural processes: Resist the urge to "clean up" the garden completely in the fall, as hollow stems and leaf litter provide crucial overwintering habitat for many species.
Water thoughtfully: Water in the early morning or late evening to avoid disturbing pollinators during their active hours. 

Pollinator Garden Resources

How to build a pollinator garden
The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service offers some good informatoin and instructions for developing your own pollinator garden.

How to Plant a Pollinator Garden
Epic Gardening on You Tube offers an instructional video with useful tips and ideas for making a successful pollinator garden. 

Creating a Pollinator Paradise
This article from the Nature Conservancy magazine offers ideas and suggestions for building a pollinator garden.

Native Plants for Birds 
The Audubon Society has a Native Plant Database, which allows you to find native plants suitable to your area.  The site is bird focused but has lots of information about using native plants

Pollinator Partnership    
This group has a lot of very useful information (note that they use a slightly different ecoregion mapping than the one shown above)

Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center  
This has a great plant database which allows you to look-up more information on specific plants.
     
Homegrown National Park 
This organization raises awareness and urgently inspires everyone to address the biodiversity crisis by adding native plants and removing invasive ones where we live, work, learn, pray, and play.  It has many useful tools and articles.