Native pollinators need appropriate native plants, those that are indigenous to our specific geographic area: Here in the Willamette Valley, we live in the Pacific Lowland Mixed Forest ecosystem (same as the Puget Sound Valley). Before cultivation, we had dense coniferous forests, prairies that supported open stands of oaks, and wetlands with swamp or bog communities. The original, natural vegetation provided continuous cover and adjacent feeding opportunities for wildlife, including pollinators.
We can no longer assume that nature "out there" somewhere is taking care of the wildlife. We need to turn our urban and suburban areas into habitat, starting with native pollinator gardens. Imagine a pollinator-friendly neighborhood, with native plants in bloom through as much of the growing season as possible, from one yard, patio, front porch to another! Imagine birds, bees, and butterflies welcomed back to our cities!
“What if each American landowner made it a goal to convert half of his or her lawn to productive native plant communities? Even moderate success could collectively restore some semblance of ecosystem function to more than twenty million acres of what is now ecological wasteland. ... we can create this country’s largest park system. It gives me the shivers just to write about it. Because so much of this park will be created at our homes, I suggest we call it Homegrown National Park.”
― Nature's Best Hope
Agenda:
1. Prepare to create pollinator habitat
2. Gather plants and seeds:
3. Start seeds and transplants
4. Planting milkweed and lupine
5. Butterfly craftivism
1. Prepare to create pollinator habitat:
Planting a native bee and butterfly garden is a pretty big project if you are going to do it right, so let's start with some preparation.
I use the French cooking phrase mis en place (pronounced mi zɑ̃ ˈplas) to describe the Unity Art way to prepare; it means "putting in place," and refers to the set up, chopping, and arranging you do before cooking, and also a state of mind of being prepared: Do all your preparation, including preparing yourself, before moving on to creation.
I asked myself: Where is the Spirit of love and truth leading me at this time? What are the first steps I can take?
The first three steps are to:
1. Choose a location or two: Sunlight is the key. Most native plants that attract pollinators will require full sun for at least half of the day. (If an area is particularly windy, you can plant larger shrubs as a windbreak.)
2. Prepare them: To prepare the new pollinator beds you will need to remove grass and weeds, and kill dormant seeds, because natives can't handle much competition when they are starting off. The recommendation is to cover an area with plastic for a full growing season before planting, but I used newspapers and a heavy layer of mulch.3. Research and choose the native plants: Pollinators have two kinds of plant needs: Habitat to live in, and food. For butterflies this means you need to plant host plants, where they lay their eggs, and nectar plants for them to eat. (Choose flowers that bloom in the spring, summer, and fall to provide nectar throughout the season.)
I chose two areas to transform into pollinator gardens, downloaded a list of pollinator-friendly native plants for my region, and started to plan out what to collect.
2. Gather plants and seeds:
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| Douglas Aster |
I've also got a narrow bed right at the top of my front yard with great soil that gets full sun and not much water. Right now it contains irises and other bulbs, and peppermint. I want to turn it into a miniature butterfly and bee meadow. I plan to add:
- Western and common yarrow (Achillea millefolium) - provides pollen for beneficial insects like Lacewings, Hoverflies, lady bugs, and predatory wasps
- Showy Milkweed (Asclepias speciosa) - provides others habitat and nectar for Monarch butterflies
- Oregon Sunshine (Eriophyllum lanatum)
- Large-Flowered Collomia (Collomia grandiflora)
- Globe Gilia (Gilia capitata)
- Douglas Aster (Symphyotrichum subspicatus) - an important late blooming flower (August to October)
Sanctuary garden:
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| Douglas Spirea |
- More Western Columbine (Aquilegia formosa) - supports hummingbirds
- Pacific Bleeding Heart (Dicentra Formosa) - supports hummingbirds
- Douglas Spirea - supports butterflies, bees, and seeds are eaten by birds and small mammals
- and maybe an Evergreen Huckleberry (Vaccinium ovatum) - supports bees and birds.
I've ordered and received some seeds and plants, and collected some from friends and family; the best place to store native seeds until you are ready to plant is in a cool, dry, dark place. (Refrigerators are great.)
Research sources:
Native bee plants - Doak Creek Nursery
Butterfly habitat - National Wildlife Federation
Bird habitat - The Audubon Society
3. Start seeds and transplants:
The seed company I ordered from, Northwest Meadowscapes, has this advise: "Native seeds are often dormant, meaning they have physical or chemical properties that inhibit germination until conditions are optimal for growth. ... This is very different from garden vegetable seed, which is bred to have immediate and fast germination rates. Native seed can be SLOW to get started."
I'll plant the seed next month, when it's colder and wetter, because cold weather exposure switches off the dormancy of many seeds. Another advantage of fall-planting is that they get their water needs supplied by winter rains, developing good root systems before things begin to dry out in late spring.
I'll plant some seeds and plants directly in beds, and also put some individually in pots (outdoors), so I can see what they look like when they come up. When I plant my mini-meadow bed next month, I'm going to clump each flower by species and color, rather than spread them around the yard, because this makes the colors easier for butterflies to see, and they will be more likely to utilize them. I'll hand scatter it directly onto the soil surface, then lightly raked into the soil after planting (not buried).
4. Planting milkweed and lupine:
I've got two kinds of seeds that are finicky - Showy milkweed and lupine - that I'm going to handle differently.
I've harvested and dried one of my milkweed pods, and it's in the refrigerator. Next spring I'm going to start some new plants! But they are very difficult. Here are the directions:
- Cold stratify the seeds in the refrigerator mixed with barely damp sand for 30-60 days, checking occasionally to ensure no mold is growing. If it is, wash it off immediately.
- Soak the seeds in hot tap water for 8-hours after removing them from the fridge.
- Wrap the seeds in a damp paper towel, place this inside a plastic bag, and leave the package somewhere warm but out of sunlight – such as the kitchen counter. Unwrap and check the seeds daily.
- Any germinating seeds should be placed into a container with a mix of 50:50 seed-starting mix and sand, and kept in a warm outdoor location out of direct sunlight.
- Water and care for the young plants daily until they are large enough (6-8 inches) to be transplanted into the ground.
Lupine seed is another difficult one to get to germinate. Here's my plan:
- I'm going to keep the seeds in the refrigerator until February.
- Then aggressively scarify by chipping off a portion of each seed coat with a serrated knife,
- followed by 10 days between damp paper towels in the refrigerator,
- and then I think I'll plant them in a big pot outside where I can keep eye on them.
I've also got several milkweed plants in the front that are growing all clumped together, because it has spread from the one plant I planted 5 years ago. This week I'm going to dig up most of it and move into my new meadow spot.
Milkweed needs full sun, and you want to plant at least six plants, but they should be spaced a few feet apart; this is the single most effective strategy to protect monarch butterflies from predation, as concentrations of milkweed plants are inviting to wasps, hornets, yellow jackets, ants, and spiders that will eat Monarch eggs.
5. Butterfly craftivism:
As I said earlier, my intention with Medicine Art is usually to use my creative fire to forge a stronger connection between me and the subject. All of the steps up until now have been working on me to form connections, and now I'm ready to honor my subject with my creativity. This might be in the form of a painting, or a poem, or a container to hold the subject. I've been making these paper butterflies all summer, with kids and with adults. We made two versions: Those with rice paper and those with watercolor paper (which are hardier and can hang outside).
Supplies:
PDF of template and tags, paper (watercolor or rice paper), pencil, scissors, water, brush, concentrated watercolor inks, newspapers, iron (optional), pipe cleaners, string, card stock to print tags.Note: The trick to any painting project with young kids is to have all the supplies ready, act quickly, and stop when they loose interest.
1. Print the butterfly template and cut it out; trace pattern onto a quarter-sheet of watercolor paper, and cut it out. Fold in half, then open flat.2. Look at photos of butterflies for color inspiration.
3. Put the paper butterfly on newspaper, and brush one side with a film of water.
4. Use a dropper to apply small dots or swirls of one color to one side of one wing, then press the sides together to get a mirror image. 5. Add more color a little at a time, pressing after each.
6. Flip the butterfly over (on newspaper) and blot off the extra paint. Dry in the sun (or optionally, use an iron.)
7. Repeat with second side.
8. Fold a pipe cleaner in half and insert over the center fold, to make a body. Twist pipe cleaner at top and bottom to hold in place, and shape the top ends into antennas.
10. Hang in a public place to spread the word about butterfly habitat!
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