One of my two year old’s favorite tricks is when I make his toy caterpillar turn into a toy butterfly under a dishtowel cocoon. He squeals with glee every time the butterfly emerges from the dishtowel! (You have to love inspiration from The Very Hungry Caterpillar.)
Unfortunately, I’ve noticed that the real things are hard to spot these days. Research bears this out: many species of butterflies, moths, birds, bats, and domesticated honey bees and other pollinators are declining.
This Sunday marks the end of National Pollinator Week, which highlights the importance of pollinators in the world food supply and ecosystems.
It’s been calculated that one out of every three mouthfuls of food we eat, and beverages we drink, is delivered to us by pollinators. As a matter of fact, these helpful animals pollinate 75 percent of our flowering plants and crops. Without pollinators, we wouldn’t have flowers, fruit, nuts, coffee, or chocolate! (I repeat: no coffee and chocolate!)
Most plants need cross-pollination—the movement of pollen from one plant to another—to survive. As bees and other pollinators get their food from the flower of the plant, they brush up against the pollen. The pollen sticks to them and is rubbed off on other plants of the same species, fertilizing them. Once fertilized, a plant produces fruit or seeds.
Interested in helping our pollinating friends? (Did I mention that they make chocolate and coffee possible?) Some simple things you can do at home include:
- Plant a pollinator garden. Choose plants that flower at different times of the year to provide nectar and pollen throughout the growing season. Plant groups of flowers, choose native plants, and avoid using “double” hybrid flowers since their pollen, nectar, and fragrance are often bred out of them.
- Build a bee nesting box, leave a dead tree or limb undisturbed (if it’s not a safety hazard, of course), or maintain a small, undisturbed patch of bare ground to provide a nesting habitat.
- Avoid or limit using pesticides. Try removing individual pests by hand if possible (wearing garden gloves), encourage native predators with a diverse garden habitat, and expect and accept a little bit of pest activity. If you must use a pesticide, choose one that is the least toxic to non-pest species, does not persist on vegetation, and apply it in the evening when most pollinators are not as active.
- Educate others about the importance of pollinators. The U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Geological Survey, and USA.gov have great information on pollinators, and the Children’s Butterfly Site is sure to interest any metamorphosis-maniac child.
Have you helped pollinators?