Perennial Herbs - Key for Pollinators

At this time of year, sitting in the garden and watching the varied amount of bees, hover flies, moths, butterflies and beetles is quite amazing.

I wish I knew my bees, but this little one went through each tiny trumpet. Flower clusters are no bigger than a nickel.

Helping them find pollen is key this time of year.

I find the most activity is in the perennial herb boarder.

Most culinary inclined gardeners prevent many herbs from flowering, unless to achieve seed harvesting in the late season. I however, allow many to go to flower and bolt in order to provide bees and other pollinators a chance to gather pollen (much needed now for overwintering preparations).

Don't under-estimate small flowers from herbs. Here is an assortment of perennial herbs that have tiny flowers that attract a lot of pollinator activity:

Lemon Balm

Mint

Spearmint

Summer Savory

 Oregano

Basil

(Although, basil is not usually perennial in my zone (5b), this one self seeds every year)

Onion

 Chives

Sage

 Coriander

With multiple self seeded plantings in a season, this late bloom (albeit tiny flowers) attracts pollinators like crazy.

Please let them bolt and flower. Within 5 minutes of snapping shots, I captured about 4 different pollinators on varied flowers. 'Bee' amazed at what you'll see.

When all the herbs have a few stems that are allowed to flower at once, it's a sheer delight to hear all the buzzing go round.

Stylophorum diphyllum AKA Wood Poppy

This past February, I was privileged to attend a pollinating seminar and native plant talk at the TBG.

Lorraine Johnson (notable author on Native Plants in Ontario) was one of the speakers at the seminar I attended and in her slideshow presentation, she had this plant depicted. I had come across this plant more than once before but knew very little about it. As soon as I saw the photo, I said "Yes!" out loud - delighted to get confirmation to my approach in keeping this "weed" in the garden.

Thankfully, I didn't yank them out last year. Ffffeeew! Lorraine spoke of Wood Poppies as being one of the first flowers in spring which native pollinators need to feed on. I've noticed many solitary bees feeding regularly.

Wood Poppies are a native perennial to southern Ontario, Canada.  Growing incredibly fast and full. In this spot, they have been flowering since the 1st week of May.

I was so pleased we didn't yank them out. They were much smaller and had one flower last year. Where they came from?...still is a mystery. Nonetheless, I am happy to situate them in the shaded part of the garden where they seem to thrive.

Wood Poppies are also known as Celandine Poppies. Flowering for some time now, their buds are just as beautiful as their flower. Hence, the name Poppy - those fuzzy buds are quite sweet.

So grateful to have this addition to the garden. Giving myself a pat on the back and thanking the heavens for dropping them in the garden for us to enjoy!

Having looked up more info at the Canadian Wildlife Federation site, I see they were listed as an endangered plant in 2000.  Here's hoping more will seed and propagate.

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Please note:  See the Imposture Post I made after learning more about the above plant.

2015 Canada Blooms

I had the pleasure of seeing green again this week. After our harsh winter, it was a joy!

Here are some of the snap-shots I took. Very busy day to visit. Was glad to see so many people soaking it up.

The living wall trend is still alive:

The use of Echeverias and German Ivy worked like a clockwork!  :) 

To be honest, I prefer this scale. I'd do this in a heart-beat, if I had a hot brick wall facing south/east.  For sure.

Loving the fern idea. Gonna see if I can try this myself. Fun.

 Was so glad to see the continued floral creativity. These were some of my favs:

This one had top honours and was my #1 too!

Enjoyed this little Fairy Garden. Do you spot it?

A design firm called Bienenstock Playgrounds made playground apparatus and this tree house from tree trunks and limbs. Quite impressive!

And special kudos to the TBG for having a 4 balcony (room) Pollinating Playground showcase. Cheers to TBG's Paul Zammit, TBG staff and all the volunteers for putting together a great educational display!

Even though there were plenty of wow displays, I still gravitate towards the simpler, more DIY ideas that I could take home and easily do. Like these:

Two more days left for the show. It's combined with the National Home Show.  Lots to see and enjoy!

Bee-hind In Understanding

Today, I was very fortunate to have training on the importance of pollinating critters, specifically BEES.

My un-informed self was quite educated today.

I knew of the decline in bee populations as of late. It's quite alarming, but what I didn't know was the sheer difference between Bumblebees vs Honeybees.  Please see the below link for a Bumblebee vs Honeybee brochure put together by Wildlife Preservation Canada.

Photo from www.wildlifepreservation.ca 
Bumblebee Brochure WLP

One eye opening fact I learned today: Canada has NO native Honeybees. Honeybees have been imported from Europe.

Canadian Bumblebees, Solitary Bees and Leaf Cutter Bees are quintessential for pollinating crops, and plant life all around us. They are in decline. We need to be informed of their differences. We also need to provide more of their habitat which is threatened.

Please take the time to visit and learn more about bees and insect pollinators - how we effect and contribute to their decline at: http://wildlifepreservation.ca/insect-pollinators/

Informed gardening techniques can make a difference. Be that change.

Here's how:

Poster of Plants That Attract Bumblebees from Wildlife Preservation Canada