How To Enhance Your Spring Garden with Pollinator-Friendly Plants

You may have heard that pollinators, such as the humble bee, are in danger. According to the Natural History Museum, ‘some of Europe’s bumblebees could be pushed to the edge of extinction in the next 60 years’.

So, why is it so important to produce these helpful garden creatures? Without pollinators, we would struggle agriculturally, our food supply would diminish and our beautiful landscape would no longer be as beautiful. With our gardens, we need to continue encouraging these creatures to visit and continue the cycle of pollination. In this article, we will be giving you our professional top tips on how to enhance your spring garden with pollinator-friendly plants.

Choose Native Plants

To bring more pollinators into your garden, we would recommend using native plants throughout your garden or estate. In the UK, our most common pollinators are hoverflies, ladybirds, beetles, bees and butterflies. These garden visitors all enjoy similar plants such as alyssums, asters, borages, calendulas, foxgloves, hyssops and marigolds. There are also a 

handful of trees that would suit a pollinator’s interests too, such as hazels, alders and pussy willows. 

But, what is a native plant? A native plant can be defined as a plant that has arrived here in Britain or Ireland without the assistance of humans, or was already here and persisted during the last Ice Age.  Native plants will be well-adapted to the weather and will be happily planted in our soil conditions, meaning pollinators will be more attractive to them. 

Provide a Variety of Blooms

Much like other creatures, pollinators have preferences when it comes to what plants and flowers they enjoy. Including a variety of blooms will ensure that you get many garden visitors throughout the year. For instance, lavender, sunflowers, beebalms and foxgloves are among some of the favourites of bees. W

hereas, their pollinating counterparts, butterflies, prefer buddlejas, sedums, hebes and verbena bonariensis. Planting a wider range of flowers, which will have varying shapes, colours and bloom times will attract many more pollinators. With March here, we can predict flowers such as tulips, primroses and crocus’ starting to bloom. Tulips, for example, are another bumblebee favourite. As experts in the field, the best type of tulips for attracting bees are the purple variety. 

Include Host Plants

Some pollinators, such as butterflies, rely on specific host plants. Here, they will be able to lay their eggs and provide food for their larvae – after all, who doesn’t see a beautiful butterfly in their garden? 

But it’s not just the butterflies that rely on these host plants –  ‘many plants rely on insects to pollinate their flowers and so complete their reproductive cycle – most plants cannot set seed without being pollinated’. Did you know that it’s estimated that 84% of EU crops (valued at £12.6 billion) and 80% of wildflowers rely on insect pollination? To ensure we are keeping these little critters coming back to our garden, it’s important we listen to what they may need to carry on their all-important job. 

For butterflies for example, they benefit from having plants such as lavender and Perennial Wallflowers in a garden, but there are also a lot of other preferences for their larvae. Firstly, butterflies prefer a warm space for their pollinating duties. Choosing to plant your host seedlings in a place that receives sun and is sheltered would be great. 

We would also recommend providing flowers right through butterfly season.  Spring flowers are essential for butterflies emerging from hibernation, while autumn flowers assist butterflies in accumulating reserves for the winter ahead. 

Avoid Chemical Pesticides

To keep butterflies and other pollinators interested, we would suggest not using any invasive  insecticides and pesticides. As well as disrupting their natural behaviour, chemical pesticides can actually kill butterflies and many other pollinators. Instead of opting for the chemical option, you can instead try more natural ways to get rid of pests. 

For instance, a clean garden is a pest-free garden. With autumn and winter now at an end, we can start removing any debris that may have built up in the garden where pests could potentially be hiding. You can also build physical barriers for pests. Natural and effective, a barrier will ‘physically separate pests from plants. Insect mesh or horticultural fleece will stop just about any pest from getting near your hard-won crops’.

Provide Water Sources

Much like plants, pollinators also need water to keep hydrated and allow them to do their job. Pollinators love the hot weather and will start appearing more in spring. But with hot weather comes the need for these small creatures to find reliable water sources – in your garden design stage, you can help them with this. 

Providing pollinators with a water source can be done by creating shallow bird baths or even, by filling saucers with water and some pebbles to raise the water level. Small ponds can also offer a much-needed drinking spot for bees, butterflies and birds as well. Ensuring that pollinators have a spot to drink is not just vital in summer and spring, but also during the colder months. According to The Wildlife Trust ‘it is important to have plenty of water for animals and birds to drink and bathe in. But don’t stop there! It is also important to keep the water topped up during the chilly winter months as sources of water can become frozen and more difficult to find.’

Maintain Blooms Year-Round

Planting a variety of flowers and plants that bloom throughout the spring, summer, and autumn seasons will help extend the availability of nectar to pollinators. This will act as a continuous food supply for these small creatures and encourage them to visit your garden all year round. 

To maintain a fresh amount of blooming plants in your garden, it’s important to understand when the best time to plant your desired flowers, plants and shrubs – after all, gardens that bloom all year round  do not happen by accident. During your garden design phase, it’s vital to start with a plan. It’s a great idea to ‘have a mix of many different types of flowering plants. You can use annual flowers, or perennial flowers, depending on your goals and planting schedule.’

BZ Gardens – Surrey Garden Specialists 

If bringing pollinators to your garden year-round is something you struggle with and you would like to know more, contact our team today. Here at BZ Gardens, we are specialists when it comes to designing an outdoor space that bees, butterflies, ladybugs and other pollinators alike will enjoy. To  speak to our Surrey-based team, please contact us on 01483 967160.