To attract pollinators to your veggie garden, plant an array of native and cultivated flowers that bloom gradually throughout the season. Be mindful when applying chemicals — even organic options could prove toxic to pollinators!
Native plants provide nectar, pollen and nutrients needed by native pollinators species. Include sunflowers, zinnias and marigolds among your vegetable garden flowers as they will all provide essential nectar, pollen and nutrition sources.
Native Plants
No matter if you’re designing a vegetable garden, herb bed, or border; native plants are key to attracting pollinators to any garden design project. Over time they have co-evolved alongside local pollinators in terms of climate, soil composition and existing wildlife; in addition they add beauty and interest while providing year-round food sources for insects.
Utilizing flowers that bloom at different times during the season to provide pollinators with food at their active periods is key for supporting pollination efforts, from early spring through late fall. Look for flowers with bright colors, rich nectar and long tubular or narrowly funnel-shaped openings; these will attract hummingbirds, butterflies and bees alike!
Native flowering plants are especially valuable pollinator resources because they have co-evolved with local ecosystems and co-evolved with insects native to them. Alongside bees, common pollinators include flies, wasps, bumblebees, ants, dragonflies, moths and bats.
Vegetable crops such as tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers depend on bees to assist with fruit production. Each of these crops features male and female flowers which need pollinators visiting in order to transfer pollen between male and female flowers and ensure fruitful plants.
To attract pollinators to a vegetable garden, it is best to plant an array of flowers that bloom throughout the season, particularly native species native to your area. Natives have deeper connections to the soil and habitat they’re grown in, which means less need for irrigation, fertilizers, pesticides or other chemicals; plus they attract beneficial insects that eat pests that threaten vegetables!
Consider including perennials such as lilyturfa, milkweed and tulips in your vegetable garden as they offer pollinators food year-round and provide shelter to birds and animals. Also incorporate night blooming flowers such as 4 o’clocks, datura, moonflowers and evening primroses that attract pollinators who don’t readily visit day flowers such as marigolds and zinnias; many of these night-bloomers can tolerate all zones.
Flowers
Zinnias, cosmos, marigolds and sunflowers produce brightly-colored flowers that attract bees, butterflies and moths, essential pollinators that ensure successful vegetable crops. Open flowers like tomatoes, cucumbers and squash produce separate male and female flowers that must be pollinated so their pollen makes its way to their counterpart female flowers for depositing, so fruit grows properly – otherwise these blooms would wilt and die without pollination!
Since most vegetables only flower briefly each year, it’s essential that pollinators visit regularly throughout the growing season. Although vegetable plants require regular watering, pollinators can help draw water up from roots by visiting nearby flowers; water sources like birdbaths and small bowls help draw in these beneficial insects while keeping your garden healthy and active.
Some flowers provide pollinators with food rewards, an invaluable asset in vegetable gardens where harvest is often picked directly at the plant. Red tubular flowers such as those found on Foxglove, Lilyturf and Trumpet vine are highly attractive to hummingbirds and will offer nourishment directly at their source.
Flowers of different colors, shapes and scents attract various pollinators. Bumblebees tend to prefer yellow or blue petals while hummingbirds prefer red blooms. Flowers that produce an abundance of nectar attract bees; many weeds such as purple prairie clover (Lotus) and blazing star (Liatris) produce enough nectar for this to happen.
Mixing flowers and vegetables together has other advantages, such as repelling or attracting pests such as cabbage worms (Cavola oleracea), mice (L. sativa), or raccoons (Cercocebus atricautus). Nasturtiums, petunias and marigolds possess natural pest-deterring odors while others such as Lupine can increase nitrogen in soil and improve drainage.
Tulips and hyacinths provide shelter for insect egg masses that provide sustenance for bees and other pollinators, while other flowers like kale, collard greens, and chard serve as host plants for Lepidoptera larvae that feed off various plant leaves.
Vegetables
Many vegetables, in order to produce fruit, require pollination by insects such as honeybees or bumblebees that transfer pollen between flowers – this includes butterflies, flies, bats, birds, beetles and even rodents! So adding flowers that attract these beneficial bugs into the vegetable garden helps ensure healthy and plentiful crops.
Vegetables that grow in the ground or raised beds, like squash, cucumbers, melons, corn, eggplant beans and okra require pollination to ensure successful production and avoid misshapen or undersized fruits. Gardeners can attract pollinators by planting pollinator-friendly flowers like marigolds nasturtiums dianthus or zinnia nearby to draw pollinators to these vegetables and increase pollinator numbers.
Vegetables in containers benefit greatly from having flowers added as companion plants. To increase pollination of container-grown veggies successfully, select annual flowers that bloom continuously through the season – for more suggestions check with local nurseries or extension offices.
Pollinators in a vegetable garden can be drawn in by various aspects of flowers’ colors and fragrances; their shapes; and their height. Hummingbirds prefer tubular blooms while bees favor flat-topped blossoms; height of bloom can help determine the ease with which bees reach it as well as stamens/stigmas present on it (some flowers pollinate themselves while others require pollination by another flower).
Planting vegetables and flowers that attract pollinators can also help control pests in a vegetable garden. A solitary bee colony may serve as an effective natural form of protection for cucumber plants that are vulnerable to insect damage, like cucumber.
Although some gardeners divide up their edible and ornamental gardens into distinct beds, Casey Hentges of OSU Extension’s Associate Specialist and Host of Oklahoma Gardening suggests planting all plants together in one garden bed in order to make weeding simpler while providing pollinators with constant sources of nectar.
Bee Hotels
Solitary bees are important pollinators that help you grow tomatoes, squash and pumpkins in your garden. Too few pollinators could mean flowers don’t bloom and fruits wilt; you may try attracting these beneficial insects by planting flowers and placing bee houses; however, there are other strategies you can employ to encourage these beneficial insects to visit.
One option for creating an environment conducive to bee health is installing a bee hotel, similar to birdhouses but specifically tailored for solitary bees. Like their birdhouse counterparts, bee hotels provide safe shelter where these bees can nest and raise their larvae in safety and comfort. These structures typically consist of hollowed-out wood blocks with entrance and exit holes that make entry and exit easy, and these can be purchased both from garden centers as well as online vendors; just be wary when purchasing premade units as they could contain harmful parasites which will kill their inhabitants!
Materials ideal for building a bee hotel are repurposed wood and old twigs, although you could also opt for untreated wood. A large block of untreated wood should serve as the frame and can be fastened directly to the ground in your vegetable garden. A cover should be added at both ends to protect bees inside from rainwater pouring in; its sides should have openings of various sizes according to which species of bee you want to attract; its entrance should also be smooth without any splinters, since bees won’t use tubes with rough entrances!
Bee hotels should be placed around 3 feet from any vegetable gardens to prevent bees from disturbing any of your crops while raising their young. To reduce bird pecking at bees, chicken wire mesh should extend an inch from the front of their bee house.
The NYC Department of Transport Greening Public Spaces program has joined forces with the Horticultural Society of New York to establish bee hotels throughout New York’s five boroughs. Their purpose is to support pollinators movement through green urban spaces while informing New Yorkers about their role in our ecosystems.