Here’s How Ohioans Can Help Protect Backyard Pollinators This Spring

Save the bees!

Now that spring has officially sprung you're probably just as eager as I am to start propagating and planting. On any given day you can probably find me down at my local home and garden store.

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But have you decided what you're planting yet?

Myself and Ohio conservationists are asking you for just one favor this season:

Please think of the pollinators!

What Are Pollinators?

When we think of pollinators bees are typically what first comes to mind, but in Ohio bats, hummingbirds, moths, and flies all help to pollinate plants across the Buckeye State.

Why They're Important

According to researchers at Ohio State University pollinators are just essential for native plants, they're essential for the food we eat!

Pollinators play a key role in the production of many foods in the home garden. In addition to their role on farms and gardens, pollinators are essential to the survival of native plants...Without the work of pollinators, many native plants couldn't produce seeds to ensure the plant's next generation.

Wasn't it Einstein that said something to the affect of, "If the bees die, we die"?

How to Help

With the future of the entire world at stake, how can we take action now? It's actually really simple: grow more flowers!

Experts at Ohio State say,

Trees, shrubs and herbaceous plants can provide food and nesting habitat for pollinators. An abundance of different flower shapes, sizes, and colors will appeal to a variety of pollinators.

You're also encouraged to plant a variety of flowers and plants that will bloom throughout the entirety of the season. For example, maple and willow trees bloom early in the season while goldenrods and asters bloom later. This ensures pollinators are protected and well-fed throughout the entire blooming season.

It's also imperative these pollinators have safe nesting sites, so planting clump-forming grass or simply waiting until temperatures are consistently in the 50s before you start raking and mulching is also helpful.

To find a complete and easy guide to protect pollinators in your back yard, click here.