by Judy Peacock, Fulton County Master Gardener Extension Volunteer
This article is part of Garden Buzz, a series from Appen Media and the North Fulton Master Gardeners, where rotating columnists explore horticulture topics like herbs, insects, and wildlife conservation. Find all Garden Buzz articles here.
About ten years ago, I attended a Georgia Master Gardeners Association (GMGA) conference in Athens, GA. The keynote speaker was Doug Tallamy, an entomology professor at the University of Delaware in Newark, DE. He talked about his theory of how we, humans and gardeners, have affected the decline in insects and birds by the introduction of exotic plant species in our environments.
He explained how insects have evolved with certain native species and depend on them for food and habitat to lay eggs and raise their offspring. And how our native birds depend on those insects for food to raise their young. It follows that we humans depend on those insect pollinators and birds for our food plants’ pollination and seed production. A very common-sense idea and one that should be obvious to us all. In his 2007 book, Bringing Nature Home Tallamy encourages each of us who have any land to begin to eradicate non-natives, to plant our native species, and to turn our pristine acres of non-productive grass lawns to a more productive use.
In 2018 my husband and I sold our home in Atlanta and moved to Ellijay. Our new home is on seven and a half acres and has both woodlands and former pastureland, which means a lot of sun. A perfect spot to grow natives and to create gardens for our pollinators. The land was already graced with many native trees, oaks, tulip poplar, hickories, maples, redbuds, dogwoods, sourwoods, beech, and pines.
I wanted to create a pollinator garden. I also wanted as much variety as possible and for it to be beautiful. There was a raised bed made of timbers already on our property. Though it was filled with weeds and grass, it was the perfect spot to plant this garden. After cleaning out the weeds and adding bags of compost, I could begin the fun part, selecting and planting the native pollinator plants.
I started with plants I had brought with me from Atlanta: Stokes’ aster, mountain mint, yarrow, bee balm, purple coneflower, and phlox. After visiting a native nursery near me, I added rose milkweed, butterfly weed, cardinal flower, downy skullcap, Penstemon, native hibiscus and Gaura.
I have also planted some non-natives that are not invasive. I like to tuck in nasturtium seeds along the front so that they will cascade over the walls, and the hummingbirds love them. I have added herbs: comfrey, oregano, rue, catnip and fennel. And have planted some very tall lilies for my own viewing pleasure.
There is nothing more serene than to view this bed on an early summer morning or late afternoon as the pollinators make their way from flower to flower. Some mornings I find bumble bees sleeping on flowers. And we have a plethora of birds in our yard, including cardinals, goldfinches, blue jays, bluebirds, sparrows, wrens, various woodpeckers, phoebes, crows, hummingbirds, and many other bird visitors as they travel from the north to south.
As Doug Tallamy has proposed, if each of us used just a small portion of our land to create a habitat of native plants, we could make a native highway for our native pollinators and establish habitat, food, nectar and pollen to support them. We would not just be helping them but ourselves as well and the whole world. Many small steps can make a huge difference.
Happy Pollinator Gardening!
Learn More
- The Eco-Friendly Garden: Attracting Pollinators, Beneficial Insects, and Other Natural Predators (UGA Extension)
- Pollinator Garden Design Guide: Activities for Youth, Schools, and Beginning Designers
- Bringing Nature Home: How You Can Sustain Wildlife with Native Plants, Doug Tallamy, 2007
- Attracting Native Pollinators: The Xerces Society Guide, Protecting North America’s Bees and Butterflies, 2011
- HOMEGROWN National Park
This week’s “Garden Buzz” guest columnist is Judy Peacock, a master gardener for thirteen years. Judy is a former resident of Atlanta, now retired and living in Ellijay, GA. She graduated from the University of Georgia majoring in Art Education. Judy volunteered at the High Museum of Art in the Department of Children’s Education. Judy loves gardening and is developing various types of gardens on their seven and a half acres. She is a member of the Speakers Bureau of the North Fulton Master Gardeners.