. . . AND for the bees, butterflies, beetles, bats, moths and more. In short, a pollinator garden is a sanctuary for animals that pollinate. Where would we be without them? Hungry, most likely, as around 1 of 3 bites of food we eat are provided by them. And an estimated 90% of the earth's flowering plants need these animal pollinators to reproduce.

At the Oracle Community Learning Garden we've planted our own pollinator garden. Not Oracle's first - the Oracle Community Center has a lovely butterfly garden - but hopefully one of many small pollinator gardens and patches that will be popping up in our area soon. The more the better, as pollinator populations, both native and non-native animals, are declining for a number of reasons. We can help by providing safe, diverse habitat for them.

We started preparing the soil and planting our first pollinator plants in September, 2019, and we are hoping to expand a bit in the months ahead. Working with Carianne Campbell of Strategic Habitat Enhancements in Tucson, we decided to go all native (or near-native) with our plant selections.

Right now our pollinator garden has 20 species of native plants and this year we'll add another 20 or more species. On Campbell's advice, we have been able to stagger the timing of the flowering of plants so that we have plants blooming almost throughout the year, as well as providing a diversity of flower colors. We know what each plant contributes to our pollinators.

For instance, milkweed plants contribute nectar to dozens of insect species, and are hosts to monarch butterflies. We have 4 species of native milkweeds planted in the garden, and have become one of many Monarch Waystations throughout North America to help support monarch butterflies on their migration. In the Desert Southwest, 104 species of native bees have been found on milkweed flowers, bees that are critical to the success of many of our crops.

The pollinators that show up for the plants in our pollinator garden are some of the same that will pollinate the food crops that our gardeners are growing, as well as those of our neighboring gardeners. We hope that our efforts will help our native pollinators to once again thrive. Yes, we're a small step in that direction but as more of us take these small steps to help, the more we'll see pollinator populations recover.

Come visit the OCLG and take a walk on our soon-to-be-completed Pollinator Pathway. You can learn all about the pollinators of the garden's plants as well other garden features that we've been working on for the past couple of years! Take a little rest on our beautiful wooden bench in the pollinator garden that was built by San Manuel High School students through their INTERACT program sponsored by the SaddleBrooke Rotary Club.

June 21-27 is NATIONAL POLLINATOR WEEK! Why not add to the growing group of people worldwide who are doing their part to keep our native pollinators thriving.

Tips and Tricks

What can we do to help pollinators in our own back yards?

Plant some native flowering plants. Plant a garden or just a pot or 2 with a mix of species. Planting a number of species helps attract a wide range of pollinators. Use the contact info below to let us know if you need help with selecting plants.

Make a watering station for pollinators. Water is often scarce in our summer heat and drought. Add a shallow bowl or dish to your yard filled with rocks, marbles or pebbles and a shallow layer of fresh water. The rocks will give your pollinators somewhere to land without drowning. Keep the water station out of direct sunlight and monitor the water level to make sure that it's full.

Provide natural habitat for native bees. A majority of our native bees live in the ground. Leave some leaf litter and organic material in your garden bed that they can use to make nests or use for shelter. Leave some areas of soil uncovered so bees can create or access their tunnels.

Do you want help planting your own pollinator patch, or maybe just a plant or 2 that would add to the effort? Send us an email at oraclegardening@gmail.com or call Laurie at 910-670-5665.