Designing Outdoor Spaces for Wildlife and Pollinators
Wildlife requires plants, water, shelter and places for raising young. You can provide this habitat through simple design changes using native plants and sustainable practices that require less upkeep for both pollinators and birds alike.
Create a multilayered landscape to support biodiversity in your area. A ground layer composed of golden alexander and creeping phlox, midlayers consisting of Joe-Pye weed and bee balm, as well as an upper canopy composed of serviceberry trees can offer food, shelter, perches and nesting sites for wildlife in an area.
1. Plants
An abundance of flowers, native trees and shrubs is crucial to maintaining the health of our ecosystems. These species provide habitats and food sources for wildlife as well as organic matter for bacteria, fungi and insects – serving both as sources of sustenance as well as nesting material for birds, mammals, reptiles and amphibians.
Native plants provide pollinators with excellent food and shelter. They’re tailored specifically to each region’s climate, soil types and conditions – acting as food sources all year. Many flowering native species like Baptisia australis (blue wild indigo) and Liatris scariosa (blazing star) play an integral part in feeding pollinators like bees by providing nectar as well as hosting larvae of pollinator insects.
As bee populations worldwide continue to decrease, it has never been more crucial to support their efforts and protect the local wildlife they depend on. By planting pollinator friendly gardens and providing services and shelter, local citizens can help support bee populations while also improving local economies.
Reserving grassland for wildlife or creating gardens filled with perennials and shrubs that bloom often can create ideal habitat. Furthermore, adding tall grasses or wildflowers, brush piles or other structures provide even more cover from harsh summer sun or predators as well as offering shelter to overwinter or lay eggs in.
The Journal of Botany (formerly American Botanical Society’s Journal of Botany) is an international peer-reviewed journal dedicated to botanical science in all its aspects. This includes topics like plant morphology, physiology, ecology and life history – as well as economic and cultural value; basic and applied issues in structural, functional and experimental botany as well as basic botanical concepts and experiments.
Reduce pesticide use and leave overgrown areas for wildlife to inhabit. Leave grasses and tall wildflowers unmown so ground nesting bees can burrow down during winter; allow mud to accumulate in wet spots to encourage butterfly puddling for minerals; defer cleaning up garden areas until late spring as butterflies may overwinter in leaf piles, mulch piles and stiff stemmed plants.
2. Water
Pollinators depend heavily on water to survive, with monarch butterflies getting all of the glory for their iconic struggle; however, other pollinators such as bees, wasps, dragonflies and hummingbirds also require access to fresh and clean sources of unpolluted water to stay alive and thrive.
Water features such as ponds, waterfalls, and fountains not only add beauty to outdoor spaces but can also improve their ecosystem’s health by humidifying air quality and reducing pollen and allergen levels. They may also attract wildlife such as frogs and toads that would not normally find shelter there.
Water features provide habitats for birds, amphibians, insects and other forms of wildlife in your yard; it’s important to remember that wildlife require access to deep but shallow sources of clean drinking and bathing water that are free from contaminants. Bird baths can provide this source of freshwater in your garden; or alternatively you could create one with more natural aesthetics – like waterfalls, ponds or meandering streams can all offer their services too.
Native plants are an invaluable tool in supporting pollinators and wildlife populations, but they require the appropriate habitat to thrive. This means planting them so they resemble natural ecosystems as much as possible, with plenty of grasses, wildflowers, shrubs and trees blooming at various times to provide nectar and pollen supplies to pollinators populations.
Pesticides should be used with extreme caution as they can harm pollinators and wildlife; instead, non-toxic alternatives like natural predators and fungi should be utilized instead to manage pests. Regular maintenance such as night mowing or carefully weeding around reblooming flowers is important in order to keep your landscape healthy and welcoming to pollinators.
At an Amazon fulfillment center in Virginia, associates replaced acres of invasive species with native grasses and plants that attract pollinators, helping reduce emissions while simultaneously decreasing mowing emissions. Meanwhile in Germany, social cooperative KARUNA assisted with creating a network of „tiny forests” providing diverse ecosystems for bees and other animals.
3. Shelter
Natural shelter is essential to wildlife, pollinators and plants, providing shelter from wind and rain as well as shade, nesting spots and more. It doesn’t take much effort or space – even planting multiple species with varied heights, colors and shapes can create these vital environments that wildlife depends on.
Switch up your lawn landscape by planting native meadow flowers or forest gardens instead. These wildflower-rich areas require far less maintenance than lawns while providing habitats for birds, mammals and pollinators alike.
If you want to take it a step further, add a pond. A pond will attract all sorts of aquatic life from amphibians and newts to dragonflies and birds – not to mention it helps reduce grass by creating habitat in small spaces!
At Amazon’s headquarters in Virginia, associates installed wildflower meadows and nectar-rich shrubs to provide valuable pollinator habitat while simultaneously cutting costs for mowing. At one of our fulfillment centers in Rheinberg Germany, a team revitalized an unused wildflower meadow by installing bee-friendly Benjes hedges; these natural barriers help improve soil health while decreasing erosion rates and emissions costs while offering shelter to pollinators and insects – plus reduce emissions costs as well. KARUNA in Berlin is currently building 20 tiny forests across Berlin using this same approach to create valuable pollinator habitat.
4. Nesting Areas
Though monarch butterflies have received much of the media’s attention for their pollinating efforts and delicate existence, there are other animals species working hard to maintain plant diversity and food supply. By creating wildlife-friendly gardens and lawns in your landscape, you can easily support local pollinators as well as any native species living nearby.
Food, water, shelter and nesting areas are the cornerstones of success in providing wildlife with what it needs for survival. You can provide these elements in different ways depending on your space and preferences – shallow bird baths/ponds/bee hotels can all serve this function; such options could include shallow birdbaths/ponds providing water; dead tree stumps/snags/bare ground being suitable nesting areas and offering bee houses/bee hotels made out of stacking wooden blocks in one corner of your yard or offering bee houses/hotels made of wood blocks arranged strategically so bees can use this as needed for survival.
As shelter, consider planting shrubs and hedgerow species that provide cover from shrubbery or hedgerow species, as well as evergreen trees adapted specifically for your region’s soil conditions and climate conditions. You could also add small bushes such as Foxgloves for additional protection.
An essential step in designing your garden or lawn to attract pollinators is selecting flowers that offer nectar and pollen throughout the season, from early bloomers such as crocuses to later bloomers like black-eyed Susans. When considering physical characteristics (called syndrome) of local pollinators species such as monarch butterflies needing milkweed (Asclepias spp) because caterpillars feed exclusively on it while bees and hummingbirds prefer bright and hardy blooms such as black-eyed Susans as hosts for their caterpillar caterpillar caterpillar caterpillar caterpillars while bees/hummingbirds prefer bright hardy flowers such as black-eyed Susans as hosts for pollen/nectar/ hummingbirds.
By choosing pollinator-friendly flowers and forgoing harmful pesticides, you’re making a difference to the health of your outdoor spaces. Your garden or lawn will become an oasis for pollinators life bringing nature’s beauty closer to home! For extra support in protecting native plants and pollinators populations, consider joining an environmental conservation group such as Bee City USA or Xerces Society to gain further insights.