These pictures were taken of two different views of the pollinator garden in July, three months after planting. The garden is filling in nicely.
Pollination and Nectar Forage Garden
The inspiration for this garden design was the water fountain in the southwest quadrant of the garden at the BC Parliament buildings. The movement of the water takes me to the movement of birds, pollinators, beneficial insects and butterflies. The wings that are portrayed in my design remind me of the movement and the benefits that we receive from all the birds, pollinators and butterflies. It also reminds us that we need pollinators to survive. In turn it inspires me for movement towards creating this food source garden to help them as they help us provide food for our table.
For this all-season garden design shown below, I chose plants that are attractive to pollinators and birds, are found locally and have seasonal interest. I have included some high lights of key plants in this design.
The garden comes to life in the winter with the vibrant colour of heather (Erica ‘Kramers rote’) and the long lasting blooms of the lenton rose (Hellebores ‘Royal heritage’) . These plants are a key food source especially for the hard-working mason bees.
As winter comes to a close, spring is opened with an explosion of colour from the crab-apple tree (Malus ‘Adirnack’) chosen for its multiple bright red flower buds that open to fragrant creamy white blossoms. After the pollinators are finished foraging, this tree is loaded with red fruits that the birds love. The dogwood (Cornus kousa ‘Satomi’) has beautiful long lasting pink blooms that attract bees and butterflies, has showy strawberry like fruit that the birds enjoy and vibrant fall colour.
Summer brings the scent of lavender and with it the buzz of bees. The diverse plant selection offers a plentiful food source to the garden. The butterfly weed(Asclepias tuberosa) is beneficial to help increase the monarch butterfly population since monarchs only lay their eggs on this plant. This summer blooming plant attracts bees, beneficial insects, hummingbirds and butterflies. The rudbeckias, sedums, coreopsis and echinacea continue to show their beauty and attract pollinators, birds and beneficial insects from summer through to fall. These plants can be left through the winter to provide seeds for the birds.
It was my pleasure to design this pollinator garden. It is an honour to be the chosen winner of the pollinator garden contest and to have this garden built at the BC legislative buildings.
