In this month’s episode of The Garden Thyme Podcast, we are excited to celebrate National Pollinator Week ( June 19-25, 2023)! A pollinator is any animal that visits flowering plants and moves pollen from flower to flower, which helps plants reproduce, making fruits and seeds. In North America pollinators include bees, butterflies, moths, flower flies, beetles, and wasps. Worldwide, approximately 1,000 plants grown for food, beverages, fibers, and spices need to be pollinated by animals.
We also have our:
Native Plant of the Month – Beardtongues (Penstemon digitalis and P. hirsutus) ~16:40
Bug of the Month – Fig wasps (Agaonidae sp.) ~21:18
The Garden Thyme Podcast is brought to you by the University of Maryland Extension. Hosts are Mikaela Boley, Senior Agent Associate (Talbot County) for Horticulture; Rachel Rhodes, Agent Associate for Horticulture (Queen Anne’s County); and Emily Zobel, Senior Agent Associate for Agriculture (Dorchester County).
This is a guest post by Esther Bonney, a student in Charles County, Maryland, and a member of the University of Maryland Extension 4-H Program.
Invasive plants are detrimental to Maryland’s well-being, and their damaging effects are becoming more evident each year as we witness declines in crop productivity, reductions in pollinators critical to maintaining stable ecosystems, and widespread displacement of native habitats. Between 2008 and 2013, wild bees declined by 23 percent across the U.S.—a serious concern to farmers and consumers alike. Through educational programs, guides, and native giveaways, Nurture Natives is taking a stand against invasive species to protect native plants and pollinators, restore natural habitats, and support farmers. Nurture Natives is led by University of Maryland 4-Hers Esther Bonney and Samantha Rutherford and Extension 4-H Educator Amy Lang and UME Charles County Master Gardener Marlene Smith.
Visitors line up for native trees at Maryland Day, stretching down the courtyard and around the sidewalk, sometimes longer than the line for free ice cream!
In March 2022, our team was selected to attend the National 4-H Youth Summit on Agriscience. There, we developed our project, Nurture Natives, to address a prevalent agricultural issue in our community: invasive plant species. Invasive plants choke out native species and are a major cause of crop loss and food insecurity. Invasive trees such as the Tree of Heaven rapidly overtake farmlands and attract invasive pests such as the Spotted Lanternfly, which is a serious threat to grape crops. In the U.S. alone, invasive species cause $40 billion worth of production losses to crops and forests per year.
Nurture Natives is dedicated to increasing biodiversity through the planting of native trees and the eradication of invasive plants. In the past year, Nurture Natives has been featured on the National 4-H and University of Maryland Extension websites, won a Lead to Change Grant, and was selected by the National 4-H Council as one of two projects nationwide to receive the highly-competitive Scale for Success Award. Nurture Natives was also recently featured in the Southern Maryland Independent: Nurturing natives and the next generation of environmental scientists.
Our team began our work by educating and raising awareness about invasive species in our community of Charles County. We hosted educational programs at schools and camps and, in October 2022, partnered with eight local organizations to host the first annual Nurture Natives Giveaway. We hosted games, crafts, presentations, and a honey-tasting to showcase the importance of native species and pollinators. In just two hours, we distributed 150 native trees and shrubs and reached over 70 families.
Samantha Rutherford (left) hands out trees to visitors at Maryland Day, and Marlene Smith (right), Charles County Master Gardener, collects forms from patrons before they reach the tree distribution table.Continue reading →
Spring is incomplete without the bold and soft hues of azaleas in your home garden. These spectacular plants are prevalent and have dominated yards and countless gardens in North America. These plants originated in Asia and made their way to the US via Europe around two hundred years ago. Since then, according to the American Azalea Society (ARS), over 10,000 different cultivars, or cultivated varieties, have been registered or named. The high demand for cultivated azalea can be attributed to its small manageable dwarf sizes, diverse attractive colors, deep green leaves year-round, and adaptability to the climate, making them easy to grow.
However, there are equally beautiful native azaleas in North America that are seldom seen in home gardens and are still not as well-known as their Asian cousins. To find them, it would be best to wander from the landscaped yards into the woods. In this post, I talk about the extraordinary beauty and ecology of native azaleas, as they require more attention and care from the gardening community.
What are native azaleas?
Azaleas are members of the heaths (Ericaceae) plant family, which includes cranberry, blueberry, and huckleberries. Because there is often confusion among people between azaleas and rhododendrons, it is much easier to remember that all azaleas are rhododendrons, but that all rhododendrons are not azaleas. In fact, azaleas belong to the genus Rhododendron. Azaleas native to North America are usually medium-sized or tall shrubs with soft, deciduous leaves, funnel-shaped flower lobes, and long tubular flowers with stamens extending beyond their showy petals. There are eighteen North American native azaleas (visit the American Azalea Society and American Rhododendron Society to learn more).
Rhododendron vicosum and Rhododendron calendulaceum. Photos: S. Basnett
Why grow native azaleas?
Native azaleas display shades of white, orange, pink, red, and yellow throughout the spring and summer. Although most people associate azaleas with spring, several native ones bloom in mid and late summer. It is often noticed that azaleas in their natural habitat show some staggering in their flowering timing, and their flowering durations usually range between 15 to 20 days. So, if you carefully select species based on their flowering timing, you can have azaleas bloom in your home gardens for at least four to five months. Unlike the evergreen cultivated ones, native azaleas have exceptional fall color before they shed their leaves for winter. Most native Azaleas can reach heights of 4’-8’ and can be used in hedgerows and as the background to other flowering dwarf shrubs. Some of the common native azaleas in the woodlands of Maryland, Virginia, and DC are smooth azalea (Rhododendron arborescens), swamp azalea (Rhododendron viscosum), pinxter azalea (Rhododendron periclymenoides), coast azalea (Rhododendron atlanticum) and early azalea (Rhododendron prinophyllum).
Besides the colorful hues in your green space, growing azaleas will also help maintain the native pollinator network in your local environment. Native azaleas can sustain a variety of fauna through their flowers; they are attractive to bees, butterflies, moths, and hummingbirds. The quantity and quality of nectar and pollen among these plants are often observed to be higher than in the cultivated ones. In general, they have a high amount of concentrated nectar and string-like pollen threads that help attract myriad forms of floral visitors native to North America.
Some azalea species have attractive warm orange and red flowers, and birds can detect warm colors easily. At the same time, insects, including bumblebees and smaller bees (e.g., Andrena sp.), are attracted to light pink, purple, and white palettes. Certain native species, such as sweet azalea and piedmont azalea, have a strong sweet fragrance. Besides providing a sweet smell, their fragrance also helps attract night pollinators such as moths. Nectar volume among the azalea flowers is relatively low compared to its nectar concentration; therefore, the migratory ruby-throated hummingbird makes occasional visits, as birds usually prefer flowers with high voluminous nectar. Their unique floral characteristics also attract diverse butterflies, recognized as potential pollinators for these species. Commonly observed butterflies are eastern tiger swallowtails (Papilio glaucus), silver spotted skippers (Epargyreus clarus), and great spangled fritillaries (Speyeria cybele). The flapping of butterfly wings helps transfer pollen from the male to the female organ and facilitates successful reproduction in these plants. Therefore, growing different shades of native azaleas in your yards and home gardens will be a good idea to support native pollinators.
Native azaleas are also relatively free of pests and diseases compared to cultivars, making them low-maintenance plants. They do not require regular pruning and are moderately slow growers. However, knowing the ecology of these species may be helpful for plant growers. For example, in the forest, these plants are mostly found as an understory of other tall hardwood trees like oaks and chestnuts; therefore, they will do well in less light and shaded areas in the home gardens. Most of them require moisture with good drainage and humus-rich acidic soil. You can learn more about the detailed requirements of the conditions preferred by these plants at the American Azalea Society.
It is never too late to add these cool plants to your home garden.
By Shweta Basnett, Fulbright Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Entomology, University of Maryland. Visit her website for more information about her current research.
Native wild bergamot (Monarda fistulosa) attracts pollinators from butterflies to hummingbird moths and is both deer and rabbit-proof. Photo: Elmer Verhasselt, Bugwood.org
I love native plants. I garden for beauty and wildlife and nothing supports healthy habitats better than native plants.
So what are native plants? They are beautiful, resilient plants that naturally occur in an area.
Having evolved over millennia with native wildlife, they naturally support them best. A native white oak supports 557 species of butterflies and moths while a non-native gingko tree supports just five.
So if you want to support bees, butterflies, and beneficial insects that help control pests, native plants are the way to go.
They also support larger wildlife such as birds with their seeds, fruit, shelter, and places to raise young. Again, native plants evolved with them, so they naturally provide what they need.
According to conservationist, author, and entomologist Doug Tallamy who penned the bestsellers “Bringing Nature Home” and “Nature’s Best Hope,” native plants support 29 times more wildlife diversity than non-native plants.
Well adapted to our soil and climate, native plants are resilient with a capital “R.” They’ve persisted through many hot, dry, wet, and cold years, surviving all previous climate change that has occurred, positioning them well to adapt to future changes.
Adapting over eons makes you tough. Native plants have fewer pest and disease issues and some have deep roots which make them drought resistant. That means less watering, fewer chemicals, and a healthier landscape.
Did I mention how beautiful they are? There is a nasty rumor out there that native plants are weedy. Bosh and balderdash.
Native coral honeysuckle trumpets red/yellow/orange flowers that welcome hummingbirds. Threadleaf coreopsis wafts a riot of petite yellow daisies in a drift of lacy foliage.
Wild blue indigo sports 4-foot stems of deep blue sweet-pea-like blooms. Cardinal flower flashes brilliant red and is a magnet for hummingbirds and butterflies.
Don’t get me started on native trees and shrubs. I love ninebark’s white pompoms, the red dangling fruit of chokeberry, the deep maroon flowers of Carolina allspice (native from our South), skinny willow oak leaves, and the giant leaves of pawpaws.
My favorite native plant reference, “Native Plants for Wildlife Habitat and Conservation Landscaping,” has color photos and plant profiles. Download it for free.
Where do you find native plants? Visit your favorite garden center. Native plants are becoming more common. If they’re not there, ask. Nurseries grow and buy based on client interest.
I hope I’ve encouraged you to include some native plants in your landscape to add beauty, invite wildlife and support a healthy ecosystem.
By Annette Cormany, Principal Agent Associate and Master Gardener Coordinator, Washington County, University of Maryland Extension. This article was previously published by Herald-Mail Media. Read more by Annette.
For some reason, I feel that every time I think about what to plant for pollinators, the list of plants that comes to me is one full of herbaceous ones… however, it is odd that this is the case, because it’s not like our region lacks larger plants (e.g., trees, large shrubs) that are both fully able to support pollinators while also supporting other biodiversity and even contributing to flood and rain management! And because if we’re interested in going the large(r)-plant path, we need a bit of planning, in today’s post I would like to present some native shrubs and trees that are great resources for our pollinators. This way, you can start planning where to get them for planting in late winter to early spring.
Why consider trees and shrubs for pollinators?
Large perennial plants such as trees and shrubs have many characteristics that make them very attractive to any pollinator-friendly person in our region. Indeed, while there are many of these plants that act as wonderful food resources for many pollinators (both adult and larval stages), these larger plants represent long(er)-term and abundant resources that can serve different aspects of our ecosystem: they provide shelter and food for birds, they can assist in managing stormwater runoff, retain soil, reduce surface temperatures by their shading abilities, and provide structural complexity to our landscapes. Trees especially are a key component of creating climate-resilient landscapes. In fact, one of Maryland’s climate change mitigation goals is to grow 5 million more trees by 2031!
Planting trees is not necessarily expensive
From a financial perspective, although these plants may be costlier to obtain than the smaller herbaceous ones, there is a multitude of incentives, state vouchers, and programs that strongly reduce or sometimes completely cover the costs of obtaining them. In Maryland, for example, the state provides incentives through the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (discounts to be used at nurseries; all details here), the PG County Rain Check program or the TreeMontgomery program, city incentives, and free tree plantings (e.g., see College Park’s here). In all of these programs, a lot of trees native to our region are covered. If you would like to participate in any of these programs, make sure to check the specific tree lists covered by each (also, see this list of recommended native trees for the state of Maryland). Note that these programs I mentioned here are just a few of the many that exist; if you’re interested in this, make sure to check your city, county, and state resources!
What to plant?
I hope by now I have at least made you curious about the idea of choosing trees and shrubs for pollinators. Below, I made a very small selection of a couple of plants that appear in the native lists, and that are great for pollinators. Let’s take a look at them.
Tulip tree (Liriodendron tulipifera)
Tulip trees are a great native plant that can serve as a great pollinator resource. This tree is in the same family as Magnolia trees. It can reach a large size and it displays stunning yellow and orange flowers. This tree grows fast and is large (considered the tallest native tree in the eastern USA, along with sweetgums), so it can be a good choice for large spaces where a canopy is wanted relatively quickly. The flowers produce a lot of nectar, which attracts a massive number of pollinators. This makes it kind of fun to stand under the tree on warmer days during the blooming time: the buzzing coming from the tree is pretty impressive. Here are some more details on the conditions preferred by this tree.
Tulip trees are among the tallest trees in the eastern USA and have wonderful resources for pollinators that they carry in their stunning flowers. Photo: W. Cutler CC.
American linden or basswood (Tilia Americana)
This tree can reach relatively large sizes, and when it grows to full size it has a very rounded canopy. I personally love this tree, because of the fact that I feel it’s a “social” tree: one can sit with friends under its shade on hot summer days, and just enjoy the life it hosts and the cool breeze it forms under it. Once the season is coming to an end, this tree’s leaves turn a lovely yellow. The flowers of this tree are small and not very colorful, but they are extremely fragrant and full of nectar, which makes them a great magnet for pollinators. You can learn more about the requirements of this tree at Virginia Tech Dendrology.
The American linden has discrete flowers that are very attractive to pollinators. Photo: A. Zharkikh CC.
Hawthorns (Crataegus phaenopyrum and C. viridis)
These are mid-size trees that also sustain a variety of fauna through their flowers, fruits, and bird nest-friendly thorny branches. Their flowers are white, have a typical Rose-family structure (like those of cherry trees), and are attractive to bees, syrphids, butterflies, and hummingbirds. Besides being great for fauna, the two species do well in urban environments, because they both tolerate a wide variety of conditions. Here at pollenlibrary.com and on the Lady Bird Johnson Wildlife Center website you can learn more about each of these species.
Hawthorns have lovely white flower clusters. Photo: F. D. Richards CC.
Fringe tree (Chionanthus virginicus)
This small tree/tall shrub is a great addition to green spaces, and is ideal for hedgerows or just as a stand-alone plant. I am always surprised by the super cool shape of the flowers of this plant, which have very elongated petals that create long white fringes. These flowers attract bees and other pollinators, which come to collect some of the nectar that is produced. This plant is usually dioecious, meaning that one individual plant harbors either male or female flowers, but rarely both. This plant is ideal for areas that receive a lot of sun, because it is under those conditions that it will do best (although it can do fine in less-sunny areas as well). You can learn more about this plant by visiting this website.
The whimsical flowers of fringe trees are not just attractive to us, but also to many pollinators! Photo: 阿橋 HQ CC.
Serviceberry (Amelanchier laevis)
Although all of them can provide very good resources for pollinators, I picked this one to showcase because this species grows relatively fast and does not get too large. This is indeed a larger shrub that has beautiful white flowers, and later on, delicious small berries. Because of all this good stuff, the flowers are visited by many insects, and the fruits are favorites of birds (so you’ll have to win over them if you want to get at the fruits! 😉 ). Here and on the University of Maryland Extension website, you can learn a bit more about this cool plant.
Serviceberries make everybody happy: pollinators in the spring with their flowers, and birds and humans in the summer with their berries! Photo: Henna K. CC.
By Anahí Espíndola, Assistant Professor, Department of Entomology, University of Maryland, College Park. See more posts by Anahí.
Anahí also writes an Extension Blog in Spanish! Check it out here, extensionesp.umd.edu, and please share and spread the word to your Spanish-speaking friends and colleagues in Maryland. ¡Bienvenidos a Extensión en Español!
It’s Spooky Season! In this month’s episode, we sit down with Leslie Sturges of the Bat Conservation & Rescue of Virginia to talk about bats. We chat about how much we love bats and why you should also. She tells us all about the types of bat you can find in Maryland (9:53), Whitenose syndrome (17:03), how bats rear their young (23:24), and echolocation (25:50). We also put some of the vampire and other bat myths to rest (40:30).
We also have our:
Native Plant of the Month – American Persimmon (51:15)
Bug of the Month – Twisted winged parasites (45:01)
Garden Tips of the Month (58:25)
The Garden Thyme Podcast is brought to you by the University of Maryland Extension. Hosts are Mikaela Boley- Senior Agent Associate (Talbot County) for Horticulture, Rachel Rhodes- Agent Associate for Horticulture (Queen Anne’s County), and Emily Zobel-Senior Agent Associate for Agriculture (Dorchester County).
With the fall very clearly upon us, we tend to think more about falling leaves than flowers. Indeed, the big flower boom is ending, with all early-season flowers well past flowering. However, fall is a very important season for many pollinators, which still require food and shelter in preparation for the winter. In this blog, I would like to take a little bit of time to go over the importance of fall resources for pollinators, and what you can do to make sure they are available in your green spaces.
Why is fall special in nature?
The end of summer/fall is a special time for many organisms in our temperate regions. This is usually the last chance these organisms have to gather energy and resources to get ready for the winter. In the case of pollinators that are active during this period, the fall is key for collecting sufficient pollen (=food) for their nests, and for finding appropriate overwintering spaces for the adults and/or the offspring (take a look at this post to learn more about this), all of which will impact survival until the following year/season. If we want to help these pollinators, making sure that these resources are available is the best we can do!
Providing food for pollinators in the fall
Several native plants in our area flower in the fall and act as wonderful resources of pollen and nectar (and more!) for our late-summer/fall pollinators. These plants are easy to grow and once established provide abundant (nutritional) resources for our local insects.
Goldenrods
This group (Solidago spp.) consists of many species which flower in the late summer/fall. These plants are perennials that will create patches once established in an area. For this reason, they are easy to grow, although for this very same reason may usually require a bit of containment, since otherwise, they will easily spread everywhere. If the latter is a problem, plants can be grown in pots, where the containment issue is more easily resolved.
These plants support a large community of many different types of bees (many of which are specialists that can use only specific types of pollen and can be rare), as well as butterflies, flies, and wasps. In fact, more than any other herbaceous plant studied by Fowler/Droege, goldenrod (species in the genus Solidago) supported the most specialist bees (39 species). Importantly, because these plants create tall hollow stems, they can also act as nesting resources for stem-nesting bees. This way, these plants are great fall resources for many of our pollinators.
Goldenrods develop numerous flowers that provide support to a very large number and diversity of pollinators. In this picture, goldenrods stand out of a background of other yellow Asteraceae in a home garden. Photo: A. Espíndola
Two easy-to-grow species that one can find in several native nurseries are the tall goldenrod (Solidago altissima) and Canada goldenrod (Solidago canadensis). Both species have long stems that end with many yellow inflorescences. Both of them flower in the late summer and fall and can be easily grown in green spaces, especially drier sites that are exposed to the sun. As said before, although these plants are great pollinator magnets and resources, they tend to spread readily, so, unless that is wanted, they require some control once they start spreading in an area.
Asters
Asters are another group of plants native to our region that acts as a great pollinator resource in the fall. These plants are also perennials and can be small or become shrub-like, depending on the species. Unlike the goldenrods we were talking about just above, these plants tend to display a larger variety of floral coloration, with flowers going from white, to pink, and purple, depending on the species. Like goldenrods, these plants provide both food and nesting sites to many pollinators. Their flowers attract a very large variety of pollinators (bees, butterflies, flies, beetles, wasps) during a time when there is little else to feed on. The flowers of these plants are also known to support specialist and often rare bees, which depend strongly on its pollen for survival, as well as many butterflies, including Monarchs. Their stems are also great sites for stem-nesting bees. Finally, their leaves support the larvae of many local butterflies.
New England asters can be obtained from native plant nurseries and are able to support a very large diversity of pollinators, including rare and specialist bees, as well as adults and larvae of many butterflies. In this picture, we can see a Monarch adult feeding on the characteristic purple/blue flowers. Photo: Glenn Marsh
A lovely species that can be grown in our green spaces and provides hundreds of blue/purple flowers is the New England aster (Symphyotrichum novae-angliae). This perennial herbaceous plant can be obtained from nurseries and will grow three to six feet tall in the summer (but it can be cut back in mid-summer if you want to keep it shorter). The plant requires at least some sun and does well in a variety of soils we find in Maryland. I love watching the lovely cute flowers, and all the activity they attract. This is really one of my personal fall garden highlights!
By Anahí Espíndola, Assistant Professor, Department of Entomology, University of Maryland, College Park. See more posts by Anahí.
Anahí also writes an Extension Blog in Spanish! Check it out here, extensionesp.umd.edu, and please share and spread the word to your Spanish-speaking friends and colleagues in Maryland. ¡Bienvenidos a Extensión en Español!
