Join Karen and Sherva on their podcast, 'Pollinator Hotspot,' as they delve into the fascinating world of gardening and the crucial role of pollinators. In this episode, Karen shares insights, tips, and anecdotes to help listeners create vibrant and pollinator-friendly gardens.
From discussing the importance of pollinators in garden ecosystems to exploring strategies for attracting and supporting these vital creatures, these gardeners offer practical advice backed by their knowledge and hands-on experience. Listeners will learn about selecting the right plants with Karen's method of "thinking in threes". This is an easy way to venture into the process without being overwhelmed by the myriad of choices. Inviting pollinators to the party doesn't have to be complicated!
Whether you're a seasoned gardener or just starting, you will want to add some flowering plants that attract the beneficial bugs as well as the pollinators. This episode provides valuable information and inspiration for cultivating thriving gardens that not only beautify your surroundings but also contribute to the conservation of pollinators and the environment. Tune in to discover how you can create a sanctuary for pollinators in your own backyard and make a positive impact on the world around you.
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It's springtime springtime in the garden.
It's go time,
So
what's our topic today?
I thought we should talk about pollinators. I'd love to know more about Yeah, we of course, I just had a class about it. And my master gardeners and we talk about it a lot. And it's something that I realized that a lot of gardeners especially beginning gardeners aren't really thinking of planting flowers or, or herbs just for pollination. Yeah,
but I haven't explored
that as yet. It really, really helps your garden. And I hope they do better because those flowers, and especially if you get lots of different colors, not lots, but just different colors. They're like beacons to the bees and the butterflies and even birds, it just draws their attention. So while they're coming for the flowers, they're going to pollinate your Euro, your your vegetables. So I have noticed a big difference. As I plant flowers every year, it really does. It's my go out and my garden is just buzzing. And everything's getting pollinated much better than it would without the flowers. So I have come up personally with my own method, if you're new to picking flowers, and I've even told somebody this before, it can be overwhelming. There are so many flowers and it almost doesn't matter. Just pick your favorites. But there are some key things and I like to think in threes. All right. First of all, try to get three different colors because different colors attract different pollinators. Try to get something in the blues, try to get something hot, like red or orange, and then try to get something yellow or orange something or I'm sorry, pink, pink or red. So if you color you know, pick all the different colors like I really love forget me nots. They're just so sweet. And so that's the blue that I use. And I also get borage because it's super easy on me blue flowers. Actually. I know people don't usually think of it. Lavender if you have if you have lavender, it's perennial. In fact, it's really smart to plant some perennials.
I have lavender, but my my type of lavender doesn't flower.
Really? Yeah. Is it new and just hasn't flowered? Yeah,
it's been like three years and comes back every year bigger than Bucha. But I don't believe I've ever seen flowers on it. I just think it's just a cooking type of lavender flower. I don't think so. I don't know I always say different types of lavender. Yeah,
maybe it is maybe it's a different variety. Interesting. And so that thinking those threes and then think the next three you need to think in is get something that blooms in the spring, get something that blooms in the in the summer and get something that blooms in the fall. Just read the packets or read information online or whatever. So if you can mix those three seasons with the three colors, you can still only need three plants, right. And then the other thing which is a little more detailed, there are flowers that are bring in what's the word they bring in beneficial insects, they bring in the insects that are going to like pollinate. Then there are another type of flowers that bring in predatory insects like the flowers that bring in ladybugs most of us know that ladybugs like to eat aphids. Now if you have aphids, and you can buy ladybugs and you buy them and you bring them in you release them into your garden. They'll eat all the aphids and then they'll just fly away to somebody else's garden because they really need a host plant, they need a place to live and a place to continue eating. So if you just Google that you'll find all kinds of flowers. And then you can think in other ways, there are flowers that bring in butterflies, there are flowers that bring in bees and ants, and some general they call them generalist flowers, they'll bring in all all the things. So if you want to think in those threes, now the biggest thing that I learned recently, I learned it in my class that I really didn't know. Take Zinnias, for instance, that's one of my favorites, because they're so easy to grow. And they come in all colors. Yeah, so you could just get zinnias. And they pretty much bloom, they don't bloom early in the spring. But you know, they'll bloom bloom pretty late. So even if you want to start with Zinnias, just get those. But I have this purple Zinnia that I just love, and it's really full and and has hundreds and hundreds of petals, that kind of flower. But the problem with that is the pollinators can't get down into where the pollen is, because they can't make their way through all these petals. So it's better to get the Zinnia that's flat. And I've actually seen it I have pictures of it on the website of a monarch butterfly just, you know, landed on top of my Zinnia and is having a feast. So think about that. Make sure you have those kinds of flowers that are flat with
Zinnias do you bother to like to plant them and such? Or do you just sprinkle them and let them come come up so
far, I have planted them and that's on my list to do this weekend. To start them, I probably could just throw the seeds out. But I don't want to risk it. So I'll start them. Now this year, I let a lot of them go to seed, I just you know, let them let them stay in the garden. So I'll see if I have any volunteers. I have volunteer calendula, so I don't bother planting those anymore. Those are so easy to grow. Those are another one that bring in the predator insects, they're good one. And they're yellow, and bees. Pollinators love them. So you can also get flowers that do all three things. They fit the color. They bring in all kinds of pollinators. Now there's also you can let your let some of your herbs go to flower. A lot of people think oh no, I let it bolted. I can't use it anymore, but just leave it there. Because herbs are really huge draw for beneficial insects. They love them, especially the herbs that they call them omble flowers, you think like an umbrella like Queen Anne's lace or dill. Or when you know when they go to flower, they kind of fan out like an umbrella. Those are particularly good for certain. I don't know which insects but certain insects they have to be able to land on something. And that's that's perfect for them some butterflies. So that's why that the bumble shape is really good.
I love that tree thing you have going on there. Where you have the Oregon no and what else did you have? Like
spiral fold logs, that
looks really nice. It still looks really lovely.
You don't need an herb spiral. It's kind of like a kitschy kind of a thing, like who I have an herb spiral. But I did it because I wanted to get rid of my logs, but also it's kind of nice to have next to your kitchen. A lot of people do that. So you can run out and grab some herbs. But um, it's really cool because when you build this spiral, you start high in the center, and then it spirals down until it's very low to the ground level. And what you've done by doing this, you've created all these microclimates. So as the sun comes up, say on one end of it, the tall part in the middle will cash shade on what's behind it on the lower part. So you can plant the the herbs that do okay in the shade, you know. And then on the sunny part, you're going to plant maybe the Mediterranean herbs that need a lot of sun.
Now what does still need because I've never grown do I do have seeds though somebody gave me some dill seeds, dill.
It needs full sun, but then it'll bolt in heat. So you got a six succession planted. But the good thing about that is once it flowers, it helps the pollinators but then once they go to seed then you have dill seed. I love dill for that reason. I like the dill what the Greens parts of it. They're really nice. And Ivan dry those but they're good for pickles. But actually the seeds are even better for pickles. And like we talked about before. I think I've had enough pickles to pickles really, but I do like the deal on on chicken. I just love that
I the only thing I ever use deal for was to marinate salmon but to make like, like raw salmon. You know you it is good on salmon. Yeah, you put the side of salmon and you put like cognac or something over at Brown Sugar deal. I don't remember what else and then you wrap it tight in like clingfilm put something heavy on it, and it sits in the fridge for about three days and knew it scrabble actually just slice it. recipe.
We knew the recipe. All right, so people will be up on the website. I will make that that sounds delicious. I'm not very sophisticated, but when I hear something like that, oh, yeah, like
if you have an unknown I mean, that's only like a Brunchy thing, though, for a sandwich. So I guess you could do a small piece of salmon. You don't have to do but it's great to have in the fridge and you learn, you know, toast a couple of bagels and make your Oh delicious.
And spin an avocado on there. Oh, yum. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, I like dill. I have a recipe on the website for homemade ranch dressing. It's the seasoning and then you just make make it into dressing or whatever with it. But if you I have put my own homegrown dill into it because I had an abundance of dill. Chop it up really fine. Dry it and then throw it in there.
I wonder. Do dill
give it a try? Yeah.
Then I'd have to make some seeds as well. Okay. Yeah, time actually to start those two. Oh, yeah. Started my my hoods already. In fact, my my I have giant leaf parsley their winter sewed and I could see not when Yeah, winter so and I could see some green bits popping up. A lot of my winter sewing is coming up. It's so excited. That's like the easiest thing. I wish I'd known about it before. It's just so easy. My petunias mine. Cistercians what else?
nasturtiums are a great trap crop. Oh,
yeah, yeah, yeah, they I went to so those last year plant them near
your close to your cucumbers. Oh, that's another thing I wanted to mention too. But I'm priming flowers. Yeah, let's talk about companions. Because flowers fall into this category to those trap crops. I think it's so fascinating. There's something that the, the, in the prep the bad insects really like even better than your veggies. Distortion is one of those, it'll draw them away from your I
only did them in hanging baskets. I put them on the edges of the hanging baskets. So they hang over. And then I put other things in there. And they're pretty high actually
up at up at a higher level. I have saved the little seeds and grown from them and they work but I've also saved them and put them in vinegar and made capers this poor man's capers. It's called
and you can eat them. Yeah, yeah. Oh, they feel really hard. Yeah.
Seeds. Yeah. You put them in vinegar for set for a few months. Let them pickle. And yeah, it's that was really fun.
I think it was funny because yesterday I was watching on YouTube. I was watching this Italian guy make a Puttanesca sauce. And for some reason, well not for some reason. You use capers and Putin ESCA, but I was thinking, Oh, I have never I haven't bought keepers in years. I should buy some keepers. Especially as you know, tomato seasons coming up. And what does that
dish chicken piccata. That's the only thing ever use capers for Oh, okay. I do love that. Yes. Yeah, so yeah, new planting,
companion plant and unique. What have I done? I just throw basil in wherever the tomatoes agree. Yeah, that's wonderful. And there's a lot to companion planting. I haven't really studied it that much.
You know, I have. And it's not that there's conflicting evidence, but there's different pairings and people swear by. So it's almost like you could try anything. Just get an herb that has a real strong smell. That's the real secret.
Well, one one thing I know that I'm not going to do this year, because I have really bad luck with okra every year. And I always put it with the tomatoes. And I heard love because I have such limited space. And I heard last year that they're terrible together like never put okra and tomatoes together in the same bed. I like oh, well maybe that explains why my Oh, Chris never do well,
right. I I've read a little bit about that. And I can't keep up with what goes with what and what Yeah, doesn't go with one. But if they're in the same family, they shouldn't be put together because they will have the same pests and the same diseases. Okay, that makes sense to me. Like, like, if you have a whole bed of cucurbits and there's a lot of different vegetables that go in that family. I don't even know them all. But if you have them all together in one space in your garden, it's like a giant, you know, flashing neon light to the pest who love cucurbits but if you space them out in different places, you no one's ever on this end to your garden ones over on that and then they're not going to you know come so quickly. They're not you know they're going to be and then if you plant a bunch of herbs in between that's really going to confuse them. I
wonder what's great to put with with eggplants because I have this whiskey barrel that I put eggplants in and I think last year I put three in there this year, I'm only going to put two varieties He's in it. So to plant, but they go kind of tool so I want to put something underneath it, I'll
find out what family the eggplants in, and then, you know, find out companion plant to that family or something and also space it away from anything else in the family. There's kind of I think there's a really good general principles. But you have to learn a little bit more and understand a little bit more deeply about, you know, the different families you can't just pick, go and pick a list and do what the list says it's it's a little more
Yeah, and it's a lot of trial and error. Yeah, it is.
It is like I tried the basil and tomatoes I'm sold forever and always and always grow some extra basil and let it go to seed. Because the pollinators absolutely love basil flowers. I did it places just buzzing when I do that. I like my basil. I like to make basil tea. I like to make pesto. I've been dry some and use it in the wintertime in my spaghetti sauce. Oh, you
know what you say let it go to. I never let my basil go to flower. I guess I should at the very end. But I was always taught to pick the flowers. He'll grow more. So anytime I see flowers growing on my basil, whether it's the Thai basil the regular, I picked them exactly as people
do to keep growing. Yeah. But that's why if you plan a little extra if you have room or even just designate one to let it go to flower and save the seeds. They're so easy to save. They're one of the easiest, because they're they're kind of big and they're black, and they're round. And you just once it dries, they just sit there within that. The what's the part that's around the pedals like calyx,
but I sat there some dried a basil flowers that this guy sent me from Italy. And um, I didn't plant him this year.
So there you go see if their seats in there. Yeah. Yeah, he said
he picked them from his garden. And it was during the trade and he sent me and he literally send a dried flowers.
Nice. I think oregano is another good one. And I like oregano, and it's perennial. My
Oregon comes back every single year. I don't know that I've ever seen it go to see though.
I let mine go to flower last year.
