Party for the PollinatorsQuick tips for creating your own pollinator garden
A third of the food and drink that individuals consume depends on pollination. As a keystone group, the survival of many other plant and animal species depends on pollinators. Pollinators include bees, butterflies, moths, beetles, flies, birds, and bats.
However, pollinator numbers have declined steadily due to habitat loss, degradation, and fragmentation as well as insecticide, pesticide, disease, parasite, and invasive plant pressure.
To offset the loss of habitat, consider creating a pollinator garden, a stopping point for monarchs, as each fall, hundreds of millions of monarch butterflies migrate from the United States and Canada to the mountains in central Mexico for the winter. They return in spring, specifically in May.
A pollinator garden is a garden that is planted predominantly with plants that provide nectar or pollen for a range of pollinating insects.
Midwest Wildflower Mix
This premium mix features a variety of easy-to-grow, long-lasting wildflowers and has been used by homeowners and commercial planters all over the Midwest for over 20 years. Expect a burst of annual color just a few weeks after seeding, plus increased bloom year after year from a great group of perennials. Plant in spring or late fall.
Life Cycle
Mix of Annuals & Perennials
Light Requirements
Full Sun, Half Sun / Half Shade
Soil Moisture
Dry, Average, Moist / Wet
To learn more about the importance of pollinators and pollinator landscapes, visit: Pollinator Power- Bees, Butterflies, Birds Bats or National Pollinator Week spotlight: Pollinators Play key role in Illinois Agriculture.
In collaboration with Illinois Farm Bureau, Cook County Farm Bureau developed a video series on pollinator conservation in Cook County, with a range of involvement in agriculture. Please watch the Farm Bureau in action video and the latest member education video to see some of the many practices being implemented to conserve pollinators.
To learn more about resources for creating pollinator habitat.
Pollinator Garden Resources
Illinois Farm Bureau Pollinator Resources
University of Illinois Extension
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service