Early spring, before many plants have flowered, is a critical time for wild pollinators. Plants in your lawn are an important early food source. Allowing your lawn to bloom before the first mowing nourishes pollinators.
Locally, Sun Prairie, Monona, Cross Plains, Shorewood Hills and Middleton support “No Mow May,” while Madison and Fitchburg encourage raising mower decks for a “Low Mow May.”
Does your community have a ‘No Mow May’ campaign? Use those spring hours not spent mowing to support pollinators in other ways.
Put up a sign
Pollinator organizations offer printed signs to inform that an area isn’t being mowed or sprayed because it’s supporting pollinators and educating others.
Register your pollinator garden
Pollinator.org supports a nationwide campaign to register pollinator gardens to track the growing network of micro habitats supporting pollinator communities. Registering gardens helps identify gaps so we can focus on linking them.
To find plants native to your area, try these resources:
Collect pollinator plant seeds
Offer a community service project of gathering seeds from restored prairies and existing pollinator gardens. Those seeds can be planted where needed or used to start next year’s plugs.
Support others’ projects
Volunteer to maintain existing pollinator gardens and Monarch Waystations.
Grow pollinator plants on rooftops and roadside
Even without a backyard, you can grow pollinator plants in containers or adopt a stretch of roadside that lacks habitat.
Landscape with native plants
Ensure that plants supporting the local ecosystem are used wherever you can influence planting decisions.
Make your backyard pollinator friendly
Choose native plants, eliminate invasive species, avoid pesticides, and minimize overnight lighting.
