Pollinator Power

Pollinator Power

Rural and Urban Iowans help Create a Pollinator Paradise

By Darcy Dougherty Maulsby

When Jana Erickson steps outside her home south of Des Moines, the landscape is abuzz – literally – with activity. From spring through fall, bees of all types, butterflies and moths hover around the blooms that abound at Wit’s End Gardens near Prole. This pollinator paradise provides an essential link in the food chain at a critical time.

“Pollinators are vital to the food web and the entire ecosystem,” says Erickson, who specializes in perennials for pollinators. “Without pollinators, we don’t eat.”

The eastern monarch butterfly population has declined 80% in the past two decades.

Even with the important role pollinators have in our food supply, they are in trouble. Pollinator populations worldwide have been shrinking in the last 10 to 20 years due to habitat fragmentation and other challenges. Consider the plight of monarch butterflies. The eastern monarch butterfly population has experienced an 80% decline during the past two decades, according to the Iowa Monarch Conservation Consortium (IMCC) at Iowa State University (ISU).

The annual North American monarch migration is one of the longest and most spectacular insect migrations globally. “Iowa is in the center of the monarch’s summer breeding range,” says Nicole Shimp, a program specialist with the IMCC, which was created in 2015 to advance monarch butterfly conservation efforts in Iowa.

Roughly 40% of all monarch butterflies that overwinter in Mexico are estimated to come from Iowa and neighboring Midwest states, according to the IMCC. Expanding monarch habitat plays a major role in the recovery of the species. “There are glimmers of hope since the monarch population in the western United States is starting to rebound a little,” Shimp says.

Partnerships Benefit Pollinators

The IMCC supports voluntary conservation efforts to create more pollinator habitat in Iowa. The group has 53 members and partners, including the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship, Iowa Soybean Association (ISA) and other ag organizations.

“Partnerships are essential,” Shimp says. “Everyone brings their unique expertise to help reach the common goal of protecting pollinators.”

ISA is also working with The Nature Conservancy, Syngenta (a global provider of agricultural seeds and crop protection products) and other partners to restore much-needed habitat in Iowa for the rusty patched bumblebee. This bee was listed as endangered in 2017 after surveys found that populations had dropped by nearly 90%, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

“The rusty patched bumblebee needs unique habitat, which is one reason why its numbers have struggled,” says Brandon Iddings, ISA field services manager/ conservation resources.

For the past few years, ISA has worked with farmers, landowners and Habitat Forever, a subsidiary of Pheasants Forever, to establish multiple wildflower plantings in eastern Iowa to benefit the rusty patched bumblebees. In 2022, ISA is working with the City of Ames to add one acre of pollinator habitat in Brookside Park, near the ISU campus. Plantings will include a diverse mix of flowering plants and grasses, including goldenrod, black-eyed Susans, various milkweeds and more.

“While the seed mixes we use benefit rusty patched bumblebees, they create little ‘fueling stations’ from May to October that attract many other pollinators, too,” Iddings says.

HabiTally App Helps You Help Pollinators

Want to play a crucial role in monarch conservation? Try the HabiTally app.

The app is a free download for iOS and Android devices. Go to the App Store and search HabiTally.

Data collected by HabiTally will be housed at Iowa State University and shared with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to help guide future conservation and protection decisions.

Take 3 Simple Steps to Promote Pollinators

Creating a better world for pollinators doesn’t have to be complicated or require lots of land.

“It doesn’t take much to make pollinators happy,” says Jana Erickson, owner of Wit’s End Gardens in Prole. “Being a lazy gardener is one of the best things you can do to help pollinators.”

Three simple, pollinator-friendly practices can make a big difference:

1. Focus on a healthy environment, not a perfect landscape.

Maintaining a perfectly manicured lawn can be expensive and time-consuming, plus it’s not the best habitat for pollinators. “Leave your leaves on the ground because they provide a safe spot for bumblebees and other pollinators,” Erickson says. Also, provide some bare soil in a sunny, south-facing spot. Many of Iowa’s native bees aren’t hive dwellers. “They need bare spots to lay their eggs,” Erickson says.

2. Plant pollinator-pleasing perennials.

Areas that receive at least six hours of full sun a day work well for a pollinator garden. Perennial salvia is a good option for spring blooms. “It’s easy to grow, plus you can choose from pink, purple or blue flowers,” Erickson says. In the summer, common milkweed, swamp milkweed (with pink blooms) and butterfly milkweed (with orange flowers)attract pollinators. In the fall, asters and “Fireworks” goldenrod provide a buffet for pollinators. Have allergies? “Ragweed, not goldenrod, triggers allergies,” Erickson says. Concerned about bee stings? “You’re not a flower, so bees aren’t interested in you,” Erickson adds.

3. Spread the word.

Live in an apartment with no space to create a pollinator garden? “You can still help by spreading the word about the importance of pollinators,” says Nicole Shimp with the Iowa Monarch Conservation Consortium.

Flowers that bloom early each spring provide vital nectar for native bees.

Farmers Plant Acres for Monarchs and More

ISA is also working with farmers across Iowa to add more pollinator habitat. Acres that aren’t ideal for agricultural production, and areas dedicated to the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), can provide excellent pollinator habitats, especially near soybeans. While soybeans are self-pollinating legumes, an ISU study released in 2021 shows that growing soybeans near pollinator habitat might lead to better yields.

Jim Fitkin has CRP acres in three of his fields near Cedar Falls. He began shifting some of this land into pollinator habitat nearly six years ago after hearing news stories about declining monarch populations.

“It’s interesting to watch these pollinator acres grow,” says Fitkin, a fourth-generation farmer who raises soybeans, corn and popcorn. “There’s something flowering throughout the growing season, and I enjoy seeing the monarch butterflies.”

The benefits extend beyond pollinators, adds Fitkin, who is interested in adding pollinator strips along the edges of his fields. “These practices help control soil erosion, protect water quality and provide habitat for pheasants and other wildlife.”

Frank Moore, who raises soybeans and corn near Cresco in northeast Iowa, looks forward to transforming a half-acre of his lawn into a pollinator habitat this spring. “It’s right outside my picture window,” says Moore, who also runs Three Rivers Ag Consulting. “It will add to the aesthetics of my farm, plus I’ll have less grass to mow.”

Moore farms with his father and nephew in Howard County, the “conservation capital” of Iowa, where several farmers have been recognized for their conservation farming efforts by the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship and Farm Bureau.

Continuous improvement is key, says Moore, who has received the Iowa Conservation Farmer of the Year award with his father. “One of my consulting clients is a beekeeper, and I enjoy learning from him. When I’ve been in his fields, I’ve started noticing all the insect life instead of just overlooking it.”

That’s the magic of welcoming pollinators to your landscape, says Erickson, a Des Moines’ Downtown Farmers’ Market vendor who helps her customers select pollinator friendly plants. “It’s fascinating to learn more about pollinators. Watching them in the garden is a joy that’s hard to match.”

Creating a better world for pollinators doesn’t have to be complicated or require lots of land.

Milkweed is an important host plant for the monarch butterfly and the milkweed tussock moth (pictured). Without milkweed the caterpillars would not be able to feed and develop into adults.