We at The Optimist Daily are always looking for ways to help our pollinator friends. If you are looking to plant a pollinator-friendly garden this spring, then a new study led by Jaret Daniels and Elizabeth Braatz can help! Their research indicates that insects are attracted to landscapes where flowering plants of the same species are grouped together.
So what does this mean? Those who cultivate gardens in their yards are generally encouraged to plant a variety of plant species to attract many kinds of insects, however, according to Jaret Daniels, curator at the Florida Museum’s McGuire Center for Lepidoptera and Biodiversity, “an insect isn’t like a kid in a candy store who wants one of every kind of treat, or in this case, flower. They want to find a location with lots of what they really like—a one-stop-shop.”
As reported by Futurity, Daniels and Braatz suggest that you plant “big mass[es] of blooms,” which are “like a billboard for insects that [say] ‘come here for food and resources!”
Similar to a billboard on the highway, it would be hard for a passing insect to ignore, especially since flowers that are bunched together produce an even more potent fragrance that’s attractive to insects.
Daniels still agrees that you should “have enough variety so that insects that prefer specific flower types are more likely to find something to their liking,” and that “based on [their] findings, [they] recommend that homeowners select five or six types of flower plants known to attract pollinators and insects and group them by species.”
