Pollinator Plants and Repellers

It’s been a while since I wrote about different roles in plant guilds, so I wanted to continue that series today with pollinator plants and repeller plants!

For context, I wrote an article about food forests here, and some subsequent articles on mulching plants, and nitrogen fixers that you can read for free in the archive.

Pollinators and repellers are terms that refer to plants that either attract insects or keep certain pests away respectively.

These are crucial niches in the food forest or garden that can mean the difference between good fruit production or dead plants!

Pollinators

“Pollinators” are plants that attract pollinating insects to the area. This can include honeybees, mason bees, solitary wasps, hoverflies, pollinating beetles, butterflies and moths, or ants among other insects.

The type of flower you plant will dictate what kinds of pollinators you attract. This might not necessarily make a huge difference for the average gardener, but in some cases, it can make a massive one.

For instance, pawpaw trees require pollination from certain beetles and carrion flies, and NOT bees and hoverflies like most garden vegetables.

There are two main groups of pollinating insects: generalists (feed on a wide range of flowering plants) and specialists (have narrow requirements for what they can feed on).

I would recommend following the permaculture principle of using biodiversity and try to attract both generalists and specialists to the garden!

How do they work?

Many pollinators have special UV vision that allows them to see only certain colors that make it easier to find pollen in flowers. These colors are called “nectar guides”.

The shape of flowers also impacts what pollinators will be attracted to them. For instance; tubular or elongated flowers will typically be visited by butterflies and hummingbirds since they are better equipped to feed from them.

Bees prefer wide and flat flowers since they are easier to land on and they don’t have to crawl through a tube to arrive at the nectar and pollen.

To attract bees (of many types, not just honeybees) plant blue, purple, and yellow flowers.

To attract butterflies, plant flowers with wide clusters of flowers where they can perch while feeding. They also like bright colors!

Moths are attracted more by scent and are often nocturnal. They tend to prefer white flowers that bloom at night.

Hummingbirds prefer red, and tubular shaped flowers.

Common examples of pollinator plants for guilds include:

• Alliums (chives, garlic, daffodils, flowering alliums)

• Elderflower

• Yarrow

• Squash flowers

• Sunflower

• Goldenrod

• Asters

• Alyssum

• Echinacea (coneflower)

• Milkweed

One last thing about pollinator plants; remember that not all flowers bloom at the same time so it is important to have as many things blooming throughout the growing season as possible!

Repellers

Repellers are pest control plants that either deter pests all together or lure them away from your other crops.

There are many pests in the garden that are deterred by various plants. Common ones include:

• Aphids

• Cabbage moths

• Nematodes

• Carrot flies

• White flies

• Tomato hornworms

• Ants

How do they work?

So there are three main ways plants can manage pests:

1. The plant is unpleasant enough to keep pests away.

2. The plant attracts pests directly to it instead of your crops.

3. The plant attracts the natural predators of the pest (parasitic wasps for example)

By planting a mixture of different plants like these throughout the garden (and no, you can’t just plant one single repeller and expect to never see pests again!) you can drastically reduce your pest pressure to more manageable levels.

Aromatic herbs (basil, thyme, sage, alliums etc) are great ways to repel certain pests and attract beneficial insects at the same time. Common examples include:

• Dill (Attracts parasitic wasps, repels squash bugs, aphids, cabbage worms, tomato hornworms)

• Yarrow (Attracts pest predators like ladybugs, lacewings, and hoverflies)

• Sage (Repels slugs, ants, carrot flies, cabbage moths)

• Garlic (Repels aphids, spider mites, mosquitos, moths)

• Onions (Scent keeps away many pests, especially mammals)

• Chives (Attracts hoverflies, repels aphids, carrot flies, Japanese beetles)

• Marigold (Repels nematodes, whiteflies, cabbage worms, cabbage moth, mosquitos, rabbits, aphids)

• Mints (Repels mosquitos, flies, ants, rodents)

• Lavender (Repels mosquitoes, moths, fleas, lice, ticks, and mealybugs)

• Calendula (Repels asparagus beetle, nematodes, tomato hornworm)

• Cilantro (Attracts hoverflies, repels potato beetle and spider mites)

• Nasturtium (Attracts aphids, repels squash bug, whiteflies, cabbage looper)

Many of these examples can double as both repellers and pollinator plants which can save you on space if you are working with a more compact area.

In fact, I highly recommend taking advantage of plants that fill multiple roles in the garden!

My personal favorite example of this is chives. They serve as great pollinator plants, food, and are also a pest repeller.

So that’s a lot of information! Where on earth do we start?

I find it best to keep things simple. Let’s break everything down:

1. First, pick one or two plants for each role (or both roles) and make sure they’ll grow well in your area. These will be your go-to filler plants!

2. Second, choose a few more go-to pollinators that will flower when your other ones are not.

3. Plant them between garden plants, in rows of vegetables, or wherever there is space! A little added defense never hurts!

So go out there and have fun!

I will have walking onions for sale soon if anyone is interested in purchasing!

I will try domestic shipping (within the U.S.) this year and see how well it works out.

Prices are as follows:

• BULBS: $4/4bulbs

• PREGROWN LIVE PLANTS: $8 per plant

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