Does Cleaning Up the Garden Too Early Harm Pollinators?
Don’t harm the pollinators! Though you may feel a strong urge to clear the yard, consider cleaning it gradually throughout the seasons. Nesting pollinators and predatory insects hide underground, in stems, and under leaves. Native plant gardener Jerad Bryant explores whether cleaning up the garden harms pollinators.
Contents
Pollinators aren’t just bees! They include flies, butterflies, beetles, slugs, and larger critters like lemurs, bats, and birds. Any creature that sticks its snout into flowers and pollinates them can consider itself a pollinator.
Because pollinators are diverse, they inhabit a wide range of habitats. Some burrow in plant stems, while others find underground cavities to overwinter. How and when you clean the garden can impact these habitats by dislodging or removing them entirely. Without a home, many insects perish before spring arrives.
Practicing careful garden cleanup methods at the right time can help these pollinators thrive in the coming seasons. To help the bugs, we must think like bugs! Let’s explore whether or not cleaning up the garden harms pollinators. We’ll learn where, when, and how they hide from autumn through spring.
The Short Answer
Starting garden cleanup too early can harm pollinators. Though not all pollinating insects reside in garden cover, many do. They rely on undisturbed sites. When we remove old stems, rake fallen leaves, and cut back plants, we remove valuable habitat space for these little creatures.
The best thing to do is to wait until after the bees, flies, and beetles emerge. Most are active by April, meaning late spring is a good time to clean up parts of the yard
The Long Answer
When and how you clear the yard affects pollinators differently. Some tactics are harmless, while others have the potential to decimate pollinator populations before they emerge. With some research on the local area and its native insects, you can make reasonable decisions about cleaning harmlessly or not at all!
It Depends On the Pollinator
Different bugs inhabit different spaces. Butterflies, bees, birds, and flies all prefer different homes for overwintering. Some stay in cozy shelters beneath the soil, others reside in leaf litter and budding vegetation, while a few brave types remain exposed on open surfaces.
Urban regions tend to have many more cavity-nesting bees, while suburban and rural locations have more soil-dwelling bees. Cavity-nesting bees tuck themselves in tight, empty spaces like hollow stems, canes, and man-made structures. They’re vulnerable to an early spring cleanup.
Butterflies may hide as adults, caterpillars, or pupae. They use crevices on trees and shrubs, leaf litter, or similar spaces in the wild. When you leave space for them without cleaning it up, you help foster their return in spring.
Other possible homes for these critters include stacks of wood, overlapping rocks, and cold compost piles. Take care when moving these items, as they may foster ladybugs, bumble bees, and beetles.
Tilling Kills Pollinators
Soil-dwelling pollinators and beneficial insects rely on undisturbed soils to survive the winter, so delaying garden cleanup can help them emerge more successfully. They’re less common in areas with frequent tilling, as the action can kill them while they’re vulnerable. Turning the soil may be necessary in old gardens, though it’s a good idea to consider how this will impact predatory and pollinating insects.
Growers till the ground to make it loose and crumbly for planting. Turning crumbles up large particles into smaller ones that are perfect for seed starting and transplanting. Though the soil is perfect for planting right after tillage, the beneficial effects are short-lived. Tilling kills insects and destroys beneficial bacteria, fungi, and worms.
Rather than tilling, you can use mulch to boost pollinator activity and soil quality. With time, organic mulches like compost, leaf mold, or wood chips decay into loose, crumbly soil. They feed soil microbes and worms rather than harming them, which leads to humus-rich soils perfect for planting.
Skipping fall leaf cleanup is the perfect way to help pollinating critters. When they drop to the ground in autumn, collect them and place them throughout your yard. Cover flower beds, borders, and pathways. The leaves decay in place, providing cover for insects and nutrients for the soil.
How Early Is Too Early?
Some cleanup is necessary for a tidy garden—the key is waiting until the right time so you can protect pollinator habitats as much as possible. In my area of the Pacific Northwest, this period falls in May, though it can be sooner or later depending on your climate.
U.S. gardeners may start major cleanups as early as mid-April. The longer you can wait, the better the insects will be. They’ll be safe once they emerge from their winter homes to make nests in the wild.
Rather than cleaning up every part of the yard, consider whether some things need to be cleaned. Leaf litter decays into rich, crumbly soil with time. It won’t hurt to leave the leaves on bare soil and pathways.
If there’s snow or ice on the ground, or if recurring frosts are frequent, it’s too early to start tidying up the space. Brew some coffee, plant some seeds, and prepare for the coming spring!
Set Habitat Aside
An excellent way to help these critters year-round is to build them an apartment complex! Log piles, cold compost, and garden debris can work as homes for bees, ladybugs, and fireflies. If you have unused portions of the yard, this is a great way to foster overwintering critters with little effort or maintenance.
Another way to create a permanent habitat is to let your lawn go wild! Mow portions you want to walk on, then leave the rest to grow, flower, and seed. Convert portions into pollinator gardens with wildflowers, native plants, and shrubs to further maximize the space.
One consideration with perennial habitats is that they might invite non-beneficial creatures that will munch on your plants’ leaves. With some experimentation and testing, you can create a plan that works for you and the native animals. Maybe you decide that some leaves can have damage, or you plant trap crops to trap the harmful insects.
Simply thinking about local insects, mammals, and birds is a great first step in the right direction. Once you think about how they live and survive, you can devise new ways to help them thrive.
Invite More Pollinators
Aside from waiting to start garden cleanup in the spring, you may also plant species that will help pollinators survive during the growing season. These animals appreciate nectar and pollen-rich flowers, and birds love fruiting species with berries or small fruits.
Wildflowers and native plants are some of the easiest species to start with, and they’re some of the most impactful. They offer nutrient-rich nectar and pollen at crucial times in the growing season, from late winter through late summer.
Milkweed is a perfect native plant to start cultivating. It grows easily in poor conditions, thriving in neglected sites with clay or excessive amounts of sand. There are dozens of species native to the U.S., with some that are sure to be local to your region. Common, showy, and narrowleaf milkweed are my favorites; they have stunning blooms and hardy, perennial roots.
