Pollinator Garden Designer

Build a continuous-bloom calendar with regional native species. Plus nesting structure, water, and pesticide-free management.

Pollinator garden principles

1. Continuous bloom from earliest spring through hard frost. Pollinators need food across all life stages. Gaps can starve colonies and migrating species.
2. Cluster plantings of 3+ same species. Pollinators are flower-constant; clumps are easier to find and forage than scattered individuals.
3. Diverse flower shapes. Tubular (hummingbird, long-tongued bee), open umbel (short-tongued bee, fly), composite (butterfly), bell (bumble bee). One shape = some pollinators excluded.
4. Native first. Native bees (4,000 species) often specialize on native plants. Non-natives attract honeybees + butterflies but support fewer specialist natives.
5. Bare ground for nesting. ~70% of native bees nest in soil. A small patch of unmulched, sandy/loose soil supports them.
6. Tube / cavity nests for the rest. Mason bee houses, bee blocks, hollow plant stems — provides nesting sites for the ~30% of bees that don't dig.
7. No pesticides. Even "organic" sprays kill bees. Time spraying for late evening when pollinators inactive; use selective products (Bt for caterpillars only).
8. Water source. Shallow puddling stones; bees drink + take water back to colony.
9. Leave some "mess". Stems left until spring shelter overwintering insects. Skip fall cleanup in pollinator areas.
10. Avoid neonics. Big-box "bee-friendly" plants are often pre-treated with systemic neonicotinoids. Buy from native-plant nurseries or grow from seed.

Bee nesting structure

Free under CC BY 4.0. Cite as "OAT Pollinator Garden Designer (openagriculturetechnology.com)". Plant data from Xerces Society pollinator plant lists, USDA NRCS, and regional native-plant societies.