By Stephanie Jansen Master Gardener in-Training, SCMG
Do you know plants can communicate?
When it comes to calling the birds, bees, butterflies and other beneficial insects to your garden, one way the plants can communicate, is through colour.
This year, RED is calling loud and clear as we celebrate “Year of The Garden 2022”.
This gardening season, we’ve planted Red to celebrate Canada and attract Beneficials to pollinate, protect against pests, enrich our soil and feed others higher on the food chain.
Red is such an attractive colour in the garden. It can transition easily through all the seasons, its bright, vibrant colour is what the pollinators and other beneficials see clearly. It “communicates” well.
When planting, I recommend planting flowers of the same species together in drifts or groups instead of scattering them with one here and one over there. It’s important to group the flowers together in order to make things easier for insects who’ll see and find the pollen and nectar more readily
Want to attract Humming birds to your garden? Colour, shape and smell all play a big part in the communication process. Plants want to communicate to the right pollinator in order to best spread their pollen. A good example of this is the tubular or bell shaped flowers like Crocosmia Lucifer and Nasturtiums, the humming birds’ long beaks allow them to reach deep inside the flower to all that sweet nectar to spread from flower to flower.
When thinking about butterflies, a good flower is one that it flat. The flat surface creates a comfortable landing pad for butterflies so that they can reach the pollen and nectar at ease. A good example is the Red Butterfly Weed (Aesclepias). This is a non-invasive species of milkweed, but it’s not native. It’s from the tropics. Growing to about 3’ tall, it comes in yellow, orange, and red. This is one of the best nectar plants and is extremely popular with butterflies. The Monarchs not only fed off the flowers, but the butterfly caterpillars feasted on the plant after they hatched (don’t worry, the plant grows back).
Aside growing these flowers for the hummingbirds and butterflies, adding native plants such as Scarlet Indian Paintbrush (Castilleja coccinea) wild columbine (Aquilegia Canadensis), bee balm (Monarda didyma), cardinal flower (Lobelia cardinalis), red trillium (Trillium erectum), Trumpet Vine (Campsis radicans) and serviceberry (Amelanchier spp.) attract and provide a food source for our native Bees, Finches, Carrion Fly, various beetles, squirrels, chipmunks, deer, rabbits and us humans of course.
So when you think about what beneficials you want to bring to your garden, consider planting Red this year and watch as the communication happens.
What are some interactions you notice?
Are there other messages the red flower/plant insinuates?
