Selecting Plants for Pollinators A Regional Guide for Farmers, Land Managers, and Gardeners In the Prairie Parkland (Subtropical) Province Including the States of Texas and Oklahoma and NAPPC Table of CONTENTS Why Support Pollinators? 4 Getting Started 5 Prairie Parkland (Subtropical) Province 6 Meet the Pollinators 8 Plant Traits 10 Developing Plantings 12 Farms 13 Public Lands 14 Home Landscapes 15 Bloom Periods 16 Plants That Attract Pollinators 18 Habitat Hints 20 Checklist 22 Resources and Feedback 23 This is one of several guides for different regions in the United States. We welcome your feedback to assist us in making the future guides useful. Please contact us at [email protected] 2 Selecting Plants for Pollinators Selecting Plants for Pollinators A Regional Guide for Farmers, Land Managers, and Gardeners In the Ecological Region of the Prairie Parkland (Subtropical) Province Including the States of Texas and Oklahoma a nappc and Pollinator Partnership™ Publication This guide was funded by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, the C.S. Fund, the Plant Conservation Alliance, the U.S. Forest Service, and the Bureau of Land Management with oversight by the Pollinator Partnership™ (www.pollinator.org), in support of the North American Pollinator Protection Campaign (NAPPC–www.nappc.org). Prairie Parkland (Subtropical) Province 3 Why support pollinators? IN THE I R 1996 BOOK , THE FORGOTTEN POLL I NATORS , Buchmann and Nabhan estimated that animal pollinators are needed for the reproduction “ Farming feeds of 90% of flowering plants and one third of human food crops. Each of us depends on these industrious pollinators in a practical way to provide us with the wide range of foods we eat. In addition, pollinators are part of the the world, and intricate web that supports the biological diversity in natural ecosystems that helps sustain our quality of life. Abundant and healthy populations of pollinators can improve fruit set we must remember and quality, and increase fruit size. In farming situations this increases production per acre. In the wild, biodiversity increases and wildlife food sources increase. that pollinators Cucumbers, figs, blackberries, and blueberries are some of the crops raised in the Prairie Parkland (Subtropical) that rely on honey bees and native bees for pollination. Domestic honey bees pollinate approximately $10 are a critical billion worth of crops in the U.S. each year. Unfortunately, the numbers of both native pollinators and domesticated link in our food bee populations are declining. They are threatened by habitat loss, disease, and the excessive and inappropriate use of pesticides. The loss of commercial bees to Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) has highlighted how severe the issues of proper hive management are to reduce stresses caused systems.” by disease, pesticide use, insufficient nutrition, and transportation practices. -- Paul Growald, Currently, the pollination services that the commercial beekeeping industry provides are receiving much needed research and conservation resources. Co-Founder, The efforts to understand the threats to commercial bees should help us Pollinator partnership understand other pollinators and their roles in the environment as well. It is imperative that we take immediate steps to help pollinator populations thrive. The beauty of the situation is that by supporting pollinators’ need for habitat, we support our own needs for food and support diversity in the natural world. Thank you for taking time to consult this guide. By adding plants to your landscape that provide food and shelter for pollinators throughout their active seasons and by adopting pollinator friendly landscape practices, you can make a difference to both the pollinators and the people that rely on them. Laurie Davies Adams Executive Director Pollinator Partnership 4 Selecting Plants for Pollinators Getting Started TH I S REG I ONAL GU I DE I S just one created as a management tool oaks and hickories typically short in a series of plant selection tools and is used to predict responses of stature and widely spaced, and designed to provide information to land management practices various short and medium-to-tall on how individuals can influence throughout large areas. This guide grasses. Bluestem is the principal pollinator populations through addresses pollinator-friendly land grass found throughout the region. choices they make when they farm management practices in what is Local distribution largely depends a plot of ground, manage large known as the Prairie Parkland on soil. Grassland is supported tracts of public land, or plant a (Subtropical) Province. by fine, heavy soils while savanna garden. Each of us can have a This 80,000 square mile province is stands grow in coarse, light soil. positive impact by providing the a region of plains and low hills. A Long before there were homes essential habitat requirements for majority of the area gently slopes and farms in this area, the original, pollinators including food, water, at elevations ranging from sea natural vegetation provided shelter, and enough space to allow level to 1,300 feet. The climate is continuous cover and adjacent pollinators to raise their young. similar to the temperate prairies feeding opportunities for wildlife, Pollinators travel through the but characterized by warmer including pollinators. In choosing landscape without regard to winters (50° to 80°F), and more plants, aim to create habitat for property ownership or state precipitation, most of which falls pollinators that allow adequate food boundaries. We’ve chosen to use year-round as rain. Average annual shelter, and water sources. Most R.G. Bailey’s classification system rainfall ranges from 35 inches in pollinators have very small home to identify the geographic focus the north to 55 inches in the south. ranges. You can make a difference of this guide and to underscore Hurricanes are common in autumn by understanding the vegetation the connections between climate months. patterns of the farm, forest, or and vegetation types that affect This province is characterized by neighbor’s yard adjacent to you the diversity of pollinators in the prairies and savannas that comprise and by making planting choices environment. part of the grassland-forest that support the pollinators’ need Bailey’s Ecoregions of the United transition area in the central U.S. for food and shelter as they move States, developed by the United Vegetation features a few hardy through the landscape. States Forest Service, is a system evergreen tree species, including Prairie Parkland (Subtropical) Province 5 Understanding the Prairie Parkland (Subtropical) n This region is designated number 255 in the Baileys’ Ecosystem Provinces. To see a map of the provinces go to: www.fs.fed.us/colorimagemap/ecoreg1_provinces.html n Not sure about which bioregion you live or work in? Go to www.pollinator.org and click on Ecoregion Locator for help. n 80,100 square miles within Texas and Oklahoma. n Primarily gently rolling to flat plains. n Elevations ranging from sea level to 1,300 feet. n Average winter temperature from 50° to 60°F, summers from 70° to 80°F. n Average year-round precipitation ranges from 35 inches in the north to 55 inches in the south. n USDA Hardiness Zones 7a-9a. Characteristics n Comprised of prairies and savannas. n Vegetation includes oak and hickory trees and various short and medium-to-tall grasses. n One of the most altered regions in the U.S.’ threats to habitat include conversion and fragmentation associated with agriculture and development. 6 Selecting Plants for Pollinators The Prairie Parkland “ Adding native plantings in riparian areas (Subtropical) Province includes the states of: to improve pollinator habitat makes Texas and Oklahoma sense in advancing our family farm’s conservation and economic objectives, enhancing beneficial wildlife and improving pollination in our orchard and garden.” --Lee McDaniel, Farmer and President, National Association of Conservation Districts Prairie Parkland (Subtropical) Province 7 Meet the Pollinators Who are the Solitary bees include carpenter bees (Xylocopa spp.), which nest in wood; pollinators? digger, or polyester bees (Colletes spp.), which nest underground; Bees leafcutter bees (Megachile spp.), Bees are well documented which prefer dead trees or branches pollinators in the natural and for their nest sites; and mason bees agricultural systems of the Prairie (Osmia spp.), which utilize cavities Parkland (Subtropical). A wide that they find in stems and dead range of crops including cucumbers, wood. Cactus bees (Diadasia spp.) figs, blackberries, and blueberries are also solitary ground nesters. are just a few plants that benefit from bee pollinators. Butterflies Photo Kim Davis & Mike Stangeland Most of us are familiar with the Gardeners have been attracting Pair of Reakirt’s Blue butterflies mating. colonies of honey bees that have butterflies to their gardens for some been the workhorses of agricultural time. These insects tend to be eye- pollination for years in the United catching, as are the flowers that States. They were imported from attract them. Position flowering Europe almost 400 years ago. plants where they have full sun and There are nearly 4000 species of are protected from the wind. Also, native ground and twig nesting bees you will need to provide open areas in the U.S. Some form colonies (e.g. bare earth, large stones) where while others live and work a solitary butterflies may bask, and moist soil life. Native bees currently pollinate from which they may get needed many crops and can be encouraged minerals. By providing a safe place to do more to support agricultural to eat and nest, gardeners can also endeavors if their needs for nesting support the pollination role that A female Black Chinned Hummingbird habitat are met and if suitable butterflies play in the landscape. It in flight. sources of nectar, pollen, and water might mean accepting slight damage are provided. Bees have tongues of to the plants, known as host plants, varying lengths that help determine that provide food for the larval stage which flowers they can obtain nectar of the butterfly.