Pollinators Make a Healthy Diet Possible

“A pollinator is an animal that causes plants to make fruit or seeds. They do this by moving pollen from one part of the flower of a plant to another part. This pollen then fertilizes the plant. Only fertilized plants can make fruit and/or seeds, and without them, the plants cannot reproduce.
In order to pollinate a plant, the pollinator must touch parts of the flower of the plant. Because of this, animals like bees, hummingbirds and some kinds of butterflies are the best pollinators, because they get their food from the flower of the plant and so brush up against parts of the flower. Other insects such as spiders and flies or wasps may use the flower for a hiding place, or may occassionally scavenge from the flower. These animals can also be pollinators, but they aren’t as efficient as bees at their tasks.”

FROM ON POLLINATORS, QUALITATIVE REASONING GROUP, NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY.

Pollinators Make a Healthy Diet Possible: According to the USDA, over 100 American crops depend on pollination. Pollinators — mostly bees and birds — help fruits, nuts and vegetables flourish, which in turn ensures diversity in our balanced diets.

In 2019, as a newly minted Colorado master gardener, I began work on this plant identification guide for the Pollinator Garden in Down Valley Park, in San Miguel County. The real credit goes to Rich Hamilton, who oversees the garden for the County and maintains beautiful flora that welcome pollinators to this corner of Southwestern Colorado every year. Although the plantings change annually, this information represents the plants that were growing in the garden the summer of 2019.