Did you know pollen helps by enhancing and fertilizing plants? It’s true, and it’s all thanks to our Earth’s pollinators.
What are pollinators?
The next time you see a bee and run for the fly-swatter or can of bug spray, think about this FIRST. Quietly, globally, billions of bees are dying, threatening our crops and food. Pollinators are animals and insects that transfer pollen from flower to flower helping the flowers grow. Pollinators are important for crops and agriculture.
Here’s a quick list of pollinators:
- Butterflies
- Bees
- Hummingbirds
- Bats
- Moths
They spread pollen from flower to flower accidentally. For example: There is a part in flowers called a stigma where pollen is accumulated. When a hummingbird is drinking nectar from the flower the pollen rubs off on the hummingbird. As the pollinator flies to another flower to feed the pollen may rub off and stick to the stigma of that flower from the previous one. Pollen is what helps plants to grow. Some pollinators are attracted to brightly colored flowers and some are attracted to flowers that have sweet scents. If there were no pollinators to help grow plants there would be no flowers or crops, and that is what is needed to feed other creatures as well as ourselves. They also help trees to grow. Without trees we wouldn’t have oxygen to breathe. Pollinators are more important than we think, that’s why we need to protect them. So invite the bees and hummingbirds, even a bat or two by planting a few native plants in your yard.
Maya Penn
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