Nine year research study

Summary of findings

We started our research at our original nursery site in Hanney, near Wantage in Oxfordshire where we gathered 6 years or data followed by a further 3 years in our new location at Maypole, near Monmouth, Wales.

In each site we used the same basic method: each plant being studied was given a square meter of ground, grown to maturity and the pollinators where counted weekly throughout the flowering time. This gives a metric of ‘average pollinators per square meter’ and this is the basis of all our findings.

  • The primary finding is that the number of pollinator each plant attracts varies hugely. Some attract surprisingly few, even supposedly ‘pollinator-friendly’ plants.  This variation is significant for anyone wanting to maximize the amount of pollinator-food any area of land can provide.

  • Weather has a major impact on both pollinators and plants causing them to thrive much more in some years than others. Yet, both are also very resilient and how attractive to pollinators a plant appears to be should not be judged on a single year let alone a single observation.

  • Both native and non-native plants are equally attractive to pollinators. Except where there is some unique inter-dependency, most pollinators show no favoritism to native plants and seek food where they can access it. Some pollinators are plant specialists so certain plants deserve attention even if they attract fewer insects.

  • Healthy plants with more flowers attract more pollinators. The old gardeners’ adage of ‘right plant for the right place’ is important for both a sustainable garden and more pollinator-food

  • Different plants attract different pollinators and so to ensure that food is supplied to a wide range of pollinators its best to have a wide range of flowers available. Although plant structure has a bearing on which plants each bee prefers, it is not the only factor.

The chart below provides a summary of the cumulative results for the 9 years of data showing which plants attract the most pollinators and of which kind. The values have been rationalised to adjust for the dominance of honey bees in Hanney and then of solitary bees in Maypole. Surprisingly, the differences between the two sites where minor. For more details click the link at the bottom of the page.

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