The Power of Attraction

Parsley (Petroselinum hortense) Flower Detail

I'm slowly working on attracting wildlife into my very small garden. One group of creatures I'm trying to attract are the "beneficials." Whether they happen to be insects, birds, lizards, earthworms, or what have you, the beneficials perform useful services in the garden such as eating the pests that damage plants (or would otherwise bug me), pollinating fruits and vegetables, or improving the soil.  In order for them to be happy in my yard they need a habitat that (1) doesn't kill them; and (2) provides food, water, shelter, and the right conditions for reproduction. Tiny beneficial insects may not seem very much like "wildlife," but I think they are essential to a diverse and balanced ecosystem that supports the health of plants and animals that we all enjoy having in the yard.

Some of the best plants for attracting small-scale beneficials are those that bear tiny individual flowers such as those on the parsley plant above. Parsley, like its cousins, bears loose, umbrella-like flower heads that rise high above the plant on tall stems. Each flower head has more stems that hold up more, smaller flower heads that hold yet more stems, each bearing aloft a tiny flower that invites correspondingly tiny flying insects to come for dinner. This large flower head is about 3.5 inches across. The small flower head on which the wasp is resting is about half an inch across. 

 Wasp Sipping Nectar from Parsley Blossom

Other flowers that at first glance may look like one big flower are actually also composed of many small flowers in one flower head. Many of these, some more than others, are very attractive to our useful little visitors. Sunflowers, daisies, zinnias and cosmos are just a few examples. When you grow these for cut flowers, cut them as soon as they bloom for taking indoors, and they won't be 'buggy.' But leave a few outside and let the beneficials use them, and they'll thank you. These and lots of others like them are easy to grow in pots or in the ground in most any garden. 

One of the easiest and best-known flowers for attracting beneficials is sweet alyssum. This plant serves other functions as well. When they fill in an area, they act as a living mulch, keeping weeds at bay. They will self-sow and return again in the fall, and/or the following spring.

Sweet Alyssum (Lobularia maritima)

It is a privilege to glimpse the secret world of small, usually unseen things in the garden, and to know how important they are for the health of the whole landscape. I hope you too will be inspired to add something to your landscape to encourage local wildlife.

Cilantro/Coriander (Coriandrum sativum) Bloom detail