Why plant wildflowers?
Wildflowers like milkweed, sunflowers, clover and coneflowers provide food for pollinators such as bees and butterflies. The caterpillars of the endangered Monarch butterfly will only eat milkweed, so this plant is crucial for their survival. Planting wildflowers creates a corridor of food sources for butterflies as they migrate. Bees are endangered by habitat loss and use of pesticides. Wildflower areas help provide food to sustain bee populations too! What are pollinators? Bees, butterflies and hummingbirds fly from flower to flower gathering nectar. They pick up pollen on their bodies, and carry that pollen to other plants and flowers. Without pollination, plants wouldn’t grow, |
What are St. Joseph’s Indian School students doing in order to help pollinators?
– They are creating a small bee and butterfly garden on campus, in collaboration with the “Save Our Monarchs” program from Minnesota. –Students created plantable seed paper to send to their homes. They pressed wildflower seeds into layers of recycled paper mixed with water and non-toxic glue. This seed paper can be placed in a sunny spot. Then, with a little water and TLC, the seeds in the paper will sprout into a wildflower plot. Students made envelopes out of recycled book jackets so that their seeds can travel by mail instead of by air! –Students made origami seed packets using recycled magazines, wildflower seeds and mulch. They are giving these packets to campus visitors in order to spread the word about pollinators…and to spread the seeds! |
Seed paper directions:
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Seed packet directions:
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