City Strategies to Support Pollinators

The 2024 Pym Street garden was planted to raise awareness about this issue and to provide a haven for our beloved bees and is dedicated to showcasing their importance and the beauty of their habitat. The garden will serve as a sanctuary for bees and other pollinators, offering them a safe space to thrive.

In other areas of the City, we are cultivating more native plants which will support bees as well. Native plant flowers provide bees with a diverse and abundant source of nectar and pollen, essential for their survival and well-being. These untamed beauties not only offer sustenance but also create a rich and biodiverse ecosystem that benefits both bees and other wildlife.

Native plants are nature's resilience champions against drought! Unlike their non-native counterparts, they've evolved over centuries to thrive in our local climates, making them more resilient to dry spells. The parks team is mixing native plants along with drought tolerant non-native plants in many City flower beds to better adapt to our dry summers. 

Naturalized pollinator meadows
Another step in protecting bees is the creation of naturalized pollinator meadows in some City parks and open spaces. The areas are being mowed and maintained by staff but in a slightly different manner than previous years. Mowing has been reduced in a few select areas for these important reasons:  

• Improved habitat for beneficial species of plants and animals, including birds, bees and butterflies.
• Cooler temperatures in the air benefiting visitors.
• More moisture in our soils for longer, helping trees during periods of drought.
• Less carbon emissions during maintenance.
• More diverse and exciting park landscapes for people to enjoy.

Many municipalities are now adopting these best practices following extensive research and studies and found the benefits to be significant. Concerns linking fire, insects, and garbage accumulation to unmowed grass have not been substantiated by research or information gathered from other municipalities. As the ecological benefits and rainfall declines, the long grass will turn brown, and the City will mow these areas. 

An example of this reduced mowing is at Nicolls Park (below) where areas used by the public are being mowed and managed, leaving some areas to support environmental benefits. The tall grass also adds texture and colour to the park. Although the aesthetic may not be to everyone’s liking, benefits of selective mowing mean our green spaces can function at a higher level.