Kid-Friendly Pollinator Garden

VIDEO: Misty and Alan Garden Tour

Family Friendly Garden

When Misty and Alan moved into their home 10 years ago, the backyard was filled with thick bushes and grass. Through the years, they’ve continued to reinvent it into a space where their kids can play and they can grow healthy, fresh food for their family. 

With two young kids at home, Misty and Alan have made sure their yard is both accessible and fun for their family. That means finding easy ways for the kids to join in the gardening process. Alan says they try to get them involved from beginning to end. When they go to buy seeds, they let the kids help pick out what to grow. When it's time to plant, the kids are right there with their hands in the dirt alongside their parents. And of course, they love to help with the harvest!

Misty and Alan say they try to have realistic expectations and set the kids up for success by making sure it’s easy for them to participate. That means the kids have their own set of tools and gloves. The kids also love to help others with gardening. Sometimes they’ll even help the neighbors with their weeds!

One of the benefits of having a backyard garden is the kids get to come out and munch on fresh produce whenever they want. In their herb garden, they grow French sorrel, which Misty says has a citrusy taste to it. Her son loves it so much he’ll eat it right off the plant, but their daughter says it’s a little too sour for her taste. 

Last year, Misty and Alan had a plot at the inaugural year of the Sugar House Community Garden. They say it was a great way for the family to safely spend time outside of the house. Alan says “the kids just like helping with everything. And it's something that we do as a family.” 

In addition to all of the food they grow, their yard is home to a variety of ornamental plants as well. Underneath their Rivers Purple Beech tree in the backyard, they have a little shade garden full of plants like ferns, nasturtiums, and hellebores. And throughout their yard, they’ve paid special attention to planting flowers they know pollinators will love.

Helping Butterflies with a Monarch Waystation

After reading an article about monarch habitat loss, Misty wanted to find a way to help. She found out about the Monarch Waystation Program, which helps homeowners create gardens that provide the resources monarchs need as they migrate. 

One of the most important plants for a Monarch Waystation is milkweed. Milkweed is the only “larval host plant” for monarch butterflies, meaning it’s needed for monarch caterpillars to grow. Different types of butterflies have different larval host plants. Milkweed also provides nectar for them when they become butterflies. Misty says when the monarchs find milkweed, they lay their eggs on it. “The eggs are just so tiny, they're little white eggs. And to watch them grow just by eating this plant is fascinating. They grow so fast,” she says.

There are many different types of milkweed, including up to 15 species of milkweed that are native to Utah. Misty and Alan have swamp milkweed, which they point out is sometimes called rose milkweed. They collect the pods in the fall to prevent it from spreading too much and pull any unwanted plants as needed. Misty says there are other varieties that are more invasive, such as showy milkweed, so it’s important to do research before deciding which variety to plant. 

There are a few key things to help you on your way to building your own Monarch Waystation!

 The most important parts of a Monarch Waystation are:

• Milkweed- It’s recommended to have at least 10 milkweed plants of two or more different species, though a larger number of a single species works as well. Having multiple types of milkweed increases the chance monarchs will stay around for longer!
• Nectar Plants- Pollinators like monarch butterflies need nectar. Some great nectar plants for Utah are bee balm, penstemon, and salvia. Having a variety that bloom at different times in the season means more food sources for monarchs throughout their lifetime.
• Shelter- Planting milkweed and nectar plants relatively close together means protection from predators. Monarchs will use this shelter during all stages of their life.

Other things that can help are:

• Sun Exposure- Both butterflies and the plants they love thrive in full sun. Put your Monarch Waystation in a place that will get at least six hours of sunlight a day.
• Size- Your Monarch Waystation can be small, but they tend to be best when they are 100 square feet. This can be spread out around your garden.
• Maintenance- Having a functioning Monarch Waystation requires care. Depending on your garden, you may need to do things like remove old flowers, thin out invasive plants, mulch, and other maintenance activities to make sure the space is thriving.

In addition to their milkweed and nectar-producing plants, Misty and Alan have a resting house for the butterflies. Misty says when they need a rest, the full grown butterflies can fly right inside and take a break, but still have all their food and water sources nearby. 

The family was given monarch eggs last year and got to see the whole life cycle from start to finish. Misty says the experience has been educational and exciting for their family, noting she didn’t know how big they were until this process. “We released them into our neighborhood and it was fantastic,” she says. They even got to see another life cycle from the monarch butterflies they released! 

For more information on Monarch Waystations, visit: https://www.monarchwatch.org/waystations/

Building a Garden Fit for Native Bees

Misty and Alan also set their garden up to support some of Utah’s native bees. There are 4,000 native bee species in the United States and we have over 900 species right here in Utah!

While most of us picture western honey bees or bumble bees when we think about bees, native bees range in size and appearance. Misty says they have too many native bees in their yard to name them all, but often see leafcutter bees, blue orchard bees, and sweat bees.

Misty and Alan started to purchase premade native bee nests, but quickly realized that many of boxes are not long enough for female native bees. So they began building their own, using a variety of different straw sizes so different bees could use them. There are lots of different kinds of structures that can help, so make sure to do your research to find which is most suitable for your area.

They also make sure to provide a variety of different nectar plants for the bees so they have plenty of food sources. While the bees enjoy many of the plants they have in their yard, some of the flowers they see the bees using most are their coneflowers, bee balms, and sunflowers. 

If you’re interested in planting more pollen and nectar-producing plants, Wasatch Community Gardens has lots of information on planting an insectary, including workshops and a plant list! 

See more at: https://wasatchgardens.org/resources/item/426-insectary

To learn more about how to help native bees in your yard, visit: https://www.pbsutah.org/blogs/modern-gardener/helping-the-bees-in-your-backyard/

Their garden also benefits the western honey bees they started keeping this year. Alan says they first became interested in honey bees after meeting bee keepers  on a stop of the Urban Garden and Farm Tour. “It's just fascinating and the kids love it...And it's nice for the garden.” The idea continued to percolate until their son asked to buy a book on bees and the rest is history!

Misty and Alan made sure to do a lot of research before getting a beehive. They took classes and joined the Wasatch Beekeepers Association, where they were paired up with a beekeeping mentor. For those interested in getting their own hive, they stress the amount of work that goes into maintaining a hive. Misty says she spent over a year doing research before even thinking about getting their bees!

One thing to consider before getting a hive is the cost of setting up your beehive. Misty and Alan were lucky enough to purchase their hive from someone locally, which meant their bees were already acclimated to the area. But they also needed to purchase tools and suits. They said their total upfront costs were between $200-$300.

They also took extra precautions to teach their kids about bees in order to keep them safe. They point out that their hive is fairly mellow, but they still educate their kids on how to interact with the bees. Misty says they made sure to teach them not to swat at the bees. “I think it's important to note that if bees are just left to their own devices, they do not care about humans at all. So that's not, they're not hunting you down,” she says. 

Alan says the process has been great for their kids and calls it a “science experiment.”  The kids have their own bee suits so they can be involved in the process.  He says they love to help with things like holding the bee smoker box while they interact with the hive.

Little Free Libraries for the Community

Misty and Alan think about how to bring education into all aspects of their lives. They’ve had a Little Free Library outside their home for 5 years, but Misty says her “goal was always to try to figure out how to expand my reach with books in a way that worked with my family.” When they saw a trike for sale, they jumped at the chance to create a mobile Little Free Library!

With Misty’s design and Alan’s construction, they created a beehive themed Little Free Library on wheels and named it the Bee Bookcycle. They take it often to the Sugar House Community garden, even using it to transfer plants for their plot. During the pandemic, they made sure it was stocked full of masks for the community.

Currently, they’re constructing another Little Free Library and a Little Free Pantry for the Wasatch Community Gardens’ Campus. The pantry will have baskets on the side so folks can find fresh produce, and spots inside for canned goods and other foods. Misty and Alan see it as a great way to connect with the community. As Misty says, “There's always a need, kids need books. People need food.”

Check out the Bee Bookcycle’s Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/beebookcycle/

We hope you enjoyed learning more about Misty and Alan's garden! Don't forget to check out their garden tour videoand let us know your favorite part in the comments. 

To see more inspiring home gardeners and their gardens, check out our Wasatch Community Gardens Urban Garden and Farm Tour playlist here.

If you live in Utah and have a garden or garden project that you'd like to be featured on Modern Gardener, click here!