Trees support our well-being and our planet’s health. They provide shade, which cools our outdoor and indoor living areas. Trees have been proven to calm us and reduce stress levels.
Trees support wildlife and our ecosystem. An oak tree attracts and supports pollinators and beneficial insects. Trees provide birds and animals with food and nesting areas. Planting one tree can make a difference.
Attend an Arbor Day event to celebrate and learn more about trees.
Arbor Day LNK 2024 is Sunday, April 28th from 12:30 to 3:30 pm at Antelope Park.
Trees provide many well know benefits to the landscape. The importance of flowering trees as a source of pollen and nectar for pollinators is sometimes overlooked. Spring is a great time to plant trees, here are a few to consider adding to your pollinator habitat.
Red maple-Acer rubrum: Pollinators: bees, butterflies, wasps and flies. Early April blooming with scarlet red flowers and red fall foliage.
Wild plum-Prunus americana: Pollinators: bees, butterflies, moths, wasps and flies. Early April blooming with white flowers. Small trees have fruit for wildlife.
Eastern redbud-Cercis canadensis: Pollinators: bees, butterflies, wasps and flies. Late April blooming with small purple flowers. Small tree in the legume family, 20-30 feet tall.
Peachleaf willow-Salix amygdaloides: Pollinators: bees, butterflies, wasps and flies. Late April blooming with pollen loaded white flowers.
Northern catalpa-Catalpa speciosa: Pollinators: bees and moths. Blooms, late May – early June. Flowers are orchid-like and fragrant. Large heart-shaped foliage that turn yellow-brown in fall.
Tulip tree-Liriodendron tulipifera: Pollinators: bees, beetles and flies. Bloom time May-June. Gorgeous flowers are large, greenish yellow cups with a basal orange band. Native to the US, Larval host to Eastern Tiger Swallowtail (Papilio glaucus).
Other trees:
American linden-Tilia americana: Pollinators: bees, moths, wasps, beetles and flies. Summer yellow-white flowers. Fragrant flowers. Fall yellow foliage. Native tree that reaches heights of 60-80 feet.
Littleleaf linden-Tilia cordata: Pollinators: bees, moths, wasps, beetles and flies. Summer yellow-white flowers. Fragrant blooms. Fall yellow-green foliage. Great street and residential tree.
Shadblow serviceberry-Amelanchier laevis: Pollinators: bees and flies. White flowers emerge in early spring. Purple-black fruit. Green summer foliage turns copper-orange in fall.
Crabapple-Malus spp.: Pollinators: bees and flies. May blooming flowers, with long bloom time, are white, pink and red.
Black cherry-Prunus serotine: Pollinators: bees and flies. White, May blooming flowers. Native tree, 60-80 feet tall.
Many great pollinator plants are blooming now. It can be hard to find a good collection of spring blooming plants to add to your pollinator habitat. Here are a few to try.
Trees: Eastern redbud, cherry, apple, crab apple, wild plum, pear, willow, maple and Shadblow serviceberry.
Perennials: pasque flower, Dutchman’s breeches, white trout lily, Virginia bluebells and spring beauty.
Spring blooming flower bulbs: snowdrops, Siberian squill, grape hyacinth, crocus, striped squill and glory-of-the-snow.
Earth Day was yesterday and Arbor Day is celebrated next week. It was great to be out in the Cherry Creek Pollinator Habitat to see what is blooming. Spring blooming trees are important to the early pollinators. We have three early blooming trees in the habitat. Eastern redbud-Cercis canadensis, wild plum-Prunus americana and peachleaf willow-Salix amygdaloides are all blooming now. All these trees are native to the United States and benefit early pollinators. Hope you can add a spring blooming tree to your landscape this year.
An easy way to decorate outdoor trees that will benefit wildlife too, is to make a fruit garland.
Supplies:
cranberries
oranges cut in 1/2 inch slices
apples cut in 1/2 inch slices
cotton string, 3 feet long
large sewing needle
Directions: Put the cotton string on the large sewing needle and make a knot at the end of the string. Put the cranberries, oranges and apples on the string to make the garland. Alternate the different fruits to make your own design. Attach the garland to tree branches. Be careful not to injure the branches by tying the string too tight. Remove the string from the tree when the fruit is gone, to prevent girdling the branches later.
Spring is here and we are enjoying the roller coaster of temperatures. Warm & sunny one day, cloudy & cold the next. That is spring in Nebraska. Due to COVID-19 we have a new normal to our life. Nebraska Extension staff are working remotely and the office is closed. I am disappointed I can not be in the Cherry Creek Pollinator Habitat, it is a special place. I like to watch the plants emerge and the start of bee activity. We can watch the Live Habitat Web Cam, so that does help me keep an eye on what is going on. You can watch too by clicking the link above.
I hope everyone is spending time in their home pollinator habitat. I have been. It is nice to spend lunch time outside seeing what is blooming and plotting my next project. Now is a good time to make a list of spring blooming plants you need to add to your habitat. Consider spring blooming bulbs like scilla, crocus, snowdrops, striped squill and glory-of-the-snow. Spring blooming trees include redbud, plums and cherries. Perennials that bloom in the spring are Dutchman’s breeches, spring beauty and pasqueflower.
Spring blooming plants are important for early pollinators. This morning in the habitat I saw a queen bumblebee on a dandelion flower. Blooming this month we had pasque flower, wild plum, prairie ragwort, peach leaf willow and redbud.
The catalpa tree is blooming in the Cherry Creek Pollinator Habitat.  Northern Catalpa-Catalpa speciosa has big flowers, big stems, big pods and even bigger leaves. It is quite stunning when it is blooming. It is native to the United States and is a nice tree to have in the landscape if you have the room. There is a catalpa sphinx moth caterpillar that feeds on the leaves and bumble bees visit the flowers.
Today is Arbor Day. If you are planting a tree today or this weekend, consider planting a tree that would benefit pollinators. Trees to consider include: oak, red maple, crabapple, black cherry, American Linden, hackberry, plums and eastern redbud. If you do not have room for a tree consider planting shrubs. Shrubs that are good for pollinators are: dogwood, sumac, buttonbush, seven sons flower, elderberry and viburnum. The Nebraska Forest Service has an excellent website to help you with tree selection, tree planting directions and tree care. Visit them at: http://nfs.unl.edu/
The Buzz at Cherry Creek 