Pollinator-Friendly Planting Initiatives

Pollinators include flies, beetles, ants, moths, wasps, hummingbirds, butterflies, and bats, which spread pollen from one plant to another as they navigate through flowers for food.

Pollinators are essential for both the environment and agriculture, but their populations are declining due to habitat loss, pesticides, and climate change. Native pollinators, such as Yellow-faced Bumble Bee, Mason Bee, and the Dun Skipper Butterfly, are especially important because they have adapted to local plants, making them highly effective pollinators. Supporting native pollinators helps strengthen plant communities, provides food and shelter for wildlife, and boosts crop yields in farms and gardens.

Biodiversity is key for thriving pollinator populations. Having good biodiversity across the landscape means that ecosystems are sufficiently intact, a range of native plants and pollinator species exist, and that species population dynamics are healthy.

Delta is taking action by creating pollinator meadows and gardens, planting native species, and reducing mowing in selected sites. These efforts provide essential habitat while strengthening our natural environment.

You can help too! Planting native flowers, avoiding pesticides, and creating pollinator-friendly spaces in your yard or community can make a big difference in protecting these critical species. Discover more about these efforts and how you can contribute to creating pollinator-friendly spaces below.

Pollination is the transfer of pollen from the male parts (anthers) of one plant to the corresponding female parts (stigma) of another plant. The result of the process is a fertilized ovary that will form a seed or fruit. In short, pollination is a way for plants to reproduce, and most plants depend on pollination for reproduction. Some plants are self-pollinating, some rely on the wind and water to assist them with pollination, but many plants depend on insects and birds (pollinators) to help facilitate the pollination process. Without the help of pollinators, over 80% of the world’s flowering plants, including many of our food crops, would not be able to reproduce.
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Pollinator gardens can be found throughout the City of Delta's parks and greenspaces. Delta's gardeners plant pollinator-supporting plants in garden beds and the majority of garden bed renovations intentionally include pollinator-friendly plant species.
Delta has installed a demonstration pollinator garden in front of City Hall and City Hall West. The garden contains a mix of native and ornamental flowers that will offer food and shelter for pollinators year-round. The gardens are located near the north side of the entrance to City Hall and in front of the City Hall West entrance. The City also added bee houses to the gardens to create habitat for mason bees.
See below for a sample of the pollinator-friendly plants that were included in the gardens:
- Autumn Joy Sedum (Sedum 'Autumn Joy')
- Bee Balm (Monarda didyma 'Purple Rooster')
- Blanket Flower (Gallardia aristata)
- Hellebore (Helleborus x lemonnier 'Walburton's Rosemary')
- Joe Pye Weed (Eupatorium maculatum 'Dwarf Red')
- Bearberry (Arcostaphylos uva-ursi)
- Lungwort (Pulmonaria officinalis)
- Moonbeam Coreopsis (Coreopsis verticillata 'Moonbeam')
- Mountain Larkspur (Delphinium glaucum)
- Perennial Geranium (Geranium macrorrhizum ‘Bevans’s Beauty’ and Geranium macrorrhizum ‘White-Ness’)
- Purple Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea)
- Red-flowering Currant (Ribes sanguineum)
- Showy Milkweed (Asclepias speciose)
- Small Globe Thistle (Echinops ritro subsp. ruthenicus)
- Walkers Low Catmint (Nepeta racemosa 'Walkers Low')
- Winter Daphne (Daphne odora 'Aureomarginata')
- Yarrow (Achillea millefolium)
Delta is creating pollinator meadows in parks and public spaces to increase biodiversity and support pollinators like bees, butterflies, and birds. These areas are seeded with pollinator-friendly wildflowers and grasses, providing food, shelter, and nesting habitats. Pollinator meadows help retain soil moisture, cool the ground, and create beautiful, natural spaces for the community.
This initiative was launched in 2023 with pilot project locations at Jackson Way Parkette and road medians at Grove Avenue and 55B Street and Nordel Way and Scott Road.
Delta has partnered with the Delta Naturalsts Society for 2025 pilot project locations at Wade Road Park and Memorial Park. These locations have been carefully selected to balance recreation and conservation.
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Mason Bee boxes have been installed at four Delta Parks: Rotary Park, Diefenbaker Park, Fred Gingell Park, and the Eastpoint Park Reserve. There are approximately 40-100 bees within a bee box; they will live there from May to August. The bee boxes in Delta parks are maintained by a trained mason bee keeper.
Mason bees are solitary bees that do not make honey. A mason bee may travel up to 50 metres from its home, pollinating 75 flowers per trip. To collect enough food for one mason bee egg, an adult must make 25 trips. At 75 flowers per trip, that’s 1,875 flowers pollinated. A standard mason bee box house that holds 80 bees would result in the pollination of 150,000 flowers!
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In 2020, the City of Delta was declared a Bee City by Bee City Canada. The Bee City designation is a long-term commitment to protect pollinators (not just bees!). This honour is awarded to cities that publicly declare to protect pollinators and their habitats through coordinated and collaborative actions that align with the Bee City program. Becoming a Bee City reflects Delta’s commitment to protecting and enhancing biodiversity and strengthening our support for the creation, protection and promotion of pollinator habitat.
Delta’s plans to create and enhance pollinator habitat includes incorporating more pollinator-friendly flowers into civic garden beds and rain garden designs. Municipal mowing practices for city-maintained areas (e.g., road right-of-ways and along dikes) will be reviewed to identify areas where practices can be updated to benefit pollinators.
More information can be found here: beecitycanada.org/bee-cities/delta
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Since 2023, the City of Delta maintains a minimum of two staff Certified as Pollinator Stewards through Pollinator Partnership Canada. Pollinator Partnership Canada (P2C) along with the sister organization, US-based Pollinator Partnership (P2), is the largest organization in the world dedicated solely to the conservation of pollinators. P2 and P2C have developed the Pollinator Steward Certification program in order to meet the need of a standardized and verified science-based pollinator steward training for individuals and organizations.
The Pollinator Steward Certification shows that an individual or organization has completed the curriculum as set out by P2/P2C and has been active in at least one action in both, Habitat and Outreach. For more information on P2C and the Pollinator Steward Certification Program, please visit pollinator.org/psc
Make your garden pollinator friendly by planting flowers, fruits, and vegetables that will flower at different times of the year. This will help pollinators of all varieties have a steady food supply throughout the seasons. Even a small action, like planting some flowers in a container, can create valuable habitat for pollinators.
Here are a few more ways to invite pollinators to your garden:
- Grow a variety of plants, including native species that bloom throughout the year.
- Leave natural debris, such as dead stems and dry leaves, especially in winter, to provide shelter for overwintering insects and birds.
- Install bird and bee houses to encourage insects and birds to return. You can also explore creating mason bee habitats.
- Avoid the application of pesticides, herbicides, and garden chemicals, as pesticides and fertilizers can harm or kill pollinators and beneficial insects.
- Incorporate a water feature like a bird bath with rocks for bees to rest on.
- When installing a wildflower meadow, we recommend to mow an edge around it. This defines the space and gives the meadow a maintained look, making it clear that the area is intentional and not just an overgrown patch of land. This helps gain public acceptance and reduces complaints about "messy" landscapes.

Here are some good resources for selecting the right kind of plant for your space:

For more information on pollinators:

Bee City Canada
Pollinator Partnership
Feed the Bees - a community campaign to encourage a healthy and sustainable bee population
Delta's Hobby Beekeeping Bylaw