Pollinator Garden at Gulf Branch Nature Center
Check out the pollinator garden at Gulf Branch Nature Center! It’s filled with plenty of nectar- and pollen-rich flowers and many plants that are native not just to Virginia, but also to the Arlington area. Native gardens like this are deer resistant, attract pollinators, tough and easy to maintain and look beautiful! Some of our plants include:
- Arrow Wood Viburnum
- Silky Dogwood
- Coreopsis
- Trumpet Honeysuckle
- Common Milkweed
- Mountain Mint
- Dogbane
Use these plants in your yard or garden to help pollinators find food!
Discover the unique alliance between plants and pollinators!
Pollinators unknowingly move pollen from flower to flower as they search for nourishing nectar and pollen. Flowers become fertilized and are able to produce seeds and more plants. Some pollinators found in our area:
- Bees
- Butterflies
- Beetles
- Flies
- Hummingbirds
Our suburban environment can have a negative effect on pollinators, which many flowering plants need to survive. It is up to us to help create an oasis of food and shelter amidst a desert of buildings, concrete and non-native plants!
The Gulf Branch Nature Center Pollinator Garden was funded through a Park Enhancement Grant from the Park and Recreation Commission.
The Pollinator Garden is the product of an outstanding team of support. The idea for the garden was developed by Denise Chauvette, former director of Gulf Branch Nature Center. An Arlington County Master Gardener designed the garden with colorful flowers that will be attractive to both pollinators and park visitors! Jennifer Soles, a Parks, Recreation and Cultural Resources naturalist, planned and organized the construction of the pollinator garden. Burt Bostwick of the Old Glebe
Civic Association applied for the grant application and organized community volunteers and the Friends of Gulf Branch Nature Center to do much of the planting. And Arlington’s AmeriCorps team did the hardest and sweatiest work, such as removing invasive plants and preparing the soil.
