So you’ve got your garden planted now, right? So we’re almost ready for the pollinators to go to work…
Well, some of our vegetables do need to be pollinated—but not all. Kale, spinach, beets, cauliflower, lettuce, cabbage, etc., do not need to be pollinated to get the edible part. They only need to be pollinated if you want them to go to seed so you can plant the seeds next year.
There are plenty of other veggies that DO need to be pollinated, however. Things like cucumbers, summer squash, winter squash, cantaloupes, watermelons, honeydew melons, etc. DO need pollination to set fruit. Now, tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, and tomatillos do not need to be pollinated to get fruit, but pollination will improve the quality of what you get.
What you can do to help is plant some pollinator-friendly flowers close to or around your veggies. Flowers like echinacea (coneflowers), zinnias, rudbeckias (black-eyed Susans, monarda (bee balm), marigolds, poppies, alyssum, sunflowers, etc. I especially like marigolds because their somewhat spicy scent can help repel some garden pests.
Another thing to remember is to be careful about spraying for pests, because many pesticides kill honeybees and butterflies. I tend to stick to hand cleaning whenever possible. And remember that herbs like mint, lavender, and basil can help repel some insects (and deer) with their fragrance. And, of course, insect pests are a lot easier to get rid of when you catch them early, so start checking early for trouble and double-checking the back of your leaves every few days.
And have fun!