{"id":53622,"date":"2023-07-31T06:00:29","date_gmt":"2023-07-31T11:00:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/platthillnursery.com\/?p=53622"},"modified":"2023-07-30T20:52:19","modified_gmt":"2023-07-31T01:52:19","slug":"pollinator-friendly-water-sources-chicago","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/platthillnursery.com\/pollinator-friendly-water-sources-chicago\/","title":{"rendered":"Pollinator-Friendly Water Sources for Your Landscape"},"content":{"rendered":"

Flowers are a pollinator’s best friend, but they’re not the only things they need to thrive. Like all creatures, pollinators need access to clean, reliable water sources. Luckily, they’re easy to provide! Building a simple bee and butterfly water station in your garden is a great way to attract more pollinators to your yard and protect them from droughts and dry spells. Here’s what you need to know!<\/span><\/p>\n

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What Do Bees Drink?\u00a0<\/b><\/h4>\n

Unless you pay close attention to the insect world, you’ve probably never seen a bee have a drink, so it may come as a surprise to learn that they do, in fact, need and drink water, just like us. However, it’s not always easy for <\/span>bees<\/span><\/a><\/span> in a suburb or city to find a clean water source. Sometimes it can be contaminated by pesticides, or in dry spells, not there at all. When you set up a simple drinking station for pollinators in your vicinity, you’ll be surprised at how many come to use it.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Other Ways Pollinators Use Water\u00a0<\/b><\/h4>\n

Bees, butterflies, and moths all need water to replenish their bodies, but they also use it for various other activities. Just as they store nectar, bees can store water inside their “honey stomachs,” or crops, to bring back to the hive, where they feed it to larvae, transfer it to in-hive workers, use it to moisten crystallized honey, or use it to cool down the hive during the summer heat. Other kinds of bees, like mason bees, use wet mud to line their burrows. Butterflies and bees also need minerals that they drink from pollinator-friendly water sources.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Ideas for Pollinator-Friendly Water Sources in Chicago\u00a0<\/b><\/h4>\n

Creating a pollinator water station can be as simple as setting out a tray of water or a bird bath, but there are a few ways to make these sources even more user-friendly and attractive for beneficial insects. Here are a few simple bee and butterfly water station ideas you can use to help your pollinator friends drink up this summer:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n