Putnam County Rotary Club establishes pollinator garden 3 years ago at junior high school

A serious environmental concern is the loss of habitat for pollinators responsible for the survival of the fruits, vegetables and nuts that are an important part of human diets.

In fact, it has been estimated that pollinators are responsible for providing one of every three bites of human food. Yet, the numbers of key pollinators such as bees, butterflies and wasps have been steadily declining for decades to the point where many varieties of these insects are endangered.

With this need in mind, a Native and Pollinator Plant Garden was established three years ago at the Putnam County Junior High School located south of McNabb. This almost 500-square-foot garden was sponsored by the Putnam County Educational Foundation, the Putnam County Rotary Club and PCJH. It was developed through the efforts of Sandy Miller of rural Magnolia, a University of Illinois Master Naturalist, and Reed Wilson of rural McNabb.

Some of the native plants in the garden include anise hyssop, rose milkweed, purple milkweed, butterfly weed, Great Blue lobelia, purple prairie clover, meadow blazing star, tall larkspur, showy goldenrod, spider milkweed, blue sage, Joe Pye weed, penstemon, pearly everlasting, lead plant, prairie smoke, yellow coneflower, orange coneflower, Columbine, cardinal plant and New England aster. The native perennial plants are accentuated by colorful zinnias, annual plants that also are outstanding pollinator plants.

The garden’s individual plant identification system, featuring plants installed in 2024, will be updated in time for the 2025 growing season.