Environmental group plants wildflowers roadside to attract pollinators to region

Dozens of people gathered near the intersection of Fischer-Hallman Rd. and Glasgow St.in Kitchener to plant wildflowers on Saturday.

The initiative is part of the Pollinator Roadsides pilot project, which launched that day, and aims to attract more pollinators to the region by creating ecosystems ideal for their habitat.  

They were planting flowers native to the region like milk weeds and purple cone flowers, and were experimenting with different planting techniques to see what works as a way to deal with the deficit of pollinators. 

"I think it's now well recognized that pollinators are decreasing worldwide," said Jennifer Leat, who is heading up the project on behalf of the environmental group, Waterloo Region Nature. 

Leat said that the aim of the project is to take the learnings from the pilot and create a potential model that can be used elsewhere to combat the dwindling number of pollinators. 

"About a third of our food comes from plants that need pollinators to grow," she said. "So roots, vegetables and nuts all rely on pollinators, and they reckon that's about a third of our diet."  

Leat explained that they're "hoping that this will become the normal way, or the usual way that the roadsides would be planted instead of with turf grass."     

They have hopes of attracting a variety of pollinators like flies, moths, bees, butterflies and beetles. 

The Morning Edition - K-W5:45Volunteers will be planting native species along a section of Fischer Hallman Road in Kitchener, it's part of the Pollinator Roadsides project

The group Waterloo Region Nature, has launched a project promoting the restoration of habitats for pollinators. It's set to begin tomorrow. The Pollinator Roadsides project will see pollinator-friendly native plants planted along a 50 meter section of Fischer Hallman Road.