Archived About Us - Pollinator Pathway NW

Welcome to the Pollinator Pathway NW Project!

Pollinator Pathway Northwest is a project that started with the planting of a demonstration pollinator garden at 21 Acres, a center for sustainable education and collective action.

As we learned more about the current plight of the pollinators, we soon set our sights on mobilizing the larger community to provide critical pollinator habitat. Inspired by the efforts of a similar organization in the Eastern US, we began to envision a corridor of pollinator friendly plantings across the Pacific Northwest and an upwelling of informed citizens willing to help create plentiful and healthy habitats for our pollinators.

Please join us – plant a pollinator friendly garden or planter, including plants native to the Northwest, stop using pesticides and share your new knowledge with friends, neighbors and family.

The mission of Pollinator Pathway NW is to support local agriculture and home gardeners by promoting the importance of pollinator health. Our founding partners include 21 Acres, Sammamish Valley Alliance, the Sammamish Valley Grange and Coastal Community Bank. Additional support is provided by the Woodinville Garden Club, Rent Mason Bees and Vanderloop Communications.

Development of the 21 Acres Demonstration Garden

Fall 2020

21 Acres staff and volunteers came together to plant hundreds of pollinator friendly plants in two of the four beds that have become the demonstration pollinator garden. The other two beds were covered in black plastic to eliminate the weeds.

Fall 2021

Two additional garden beds that were under the tarps were transformed into two large Hugelkultur beds and left to soak up the winter rains.

What is Hugelkultur? It is a centuries old process of building raised beds atop found wood and other rotted and/or compostable materials (which might otherwise end up in yard waste bins). The result is a low maintenance garden that requires very little water or fertilization; the gradual decay of wood provides nutrients and stores moisture for plantings over time.

Spring 2022

In the spring of 2022, volunteers shaped the beds, then fertilized and covered them with coffee bags to wait for the planting in the fall.

Fall 2022

The two Hugelkultur beds were planted by a wonderful group of 21 Acres volunteers. Now we wait for the plants to establish themselves and begin to provide a healthy habitat for pollinators and a learning garden for us.

Spring 2023

In the spring, the plants in the hugel beds are beginning to grow and bloom. The beds themselves have begun to settle as the wood and other compostable materials have decayed.

Summer 2023

Our summer garden is in full bloom, lush and thriving. The addition of benches donated by the Woodinville Garden Club creates a serene, relaxing place to watch the bees, birds and butterflies feed. Plans are already underway to fill in with fall plantings.

Our Garden

Many of the plants in the garden are native to the Pacific Northwest and are beneficial to our native pollinators. Native plants are great choices for planting in the fall as they are accustomed to our long, cool rainy season. Other plants are non-native, such as fuchsia, lavender and camellia, but are valuable nectar sources, beautiful additions to the garden and help fill gaps in our native bloom calendar – especially important in early spring and mid-August!