If you think about it, there's more than one way to get a colorful garden. Sure, you could just grow amazingly bright flowers and fruits, but there's one other thing you can do to add some real vibrancy to your garden. You can attract a myriad of pollinators!
They will not only light up your garden like you've never seen before but they will also help in pollinating your flowers. Butterflies are one of the most famous pollinators going around and for a good reason. They are pretty, harmless and helpful. Sadly, they are also steadily declining, and so they do need our help.
So, if you want to join in and save some butterflies, then you can start by building your butterfly feeders. Don't worry! It isn't very difficult but it definitely is worth the effort. Here is what you need to do:*First off, you will need –
- A mason jar
- Sugar
- Water
- A (non-dyed) sea sponge
- Some twine
- A hammer
- A nail
- Decorations for the jar
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1) To start with, you need to poke a hole into the top of the mason jar. It doesn't need to be too big; you only need to fit a small sponge through that. So, take the nail and hammer through a tiny hole on the top.
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2) Next, you need to cut up the sponge so that it will fit snugly into the hole. We will be filling the mason jar with a liquid solution and hanging it upside down. So, no liquid should be dripping out from the sides of the hole. Grab a pair of tweezers and gently pull the sponge down till it is halfway through the hole. You can soak the sponge with water to make this easier.
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3) Now it's time to start making the "food!" Prepare a simple sugar solution that will be nutritious for the butterflies. Take 1 part sugar and nine parts water and add it all into a pot. Leave the solution to boil for a while till all the sugar disappears. Once that's done, keep the solution to the side so that it can cool. Meanwhile, you can move on to finishing up the feeder!
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4) Decoration here actually matters because the aim is to attract the butterflies! So, take your mason jar and cover it with bright tape, stickers or anything that imitates flower-like patterns. That is sure to get the attention of the butterflies.
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5) Now, before you can hang the feeder, you need to tie the twine. Make a loop around the neck of the mason jar and tie that securely. Then make two loops with the twine and tie those securely on the twine that is around the jar's next. This should allow you to hang the jar upside down. That's your hanging system ready!
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6) Finally, fill up the jar with the sugar solution and check whether the sponge is leaking. Once it's all set then pick a nice, sunny spot in your garden and hang your new butterfly feeder!
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Congratulations! Your garden will soon be playing host to many lovely butterflies!
