February 13, 2025. I traversed a snowy Arboretum with arcing trees layered in glittery white piping to attend the morning Winter Enrichment lecture by Dr. Patrick Bohlen, the Arboretum’s new director. He shared a research overview about the shocking decline of wildlife and insects (some animals by 40 to 70 percent over the past 50 years) and a research project on suburban planting, compost, and irrigation. We have less than 1 percent remaining of Wisconsin’s prairie and savanna. While people want to save bees, it’s also important to save nonstinging wasps – globally there could be 75,000 species of solitary wasps and 650,000 species of parasitic wasps. He shared about specific practices we can do to help pollinators, especially in cities and suburban areas.

A younger man seated in front of me asked a question after this rich and detailed lecture. It went like this: people in the audience know we need native plants for pollinators, and we know that insecticides are bad. When we leave the room, what’s the next step for people to take?

I personally love this question after conservation talks. What can we do? Science is great for understanding the problem and pointing us to effective actions.

Patrick thanked the man for the question and suggested joining organizations to help pollinators and insect diversity like Xerces Society, or joining the Wisconsin citizen science project Bumble Bee Brigade. He talked about taking action in our own spaces by planting pollinator friendly plants. I especially took note when he said shrubs are great because they are easy and good for lazy gardeners like me (or busy ones, I like to think). Shrubs that flower at different times provide floral resources throughout the growing season. Last he mentioned learning and educating others.

I thought about a few other “to dos” like the current state budget listening sessions, and responding to federal government changes, but I didn’t ask that since I wondered how it would be seen in the community.

I had questions about my own yard, and the patch of ground none of the neighbors own in the middle of our street that we call “Red Maple Island.”

One person asked what shade plants support pollinators, besides spring ephemeral flowers? Someone responded that in John T. Curtis’ book The Vegetation of Wisconsin, page 333 has a list of native plants that grow well in the shade. Page 333, remember that!

I later learned this insight was from Darrel Morrison, who designed the Arboretum’s Wisconsin Native Plant Garden, and who I had met that summer sitting in the garden talking about the wonders of edible native plants and the Beauty of Wild Places.

Next, long-time Arboretum naturalist Kathy Miner said: people think of shade-loving white snakeroot as a weed, and it can be. You’ll have to pull some out. But I have seen more darn butterflies on that snakeroot. So I don’t pull all of it out.

I did an online search on white snakeroot and found many other references to it as a pollinator plant in the late summer, when many other flowers are dormant. Kathy and the naturalists sitting with her reminded me that milk sickness caused by the white snakeroot is what killed Abe Lincoln’s mom. And also, in a twist of fate, while his mom couldn’t read, his stepmom was very devoted to reading and helped launch him toward education.

Afterwards I talked with Darcy Kind, a conservation biologist with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources – who by the way brought a lovely sliced sweetbread with a swirl of red (and if I get to taste one in the future, I’ll report the type of red fruit). We talked about how fewer people of pre-retirement age attend these talks, which provide such a nice sense of community with wide expertise in the group. I asked if she knew who could come and look at my yard with all its various flowers and tell me what addition would really be helpful for pollinators. She said in an urban area, wild strawberry and Virginia waterleaf were great early pollinator resources. I texted my garden partner about strawberries, which we have in the backyard and could do more to weed around.

I could have looked up pollinator information online anytime, but I got into it more deeply by being part of the conversation and recognizing people in the community.

My first thought about wild strawberry was a bit of resistance because it has been hard to keep them in my garden. The strawberries were a gift planted by the prior owners, but the fruit production has declined a bit over the last fifteen years since we’ve been living there as grass has taken over a garden bed and the strawberries has shifted to a sandy area at the edge of the bed. Critters almost always eat them before us. Nevertheless, I recommitted to the strawberry! With so many people around me working so hard, and caring so much, I could get my kids outside this spring to weed around them.

Patrick said he can’t wait to see his first rusty-patched bumblebee this summer. Me too!

– Adena Rissman, Arboretum researcher in residence and Vilas Distinguished Achievement Professor of the Human Dimensions of Ecosystem Management, Department of Forest and Wildlife Ecology, University of Wisconsin–Madison

Adena has been a “researcher in residence” at the Arboretum since spring 2024. The informal role developed through conversation with staff as an opportunity to work a day or two a week at the Arboretum during a sabbatical. This provides intellectual space to think about relationships among people, land stewardship, ecosystems, and governance. It has also allowed Adena the chance to enact the values of stewardship and reciprocity and get involved with volunteer, education, and land care experiences at the Arboretum. Adena loves biking to work, being with family and community, and learning from the land.