Table of Contents:
  1. Moths
  2. Ants
  3. Hummingbirds

If you're a gardener, you're likely familiar with lots of plants and plenty of pests.

How familiar are you with the full cast of local pollinators who visit your garden, though?

Here in the Sonoran Desert, we've got a unique list of characters who will come to your aid and help keep your veggies and flowers pollinated.

moth marine blue on beige fabric desert pollinator
As they feed on nectar, marine blue moths (Leptotes marina) help carry pollen from flower to flower, pollinating plants in the process.

Assuming you aren't spraying insecticides in your desert garden (yuck), expect some of the following pollinators to show up right when you need them most:

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Moths

Did You Know?

moths are the #1 pollinator in the Southwestern US. That's right, moths do a ton of work all night long helping transfer pollen and ensuring that your veggies grow!

Moths are the reason so many flowers open at night in the desert, unlike in cooler regions.

Ants

Many gardeners find ants annoying, but they're one of the best pollinators in the desert!

ants black in sand desert
Ants are also great composters, quickly stripping dead leaves from plants and carrying the nutrients down underground improving soils in the process.

Ants are easily one of the most under-appreciated garden inhabitants here in the Sonoran Desert.

I've seen gardener after gardener curse them off, squish them, flood their homes, encircle them with diatomaceous earth, spray them with chili + garlic water and even poison them with nasty synthetics.

This is foolish at best. Ants are essential to desert gardening. They're one of my favorite critters around my veggies. They're incredible pollinators and even more amazing composters.

Nobody in the garden works harder than ants and they deserve as much respect as any other garden critter.

Just don't step on / squish creatures you don't want to be bitten by.



Seriously, they release a pheromone when you step on them and mess with them which causes them to swarm and bite. Instead, tucking your pants into your socks, your shirt into your pants, your sleeves into your gloves, and a buff into your shirt is an easy way to prevent ant bites if they're annoying you. Mosquito head nets also work great during peak ant season. Donning a few protective layers is an infinitely better solution than trying to kill all the ants in your garden - that's futile and not smart.

Remember all creatures will defend themselves when threatened, but that doesn't make them any less important in your garden.

Hummingbirds

Hummingbirds may visit over 1,000 flowers each day, sipping on nectar to maintain their energy and transferring pollen in the process.

hummingbird flower purple green butterfly nectar desert pollinator
Hummingbirds love calling Sonoran gardens home during the cool season, and will be a big help in keeping your garden pollinated and producing.