Topmost on many gardeners’ minds are the current lack of bees in our gardens. After the varroa mite affair, bee numbers will take time to bounce back and many gardeners are keenly feeling their loss. However, even in the wake of such destruction, there are positives to be had. There are lots of other pollinators that we have finally turned our attention to. These include wasps (not necessarily the stingy kinds), native bees, butterflies, flies, hoverflies, moths and beetles, as well as nectar feeding birds and flying foxes. So, as you can see, there are large numbers of other players waiting in the wings to take up pollination duties. But I hear you cry “my tomatoes were terrible this year”, so were mine, which prompted me to do a bit more digging. What I learnt can easily be summed up in an old movie quote, “build it and they will come”. Building a diverse garden attracts more pollinators and creates areas for everyone to do their thing and maintain the integrity of the natural cycle.

​A good way to learn about the pollinators in your garden, and to extend this to appropriate plant choice, is to take up the wild pollinator count. Although organised counts are no longer taken, there are fantastic resources available on the Wild Pollinator Count website so that you can do your own counts and keep records of what you see. You could even do these counts seasonally to get an idea of who visits your garden at different times of the year.

​Why do we need diverse gardens you may ask? As someone who works in a retail nursery I find myself answering this question regularly. My reply varies but usually goes something like this, “yeah it is nice to have uniform structures in a garden and have to worry about only three or four types of plants. It is easier on maintenance and time. But ... if you encounter a pest or disease problem your whole garden can disappear in a matter of days”. The lack of diversity of visitors to a monoculture garden like this, also means that soil ecology and structure will suffer, leading to stressed plants more susceptible to attack.

​Many gardens have synthetic chemicals used in them for a range of purposes and reasons. As the seasons roll past and the pests take advantage of favourable conditions, a lot of gardeners resort to the use of these chemicals in desperation to save their prize specimens. More and more chemical load builds up to alter soil ecology. Over time the garden's diversity depletes to the point where only weeds are brave and hardy enough to take on the challenge of this damaged soil.

​The limited number of garden species in a monoculture garden will also, in time, cause nutritional problems as all plants in this garden require the same amount of a limited palette of nutrients. This limited palette encourages synthetic fertiliser use, adding further to the chemical load in the soil and leading to stressed out, deficient plants who are unable to absorb the nutrients on offer. In this state, plants are much more susceptible to pests and disease. And round and round we go.

A diverse garden spreads the load of nutritional requirement and attracts many insects and other animals that play their parts in renewing and spreading soil bacteria. This all supports nutrient generation in the soil, hand in hand with the wonderful process of humic decay. In turn, this produces healthy plants, less susceptible to pests and diseases. Have you ever noticed, in a group of four or five plants, the one that is the smallest, least developed and struggling will also be the one with the scale, mealy bugs, aphids or other such nasties?

​A diverse garden limits the need to use synthetic (or natural) feeds and pest control. This is due to the abundance of life in that garden. All pests have their beneficial counterpart who keeps their numbers in check.

​A diverse range of plants also facilitates varied habitat and this means that garden visitors become garden residents, now this can be good and bad but as we know there is always a silver lining. We must be careful in netting or fencing off plants to control animals that come to eat the plant or the fruit. Sharing is a rule of thumb I have had to learn the hard way. Being the caretaker of an inherited fig tree has taught me much over the last three to four years. The fig birds will get under the net no matter what you do to keep them out, and how can you blame them. They usually can get out again, but not always. So, we now net only half of the tree. We share the love and the abundance and rid ourselves of the need to constantly untangle scared birds from the net. For that we get free fertiliser from the birds as well as a nice spot to sit for a cuppa to enjoy their antics.

Another personal favourite feature of diversity is that there is always something in flower or fruit, always activity and vibrancy in the garden. This leads to my final benefit of diversity: therapy for weary humans. A diverse garden is a fantastic place to walk, play or sit where there is always something amazing taking place and something to provide a moment of stillness and mental clarity. Incorporating mindfulness into gardening can be a great way to maximise the benefit of time spent in the garden for you and your plants.

​So, as you can see, the beneficial effects of diversity are many. Yes, a simple easy care garden is appropriate for some people and situations, but for every one of these gardens we also need an eclectic space bursting with plants gathered and given, producing bounty and riches for all who visit it.

While it is possible to research plants and plan gardens, most of us have the kind of garden that “was there when we moved in” or “is mostly plants my mother ‘gathered’ on her morning walks” or if you’re really lucky, “is mainly plants different people have gifted me”. These gardens tend to be in no particular order; involve a lot of trial and error and are a labour of love that can transcend the generations. This does not mean your garden is inferior, all over the place or messy. It means you have an eclectic collection of plants, a vibrant and alive space and always room for future possibilities. Because as we gardeners always say, there is always room for one more!