This is National Pollinator Week, and Memphians are invited to the riverfront to celebrate the bees, birds, bats, beetles and butterflies that are responsible for bringing us one out of every three bites of food.
Pollinators move dust-like pollen from one plant to another to help plants reproduce. These are the plants that bring us fruits, vegetables, oils and raw materials and reduce soil erosion and climate change.
Even Governor Lee recognizes the importance of pollinators, naming June 16-22, 2025, National Pollinator Week in Tennessee through an official proclamation.
Native plantings to restore and protect vital pollinator habitats were important to the thousands of Memphians who shared their ideas for the design of the new Tom Lee Park before it opened Labor Day 2023. You can see the evidence of their input across the Memphis riverfront, with three spaces specifically designed to attract and protect pollinators:
Tom Lee Park
With nearly one million native plants and shrubs, the new Tom Lee Park is a haven for pollinators. On the south end of the park, visitors can walk through the Rhodes Pollinator Lab and the flourishing Eco Lawn, a gift from the Tennessee Department of Transportation. Walkers on the Iconic Shoreline, the pathway closest to the riverfront and a gift from Duncan and Abbie Williams, can spot monarch butterflies and birds traveling along the Mississippi Flyway.
Pollinator Pod at Beale
A community-built garden on the corner of Beale Street and Riverside Drive features three planting pods filled with native species and signs to help visitors identify what’s buzzing.
River Garden
This serene space is home to the riverfront’s first intentionally planted native meadows whose mature plantings attract pollinators of all kinds.
Birders can take particular enjoyment from visiting the Memphis riverfront, with its prime location on the Mississippi Flyway. About 40 percent of all North American migrating waterfowl and shorebirds use the Mississippi Flyway because along its entire length – from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico – food is plentiful and no mountains or ridges of hills block the path.
This blog was written by Kim Cherry
Kim Cherry supports Memphis River Parks Partnership with public relations consulting. She’s a native Memphian and rabid Grizzlies fan (and yes, she will really miss Desmond Bane) who has a remarkable sense of humor, regardless of what her family thinks. I mean, this chick is really funny.
