Memorial Pollinator Garden in Missoula

The team at First Security Bank in Missoula tragically lost a dear coworker, and to honor him they created a pollinator garden in his honor at their new building on Dearborn off of Brooks. 

• 

• 

The team got approval to convert one of the new planters that was filled with mulch into a vibrant pollinator garden to honor their beloved coworker and highlight his favorite plant, Maximilian Sunflower. They got a nice surprise this summer when they suddenly had a tall, native sunflower blooming in their parking lot!

With the goal of a late May planting, a small team of FSB volunteers began the work to convert the planter box on a rainy spring day. They removed over 20 bags worth of mulch from the planter, sending mulch home with employees and donating to Garden City Harvest and the Missoula Butterfly House. 

After removing the mulch, 6 yards of soil was delivered - hopeful that the soil could be dumped straight into the planter box, the team was not-overjoyed when they learned they would be transferring wet soil one shovelful at a time from the ground to the box in the pouring rain. 

• 

• 

After their hard prep work in the spring, the planting of the garden was completed in late May, and all the First Security employees have had the pleasure of watching the garden bloom all summer long. 

Over 18 varieties of native plants were used in the pollinator garden. From Great Bear, the team sourced the beloved Maximillian Sunflower (Helianthus maximilliani) , as well as a few Penstemons (P. palmerii & P. pinifolius), Wild Strawberry (Fragaria virginiana), and Coneflower (Echinacea angustifolia) to name a few. 

While the garden has been trampled on a bit (those pesky deer!) it is becoming more full every day. The team was very pleased to see how quickly the garden has filled out after planting small plugs just a few months ago.

This perennial pollinator garden will come back year after year, continuing Devin’s legacy at First Security Bank.