skip to main content

Bees & Beekeeping

Plant choices for new pollinator garden.

11 years ago

My husband has agreed to let me put a new bed in our back yard, because there isn't much sun in our yard and it will simplify his mowing. We want to keep the plants under 4 feet to preserve the view of the forest behind the fenced area, so no large shrubs or really tall grasses. What do all of you think are plants that are most often visited by pollinators. Thanks in advance for any ideas. I try to stick to natives, since they are easy to grow and good for the ecosystem, but do make exceptions if plants are not invasive.

Martha

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (3)

docmom_gw
Original Author
11 years ago
A little more detail might help. The spot gets mostly sun with some scattered shade throughout the day. It is north of the house, so gets shadowed by the house in fall and spring. The soil is wonderful loamy sand with great drainage but decent moisture. Zone 5.

Martha
leata
11 years ago
It really sounds great! Have you looked at local wildflowers? A tall bright daisy, behind a row of asters, or coneflower. Plants that have only 1 flower per stem are said to have more food for insects and hummingbirds.
Related Professionals
Ardmore Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers · Sugar Land Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers · Newport News Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers · Champaign Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers · Provo Landscape Architects & Landscape Designers · Middlesboro Landscape Contractors · Charlotte Landscape Contractors · Chambersburg Landscape Contractors · Lebanon Landscape Contractors · Huntsville General Contractors · Manhattan General Contractors · DeRidder General Contractors · Charlottesville General Contractors · South Bend General Contractors · Aberdeen General Contractors
docmom_gw
Original Author
11 years ago
Leata, that is an interesting thought about the amount of nectar or pollen in a single flower. I actually get more activity on multi-flowered plants like lavender and salvia or mints and milkweeds.

Martha

Related Stories

NATIVE PLANTS Plant These Fall-Flowering Natives in Early Summer for Pollinator Love

By Benjamin Vogt / Monarch Gardens

These 3 groups of plants will support masses of beneficial insects come autumn

GARDENING GUIDES Great Design Plant: Heliopsis Helianthoides, a Pollinator Favorite

By Pollination Press LLC

Plant smooth oxeye in eastern U.S. gardens for its bright, sunny flowers and upright form

FLOWERS AND PLANTS Calico Aster Is a Shade-Loving Pollinator Nirvana

By Benjamin Vogt / Monarch Gardens

Plant Symphyotrichum lateriflorum, an eastern U.S. native, in summer for fall blooms that scores of wildlife species will love

FLOWERS AND PLANTS Plant Baptisia Bracteata for Blooms Pollinators Will Love

By Benjamin Vogt / Monarch Gardens

Longbract wild indigo is great in dry soil, and its spring flowers attract butterflies and bumblebees

GARDENING GUIDES Great Design Plant: California Buckwheat Pleases Pollinators

By Debbie Ballentine

Beneficial insects go wild for this drought-tolerant plant’s summer flowers, while seed heads feed critters foraging in the cold

GARDENING GUIDES Great Design Plant: Eriogonum Nudum, a Summer Oasis for Pollinators

By Debbie Ballentine

Naked buckwheat is a bee and butterfly magnet with an easy nature, a tough constitution and profuse pom-pom flowers in summer

GARDENING GUIDES Great Design Plant: Smooth Aster, the Wonder Pollinator

By Benjamin Vogt / Monarch Gardens

An insect nirvana with lovely near-blue petals, this low-maintenance aster strives to please

FLOWERS AND PLANTS This Sunny Yellow Flower Helps Fall Pollinators and Landscapes

By Benjamin Vogt / Monarch Gardens

Oligoneuron riddellii’s distinct grass-like leaves and bright flowers jazz up the garden in the upper Midwest and Central Plains

GARDENING GUIDES Meet the Grass-Carrying Wasp, a Gentle Pollinator of Summer Flowers

By Pollination Press LLC

These fascinating insects nest in wood cavities and hollow plant stems

BENEFICIAL INSECTS Attract Pollinators for a Productive Edible Garden

By Abundant City

You can lure bees, butterflies and birds into your yard with the right flowers and nesting spots

Sponsored

More Discussions

OT - can anyone ID this bumblebee on my salvia?

4