Blooming Container Gardens That Welcome Butterflies and Bees
Attract pollinators with one of these colorful nectar- and pollen-rich container combinations
Including nectar- and pollen-rich plants in potted displays can help support the native birds, butterflies and bees in your neighborhood. While pollinators require more than just a food source for survival — they’ll also need water, native plants for laying eggs, habitat for roosting and more — supplying our winged friends with a place to stop for a meal can help support them, particularly in food-scarce urban environments.
Take a look at these nine potted displays that all include at least one flowering plant guaranteed to attract bees, butterflies or hummingbirds — or even all three. Could you see one of them on your patio or balcony?
Take a look at these nine potted displays that all include at least one flowering plant guaranteed to attract bees, butterflies or hummingbirds — or even all three. Could you see one of them on your patio or balcony?
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2. Lavender
Plant a few pots with sweet smelling lavender (Lavandula spp.) and your patio will soon be abuzz with visiting bees. In this design by Jonathan Snow, containers of lavender, confederate jasmine (Trachelospermum jasminoides) and olives make for a lush Mediterranean-style rooftop garden in London’s Kensington neighborhood. The rooftop would be a perfect place for pollinators seeking sustenance to stop for a forage.
Growing note: Lavender doesn’t like sitting in wet containers. Plant in quick-draining potting soil in a spot that receives full sun.
Water requirement: Moderate
Light requirement: Full sun
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Plant a few pots with sweet smelling lavender (Lavandula spp.) and your patio will soon be abuzz with visiting bees. In this design by Jonathan Snow, containers of lavender, confederate jasmine (Trachelospermum jasminoides) and olives make for a lush Mediterranean-style rooftop garden in London’s Kensington neighborhood. The rooftop would be a perfect place for pollinators seeking sustenance to stop for a forage.
Growing note: Lavender doesn’t like sitting in wet containers. Plant in quick-draining potting soil in a spot that receives full sun.
Water requirement: Moderate
Light requirement: Full sun
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Design tip: Plant in swaths. To make it easy on pollinators, group plants they like in clumps and swaths. Imagine being insect-sized flying over an urban landscape. It would be far easier for you to spot a large purple clump of flowering lavender than a single plant. Once you reached the lavender swath, it would make for efficient foraging.
In this rooftop lounge area by Hampstead Garden Design, masses of salvia (Salvia nemorosa ‘Caradonna’) and lavender (Lavandula angustifolia ‘Hidcote’) come together for a beautiful pollinator-friendly planting. If you don’t have room for a full swath of pollinator-friendly potted plants, including some as part of mixed ornamental containers is still beneficial.
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In this rooftop lounge area by Hampstead Garden Design, masses of salvia (Salvia nemorosa ‘Caradonna’) and lavender (Lavandula angustifolia ‘Hidcote’) come together for a beautiful pollinator-friendly planting. If you don’t have room for a full swath of pollinator-friendly potted plants, including some as part of mixed ornamental containers is still beneficial.
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3. Lantana
Bright-flowering bush lantana (Lantana camara) attract butterflies in particular, although hummingbirds and other pollinators will also frequent the blooms. In this sunny container designed by Susan Irving of The Crafted Garden, lantana and golden creeping Jenny (Lysimachia nummularia ‘Aurea’) grow in a pot beneath a Meyer lemon tree.
Water requirement: Moderate to regular
Light requirement: Full sun
Bright-flowering bush lantana (Lantana camara) attract butterflies in particular, although hummingbirds and other pollinators will also frequent the blooms. In this sunny container designed by Susan Irving of The Crafted Garden, lantana and golden creeping Jenny (Lysimachia nummularia ‘Aurea’) grow in a pot beneath a Meyer lemon tree.
Water requirement: Moderate to regular
Light requirement: Full sun
A photo taken by landscape consultant Noelle Johnson at the Phoenix Desert Botanical Garden shows just how much of a butterfly magnet lantana can be.
How to Choose the Right Plant Container
How to Choose the Right Plant Container
4. Purple Verbena
With tall, wispy stems and flowers so rich in nectar that they smell like honey, tall purple verbena (Verbena bonariensis), also called vervain, is a great plant to consider adding to containers for pollinators. Plus, it adds height and movement to potted displays, as stems sway with the slightest breeze.
In this Boston rooftop garden, landscape designer Jean Brooks tucked tall purple verbena into the back of containers filled with billowing annuals and ‘Ascot Rainbow’ spurge (Euphorbia x martinii ‘Ascot Rainbow’).
Water requirement: Moderate
Light requirement: Full sun
With tall, wispy stems and flowers so rich in nectar that they smell like honey, tall purple verbena (Verbena bonariensis), also called vervain, is a great plant to consider adding to containers for pollinators. Plus, it adds height and movement to potted displays, as stems sway with the slightest breeze.
In this Boston rooftop garden, landscape designer Jean Brooks tucked tall purple verbena into the back of containers filled with billowing annuals and ‘Ascot Rainbow’ spurge (Euphorbia x martinii ‘Ascot Rainbow’).
Water requirement: Moderate
Light requirement: Full sun
Design tip: Flower color and shape matter. Different colors attract different pollinators. For example, honeybees are more attracted to bright blue and violet flowers while butterflies and hummingbirds prefer reds, red-orange and pink. Plant a range of colors to support various types of pollinators or, with limited growing space, grow a species of flower to support a specific native pollinator.
Likewise, blossom shape plays a role in inviting or excluding which species can access the nectar and pollen. The shape and length of a hummingbird’s peak and the length of a bee’s tongue enable both species to access the nectar of tubular flowers, such as salvia and penstemon, whereas other insects are locked out.
The flower shape of tall purple verbena (Verbena bonariensis) enables a broad range of pollinators — honeybees, bumblebees, hoverflies, butterflies, dragonflies and more — to reach the nectar.
Likewise, blossom shape plays a role in inviting or excluding which species can access the nectar and pollen. The shape and length of a hummingbird’s peak and the length of a bee’s tongue enable both species to access the nectar of tubular flowers, such as salvia and penstemon, whereas other insects are locked out.
The flower shape of tall purple verbena (Verbena bonariensis) enables a broad range of pollinators — honeybees, bumblebees, hoverflies, butterflies, dragonflies and more — to reach the nectar.
5. Sunflowers
The pollen-laden heads of sunflowers (Helianthus annuus) act as bright beacons to pollinators. In this rooftop edible garden in Chicago, they signal pollinators to stop for a visit.
Sunflowers are one of the easiest flowers to grow from seed. Plant in containers with well-draining soil and water consistently, staking as needed to support plant growth.
Water requirement: Moderate to regular
Light requirement: Full sun
The pollen-laden heads of sunflowers (Helianthus annuus) act as bright beacons to pollinators. In this rooftop edible garden in Chicago, they signal pollinators to stop for a visit.
Sunflowers are one of the easiest flowers to grow from seed. Plant in containers with well-draining soil and water consistently, staking as needed to support plant growth.
Water requirement: Moderate to regular
Light requirement: Full sun
6. Coneflowers
Long-blooming perennial coneflowers (Echinacea spp.) provide a steady stream of food to pollinators from late summer until the first frost, when most warm-season flowers are becoming more scarce.
In this bright combination, landscape designer Courtney Olander of Olander Garden Design combined hot-colored coneflowers with bronze-leafed coral bells (Heuchera sp.), ‘Ascot Rainbow’ spurge (Euphorbia x martinii ‘Ascot Rainbow’) and trailing purple sweet potato vines (Ipomoea batatas).
Water requirement: Moderate to regular
Light requirement: Full sun
Long-blooming perennial coneflowers (Echinacea spp.) provide a steady stream of food to pollinators from late summer until the first frost, when most warm-season flowers are becoming more scarce.
In this bright combination, landscape designer Courtney Olander of Olander Garden Design combined hot-colored coneflowers with bronze-leafed coral bells (Heuchera sp.), ‘Ascot Rainbow’ spurge (Euphorbia x martinii ‘Ascot Rainbow’) and trailing purple sweet potato vines (Ipomoea batatas).
Water requirement: Moderate to regular
Light requirement: Full sun
Design tip: Favor native varieties. Not all pollinator-friendly flowering plants are created equal, and the native varieties — which have evolved alongside the pollinators themselves — often offer the most benefits. Along with providing nectar and pollen, many native plants are hosts to pollinators who seek out specific native species to lay their eggs.
Pale purple coneflower (Echinacea pallida), shown here, is native to central North America, from Iowa south to Texas and east to Indiana in the North and Louisiana in the South. The long bloom period supports bees and butterflies and the seeds, post-bloom, provide food for birds.
Learn more about growing native plants
Pale purple coneflower (Echinacea pallida), shown here, is native to central North America, from Iowa south to Texas and east to Indiana in the North and Louisiana in the South. The long bloom period supports bees and butterflies and the seeds, post-bloom, provide food for birds.
Learn more about growing native plants
7. Catmint
In this Chelsea rooftop garden in New York City, mounds of potted purple-blue catmint (Nepeta sp.) beckon to pollinators, inviting them to pause and refuel in this oasis in the city. The garden, designed by Brook Klausing of BROOK LANDSCAPE, includes dozens of potted plants: evergreens, ornamental grasses, hydrangeas, smoke bush (Cotinus sp.) and more.
Catmint generally stays small and mounded, making it a great edger plant to tuck around the bases of larger containers in sunny spots or along the side of a raised bed.
Water requirement: Moderate to regular
Light requirement: Full sun
In this Chelsea rooftop garden in New York City, mounds of potted purple-blue catmint (Nepeta sp.) beckon to pollinators, inviting them to pause and refuel in this oasis in the city. The garden, designed by Brook Klausing of BROOK LANDSCAPE, includes dozens of potted plants: evergreens, ornamental grasses, hydrangeas, smoke bush (Cotinus sp.) and more.
Catmint generally stays small and mounded, making it a great edger plant to tuck around the bases of larger containers in sunny spots or along the side of a raised bed.
Water requirement: Moderate to regular
Light requirement: Full sun
8. Agastache
Loved by pollinators for the nectar-rich, late-season flowers, agastaches — also called hummingbird mint or hyssop — make great additions to container gardens. Here, dusty coral blooms of threadleaf giant hyssop (Agastache rupestris), a native of the mountains of Arizona, New Mexico and parts of Mexico, rise above a clump of ornamental grass.
Water requirement: Moderate to regular
Light requirement: Full sun
Loved by pollinators for the nectar-rich, late-season flowers, agastaches — also called hummingbird mint or hyssop — make great additions to container gardens. Here, dusty coral blooms of threadleaf giant hyssop (Agastache rupestris), a native of the mountains of Arizona, New Mexico and parts of Mexico, rise above a clump of ornamental grass.
Water requirement: Moderate to regular
Light requirement: Full sun
9. Red-Hot Poker
A striking plant for low-water gardens, red-hot poker (Kniphofia sp.) stands out like a flaming torch in container gardens and attracts pollinators such as hummingbirds and butterflies. This combination of red-hot poker and dark New Zealand flax (Phormium sp.) by Acres Wild would make a dramatic duo for a container.
Water requirement: Low to moderate
Light requirement: Partial to full sun
A striking plant for low-water gardens, red-hot poker (Kniphofia sp.) stands out like a flaming torch in container gardens and attracts pollinators such as hummingbirds and butterflies. This combination of red-hot poker and dark New Zealand flax (Phormium sp.) by Acres Wild would make a dramatic duo for a container.
Water requirement: Low to moderate
Light requirement: Partial to full sun
Tell us: Do you include plants for pollinators in your container gardens? Show us in the Comments.
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This container by Simply Garden Design combines two types of Salvia — a pollinator favorite — along with chartreuse and dark purple sweet potato vines (Ipomoea batatas), grass-like sedge, New Zealand flax (Phormium sp.), blue lobelia, white geraniums and trailing bacopa. The taller salvia (Salvia guaranitica ‘Black and Blue’) has longer, tubular flowers that attract hummingbirds.
Honeybees have small bodies and longer tongues than solitary bees, allowing them to reach the nectar as well. Solitary bees may bite the base of the flower to access the nectar reservoir.
The more compact blue salvia (Salvia farinacea) has smaller, more shallow flowers that allow a broader range of pollinators to collect nectar from the blooms.
Water requirement: Moderate to regular
Light requirement: Partial to full sun