Last Updated on August 2, 2022 by Kimberly Crawford
Planting pollinator-friendly plants in your garden is always welcomed. However, there are over 200.000 of them. Beetles, bats, butterflies, and lizards can be supported and you would play a huge role in it. Supporting them is crucial. They pollinate our food.
Around 34% of food crops people consume depend on pollinating animals. Only honey bees are as valuable as gold. Their work can be estimated at $15 billion in added crop value. Unfortunately, they are threatened from all corners.
What are pollinator plants?
Pollinator plants or pollinator-friendly are flowering perennials, annuals, or shrubs that provide the nectar and pollen required for pollinator populations to thrive. Pollinators include hummingbirds, butterflies, bees, and other beneficial insects.
If it’s difficult for you to distinguish them, you can use the plant app identifier as an assistant. This is a plant identifier and care app that will allow you to identify what kind of plant it is, see its origin, habitat, care recommendations, etc. Just take your phone, make a picture, and see all the information about the required flower or another pollinator plant.
Since pollinators face constant threats, they can lose their habitat easily. For them, it would mean larger distances and the loss of food resources. Viruses and other pathogenic organisms may harm and even kill them.
Pesticides are the biggest enemies of all pollinators. Of course, your garden doesn’t contain so many pesticides like agriculture. However, it still can be harmful. Especially when applying pesticides directly to blossoms.
There is a special connection between every flower and pollinators. Those plants are needed for nectar and pollen. Pollinator insects, in turn, play a huge role in the reproduction of plant species.
You can support them both through avoiding pesticides in your garden. It will help pollinators get their life-necessary food sources. Below, you will find the most bee friendly plants that will not only be a great decoration for your landscape but also protect your bees from dying and migrating further.
1. Clover
This plant is very easy to grow in your garden. If you have a lawn in the yard, you will have no problem growing it at all. That is, actually, all needed. Your efforts aren’t necessary. Clover will fill in all empty patches on the lawn. However, forgoing the weed killer is a must. You cannot disagree, it’s as easy as one, two, three.
Small and pom-pom-shaped flowers are produced early in spring. They are the biggest love of all honey bees. Clovers keep blooming all summer long. Clover will continue to blossom throughout the summer, even after it’s mowed. Moreover, if you cover your lawn with clover, you will have a whole carpet. It will not only be beautiful but also very helpful for your honey bees.
Lots of people prefer clovers to traditional green grass. They look way much better and even exotic! Although its habitat is not North America, it can easily be grown in any part of the country.
2. Black-eyed Susan
This flower blooms all summer. This plant is native to North America. Gardeners adore it for its everlasting bloom. It lasts from the beginning of summer and until the first frost. The flowers are well adjusted to such a temperature change. Bloom is not the only benefit of this plant. It is a great food source for pollinators.
Black-eyed Susan is up to three feet tall. It has two to three golden-yellow blossoms. Flying insects also adore this plant for the form of its flowers. They can land on them and let their feet rest on the petals. The biggest fans of Black-eyed Susan are butterflies. They adore its nectar.
Not only honey bees or butterflies love feeding on this plant. Ladybugs and other beneficial insects do it as well. The plant will get bigger each year. It will allow pollinators to have more food in the future.
3. Sedum
Sedum (Hylotelephium) is represented in many varieties that grow in North America. Their height varies from a few inches to two feet. Sedums are also called stonecrops. These plants will grow just about anywhere in your garden.
Sedums cannot stand clay but grow well in full sun and sandy or rocky soil. Its thick leaves store water to survive difficult conditions. The plant has flat green foliage and tiny flowers gathered in rounded bunches.
Sedums bloom from early summer through fall. They attract bees, butterflies, and other important pollinators such as the syrphid flies, or hoverflies. The hoverflies do not just help pollinate the plants, but they also lay their eggs near aphid colonies. Gardners can control aphids organically when the eggs hatch.
4. Bee Balm
This plant attracts hummingbirds. It is also called monarda. Bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds simply adore bee balm. The plant blooms from mid-summer to early fall. If you have tomatoes, beans, or squash, it will be a great companion to them. When planted nearby, they increase the yields of those vegetables.
Bee balm will stand out in your garden. Anyone will be amazed by its scarlet, purple, and pink flowers. Sit and just listen to the sound of hummingbirds enjoying your bee balm. This is an incredible show.
5. Purple Coneflower
This plant is drought resistant. It is also called echinacea purpurea. It’s amazing but the first Americans used it as medicine. The flower is not only a favorite for pollinators but also a leader of our perennial garden. It grows almost all over the United States. Different varieties of it can be found in many corners of the country. The plant is very hardy.
The flowers are broad and project upward. The plant grows on top of long stalks. It will attract butterflies and bees to your garden. Its bloom continues from the beginning to the middle of the summer. It is also a good bird-feeding plant. They adore eating its seeds in fall.
If you care about the environment and want to save honey bees and other insects that help us live and survive, these plants will be a wonderful decoration for your garden. In addition, they will literally save the planet!