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Many people are planting native plants because they require little care once they are established. Others plant native plants to help pollinators and other wildlife. Native plants are environmentally friendly and support lots of life you may not know about.
Butterflies
Almost everyone knows that monarch butterflies lay their eggs on milkweed. The caterpillars can only eat milkweed, but the adult butterflies can use nectar from a variety of plants. Milkweed has a toxin in it that the caterpillars acquire by eating it and are then toxic to predators as a caterpillar and an adult. We have several species of milkweed so you can find the type that grows best in your area. Other butterflies like plants that provide nectar and pollen.
Many plants that attract hummingbirds and bees also attract butterflies. One thing to remember if you plant flowers for butterflies is that the caterpillars eat the foliage of their nurse plants. You have to be willing to let them do that to have an abundance of butterflies.
Moths
Moths pollinate many flowering plants at night. When most people think of moths, they envision drab brown or white flying things. Many moths are quite beautiful. For example, the Schinia flowermoth lays its eggs on blanket flowers. The caterpillars eat the seeds out of the middle of the flower. The adult moth flies at night and is the color of the blossoms so that it is almost invisible when sitting on them during the day. It is a nice shade of brick red that blends right in.
Hummingbirds
Hummingbirds pollinate too many plants to list them all. In fact, we have a page with some of the many plants pollinated by hummingbirds. A good way to feed hummingbirds is with our Lobelia package of five red and five blue Lobelias. The red plants are also called cardinal flowers because their bright red flower resembles a cardinal perched on a stem. Lobelia are native to the lower 48 states, so fit in any garden. Almost any flower that is tube-like or trumpet-like will attract hummingbirds.
Pollinator Plants Attract Bumble Bees
Bumble Bees were once thought to be too heavy to fly properly. Nobody told the bees that, fortunately. They pollinate a wide variety of plants that birds and small mammals feed on. An interesting example is bee balm, also known as wild bergamot. Bee balm reminds me of a flower on a bad hair day. It grows in sunny dry woods, fields, and along roadsides. Bumble bees are very effective pollinators. Tomato plants that have been pollinated by bumble bees have a higher yield than tomatoes that are not pollinated by bumble bees.
Farmers that grow tomatoes in green houses bring nests of bumble bees in to make sure the greenhouse tomato plants have big yields. Native Bees When most people think of bees, they think of the European honeybee. As the name implies, these bees were brought to the new world by colonists from Europe. In fact, they qualify as an invasive species because they have escaped bee hives over the years and live in the wild.
North America has over 4,400 species of bees that pollinate a wide range of plants. These bees tend to be solitary and do not produce honey. Native bees pollinate fruit trees and elderberry plants. Alfalfa farmers set aside muddy spots for the alkali bees that pollinate alfalfa. Squash bees pollinate cucurbits like cucumbers and squash very efficiently. Flies There are a number of flies that pollinate plants. They tend to be colored like small wasps or bees, so people think they are bees when they see them.
Perennials Attract Pollinators
Flies pollinate the Brown-Eyed Susan, which has vibrant yellow petals around a brown center. They grow in a wide range of the country. Beetles Beetles pollinate plants that developed before there were bees.The plants they pollinate tend to have cup shaped, drab flowers with a spicy or musky odor. Pawpaw trees, which have edible fruit and are native to the South, are pollinated by beetles. Beetles are messy pollinators.
They tend to chew through the flower to reach the pollen instead of going into the flower by the top. Bats Bats pollinate many plants that open their flowers at night. If you like tequila, you enjoy the fruits of the Mexican long-nosed bat’s labors. They are the only thing that pollinates agave. The bats are endangered and if they disappear, so does the agave.
Non-flying Mammals
Many small mammals such as mice and voles get pollen on themselves when drinking nectar from the flower. They spread it between plants as they feed.
Plants pollinated by small mammals tend to have large, drab flowers that can stand up to creatures who are larger and clumsier than most pollinators. Final Tips To attract the most wildlife, make sure you have enough different native plants so that something is blooming from early spring to late fall. Plant a variety of bloom colors and heights.
Provide a shallow dish of water in a shady spot to give the wildlife a chance to get a drink. Native plants will always feed and shelter more wildlife than introduced plants. A bonus with native plants is that they have evolved with the animals that feed on them or pollinate them so are less likely to die from pests or diseases.
Native Plants Offers Maintenance Free Pollinator Attractants
Once native plants are established, they are drought resistant and don’t require a lot of fertilizer or pesticides. In fact, pesticides will kill most pollinators, so it is best not to use them if you can avoid it. While the list of native plants will differ depending on where you are, there are plenty of plants to choose from if you want to attract wildlife to your landscape.
The Xerces Society has plant lists for pollinators broken down by region. Our website has curated lists of pollinator plants, plants for hummingbirds, and plants to attract birds. We even have a list of plants to plant for food plots if you want to attract bigger mammals to your landscape. If you cannot decide what to get, TN Nursery staff can direct you to the proper plants for your region.
Best Selling Pollinator Attracting Plants at TN Nursery
