Calling All Pollinators!

Plants that Attract Butterflies, Hummingbirds, and Bees.

Spicebush Swallowtail Butterfly with Butterfly Bush 'Black Knight'

What's more exciting than a garden filled with vibrant blooms? All those flowers PLUS the fluttering and buzzing of butterflies, hummingbirds, and bees! With new flowering annuals, perennials, and shrubs arriving almost daily at our Garden Center, Spring is the perfect time to start planting or make additions to your pollinator garden. By including a variety of pollinator-attracting plants in your landscape, you'll spend less time filling feeders and more time enjoying nature!

Pollinator-Gardening Tip:  Plant a variety of flowering plants so that butterflies, hummingbirds, and bees will have a nectar source available from the very beginning of Spring until late into the Fall. ​

Texas Petunia Ragin Cajun™

Lucky Star® Violet Pentas

There are so many plants to choose from that the design of a pollinator-pleasing garden is limited only by your imagination. ​Flowering annual and perennial plants provide a quick and easy way to tuck pollinator-friendly blooms and long-lasting color into your garden beds.

Try a combination of the following nectar-rich varieties for an extended season of blooms:  ​

Butterfly Weed
Mexican or Texas Petunia
Lantana
Salvia
​Sage
Coneflower
Coreopsis
Blanket Flower
​Bee Balm
Dianthus
​Daylily
Hardy Hibiscus
​Verbena

Pentas
Marigolds
Zinnias
​Petunias
Million Bells
Mexican Heather
​Dahlia
Basil
Lavender
Rosemary
​Mint
Bee Balm
​Passion Vine

Lantana 'Miss Huff'

Light Show® Red Bottlebrush

If you have a larger space available, flowering shrubs and trees can also add height, provide structure, and produce beautiful, pollinator-attracting flowers.

​A sampling of shrubs and trees to attract butterflies, hummingbirds, and bees:

Butterfly Bush
Bottlebrush
Abelia
Sweetspire
Firebush
Buttonbush
​Viburnum

Tropical Hibiscus
​Rose of Sharon
​Vitex
Sweetbay Magnolia
Ligustrum
Eastern Redbud
​Flowering Dogwood

(Note: Some of these, such as Butterfly Bush and Bottlebrush, are also available in dwarf sizes!)

Monarch caterpillar with Butterfly Weed

Passion Flower ‘Possum Purple’

Also, don't forget to include plentiful host plants such as Butterfly Weed (for the Monarchs) and Passion Vine (for the Gulf Fritillaries) as a food source for hungry caterpillars. Host plants vary by butterfly species. If you are looking to attract a particular butterfly to your garden, we recommend doing a little research to find out which host plant(s) that butterfly prefers. Blending host plants with those that produce nectar-rich flowers ensures you will see butterflies season after season.

Visit us at the Garden Center soon for the latest selection of pollinator-attracting plants. One of our Nursery Professionals can assist you in choosing just the right varieties for your garden space!