Are you looking for ways to attract more honeybees, butterflies and hummingbirds to your garden? Adding beautiful pollinator-friendly flowers to your garden is a big warm welcome to our little pollinator friends. Some flowers “may” attract pollinators, while others are a pollinator-magnet. These flowers are tried-and-true in my own garden and I highly recommend all three. Read below to find out the 3 BEST flowers for pollinators:
Calamint ‘Montrose White’
Calamint (Calamintha Nepeta) actually won the 2021 Perennial Plant of the Year award- and for good reason! The delicate, confetti-like blooms emerge almost entirely along the length of each stem and give the plant such a graceful and airy feel. This sun-loving perennial works great along a pathway or border, softening any walkway it touches. Montrose White Calamint is durable, deer-resistant, long-blooming, great for beginners, and grows in Zones 5-9. At about 17 inches tall and 17 inches wide, Calamint grows in a manageable low bushy habit. It’s leaves release a lovely fragrance when crushed, and honeybees and butterflies swarm each bloom. Montrose White Calamint is hands-down one of the best flowers for pollinators for your garden.
Russian Sage ‘Denim N’ Lace’ (and ‘Sage Advice’)
Russian Sage (Perovskia Atriplicifolia) has been a well-loved plant for gardeners due to its extremely easy care- it can grow in poor soil and thrive on neglect (sounds pretty perfect!). Older varieties of Russian Sage grew tall and wildly out of control, but newer varieties such as ‘Denim N’ Lace’ or ‘Sage Advice’ are much more compact. I have many Denim N’ Lace Russian Sage plants in my garden and each grows to about 28” tall and 34” wide. This sun-loving plant is one of the longest-blooming plants continuing from summer until frost. Denim N’ Lace Russian Sage’s strongly-scented, silvery-green foliage and soft gray stems covered in masses of lilac-blue florets make it a stunning perennial. This long-lasting, low-maintenance, deer-resistant plant grows in zones 4-9. Now the best part- this beauty attracts honeybees, butterflies, and hummingbirds, making it one of the best flowers for pollinators.
Salvia ‘Black & Bloom’
Black & Bloom Salvia (Salvia Guaranitica / Anise-Scented Sage), is a newer variety of the beloved ‘Black & Blue’ Salvia. This improved variety has larger flowers, thicker leaves, darker stems, and blooms earlier in the summer. The trumpet-like spikes of deep purple-blue flowers lining nearly-black stems make Black & Bloom a stunning pop of color for the garden. Here in zone 5, it grows as an annual, but it can pass for a perennial in zones 8-10. This sun-loving plant grows to about 36” tall and 24” wide as an annual and will grow a bit larger in perennial-zones. Because it has such a stunning, vibrant color, I love planting Black & Bloom near whites in the garden. Now, I have never seen a flower that attracts more hummingbirds than Black & Bloom Salvia. I’ve seen hummingbirds visit these beautiful blooms in our own garden, as well as in 2 local garden nurseries. Black & Bloom Salvia is absolutely one of the best flowers for pollinators, especially if you’re hoping to attract hummingbirds to your garden!
If you’re ready to have more hummingbirds, honeybees and butterflies in your garden, be sure to pick up some of the 3 best flowers for pollinators- Montrose White Calamint, Denim N’ Lace (or Sage Advice) Russian Sage, and Black & Bloom Salvia. Not only will these plants attract pollinators, but they’ll make your garden look stunning too! Now- go on and get planting!
Want more garden design ideas? Be sure to check out 20 Most Beautiful Pink English Roses For Your Garden (Hint: they’re GORGEOUS!)
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