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| Not every pollinator is a bug. |
Beneficial insect plants? Some gardeners like the broader term - pollinator - which includes those plants that especially attract one pollinator or another. The firms know how to press that button. Butterfly plant? Bee plant? Beneficial insect plant? Crawling with insects that kill garden pests? Hummingbird plan? Yes! Yes!
These are great plants that I have begun to enjoy lately - all easy to grow and bound to attract the attention of guests.
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| Joe Pye Weed is the worst name ever, but hard to obtain late in the season. Gardeners know! There is also a shorter version - Little Joe. |
Joe Pye Weed began as a medicinal plant used by - Joe Pye. But it has sold out in most places in October. Why? JPW is the ultimate butterfly plant, perennial, growing easily, always attracting butterflies when in bloom, late in the summer.
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| Mountain Mint enjoys crazy pollinator action as it goes through its continuous blooming cycle. |
Mountain Mint - is another plant that drives pollinators crazy when in full bloom. Coreopsis or Tick Seed also does this in bloom, but I prefer the tall growth of Mountain Mint and its clumping roots. I had three tiny plants at first. Now i have three large clumps of them, growing about five feet tall. On sunny, windless days, the tops of Mountain Mint are always buzzing with various bees and butterflies. I will divide the three plants I own in the spring and place them around the front and backyard.
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| Purple Monarda, aka Bee Balm, aka Horse Mint, aka Oswego Tea. |
More Monarda. The purple blooming Bee Balm is heavy with bumble bees when blooming. When buying any mint, make sure it is the clumping variety. Those that spread through the roots can take over a garden quickly.
Daisies are now on my list for their role as a beneficial insect magnet. They are easy to grow, hard to kill, and generous in blooming.
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| Cat Mint is a safe, clumping relative of Catnip. The only way to get rid of Catnip is to move. |
Cat Mint is a clumping mint I bought on sale, three little plants. Two of them are now good sized and worth transplanting to the Butterfly Garden or the sunny border. Cats think it is the obnoxious Catnip plant and stop by for aroma-therapy. Their purple flowers attract bees.
Groundcover for 2018
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| Where did I plant Empress Wu Hosta? |
Hostas will be the major plant for groundcover in the new year. A few new plants are growing fast already. Their roots will continue to grow in the winter, which is still far away here. Their many virtues include flowers that attract Hummingbirds. Mrs. Ichabod is fascinated with all the colors available.
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| Tiny prolific Fever Few has been used to cure headaches and cause headaches. |
Fever Few could be called Fever Many, because the plant will seed itself all over, once in bloom. This small plant will fill in all gaps in the yard with its tiny white blooms. Beneficial insects love it. If Fever Few is a weed, then it is an attractive, therapeutic, prolific weed.
Let's be frank. We all have weeds. My goal is to crowd out the least desirable weeds, like Bermuda Grass.
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| Chaste Tree is a woody shrub that loves the sun and hates watering. Bees love it. |
