Hummingbirds, Butterflies, & Bees . . . Oh My!

Kathy Lawler, Guest Blogger
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To Bee Or Not To Bee . . .  Bee Good To Your Garden.

We enjoyed planting a number of annuals throughout the summer last year.  Since we live in the city, our yard is rather small.  Between the front and the back yard together we have only 375 square feet to work with.  We really enjoy the variety, sizes, and types of annuals we could chose from and of course, loved the repeated trips to our favorite nursery, Holly, Woods, and Vines in Alexandria, Virginia.
 
Not only have we enjoyed the ever-changing color and texture combinations of the annuals we planted, but we now have a parade of little visitors who are enjoying them, too.  Our plants have inspired hummingbirds, frogs, praying mantis, butterflies, moths, dragonflies, and the all-important bees — the best pollinators.

Turns out, any size garden can support pollinators.  Bee populations are in jeopardy and it is important to encourage their populations.  We all understand the importance of bees, but the scope of the importance can’t be overstated. According to gardeners.com “one out of every three bites of your food depends on a pollinator”!
 
Certain flowers that are nectar- and pollen-rich will help attract these pollinators. Here are a few suggestions for planting:
 

• Single flowers, one ring of petals, are best. Flat or shallow blossoms are easier for pollinators to reach the pollen in.

 

• Choose blue, purple, and yellow flowers.  Bees find these colors most appealing.

 

• Butterflies like bright flowers including red and purple — my favorite color combination!

 

• It is important to not use pesticides in your garden and yard.

 

• Be sure to add native plants to your garden to attract native pollinators.

 
There is also a region by region guide to planting. You just put in your zip code and voila!  You will have a PDF outlining which plants in your region the pollinators prefer.
 
We have had several of our annuals grow a crazy amount last year and they looked wonderful.  This Lantana flower, attracting both butterflies and bees, started its life with us in a 4 inch pot — now look at the size of it -- this purple pot is 12 inches across!  This was grown in one of our “new pots” we created.

This Lantana plant went C-rrr-aaa-zzz-yy!

We have been so inspired with our little garden and all our visitors, that we are making more and bigger plans for this year — we might include a vegetable garden, a water feature . . .  who knows!
 
Stay tuned for additional BUZZ through out the year!
 
Thank You for visiting,
 
— Kathy Lawler, guest blogger
 
P.s.     What pollinators have you planted?  What do they attract... bees... butterflies... hummingbirds...?  What have you found to be the easiest to plant and propagate?  Share your experiences and we'll all learn something from one and other!