Jul 07, 2016

How to attract butterflies, bees and hummingbirds

Hummingbird

Many people are interested in attracting butterflies, bees and hummingbirds because of their beauty. Not only is a landscape with these critters wonderful to look at, their presence represents a thriving landscape. Attracting them is of importance because they control infestations, disease and aid in cross pollination. This will attract beneficial insects and birds-creating an ecosystem within your landscape. Continue reading to find what plants attract butterflies, bees and hummingbirds.

Plants That Attract Bees

Bees are essential to any healthy landscape. Not only do they aid in the pollination of your ornamentals they are essential to pollinating most of our food crops. We strongly encourage sustainable practices which encourage bee habitat. One of those steps is to use native plants which; below is a list of trees and shrubs will encourage bee populations year-round.

Berries

  • Huckleberry
  • Strawberry
  • Raspberry
  • Blueberry

Flowers

  • Bee Balm
  • Calendula
  • Joe Pye Weed
  • Lobelia
  • Rudbekia
  • Shasta Daisies
  • Sun Flower

Fruiting Trees

  • All Variety of Apple
  • Cherry
  • Crab Apple
  • Flowering Currant
  • Hazelnut
  • Indian Plum
  • Peach
  • Pear
  • Plum
  • Serviceberry

Shrubs

  • Anise Hyssop
  • Mock Orange
  • Oregon Grape
  • Pacific Dogwood
  • Pieris
  • Russian Sage
  • Salvia
  • Winter Heather
  • Yarrow

Trees

  • Maples
  • Willow Tree

Vegetables & Herb

  • Angelica
  • Artichoke
  • Basil
  • Borage
  • Chives
  • Clover
  • Cucumber
  • Dandelion
  • Echinacea
  • Honeysuckle
  • Hyssop
  • Lavender
  • Lemon Balm
  • Mint
  • Mustard
  • Oregano
  • Rosemary
  • Summer Squash
  • Thyme
  • Winter Squash

Plants That Attract Butterflies

The concept behind attracting butterflies is pretty simple. Butterflies are native so stick to native plants. A common mistake people make is planting flowers and shrubs that attract only adult butterflies, neglecting the larvae. Selecting plants that attract both larvae and adult butterflies will ensure generations of butterflies returning for years to come.

  • Yarrow
  • Wild Onion
  • Serviceberry
  • Columbine
  • Showy Milkweed
  • Aster
  • Camas
  • Western Bleeding Heart
  • Flea Bane
  • Oregon sunshine
  • Oceanspray
  • Penstemon
  • Cascara
  • Mock Orange
  • Checker Mallow
  • Spirea

Plants That Attract Hummingbirds

Not only are hummingbirds adorable they are fantastic pollinators. Attracting year-round interest can be accomplished by planting for the season. Below is a short list of the plant which will attract year-round interest to hummingbirds.

  • Columbine
  • Fireweed
  • Honeysuckle
  • Indian Paintbrush
  • Oregon Grape
  • Penstemon (all species)
  • Spirea
  • Western Bleeding Heart
  • Wild Current/Gooseberry

To set your landscape abuzz with life-attracting butterflies, bees and hummingbirds; a general rule-of-thumb is to stick to native plants. Creating habitats that offer protection are also a great way to ensure they stick around. Another important factor is minimizing the use of insecticides and pesticides in your landscape. For more information on how to accomplish this, read our blog on organic landscaping by clicking here.


Resources

Click here for native resource plant list for attracting butterflies.

Click here for how to create a habitat for certain species of butterflies.

Click here for a comprehensive list of plants that attract hummingbirds.

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Erica Mooney
Email Erica Mooney

Erica is an avid lover of the outdoors, and transformed that love into a partnership running Valley West with Ryan 2012.

wildlife, landscape tips

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