Luring Pollinators to Your Yard

If you don’t invite the pollinators into your garden, the chances of you getting fruit and nuts on your trees, will be drastically reduced. While it may be tempting to buy flats of annuals at large garden centers, the majority of the companies they source their plants from use pesticides/herbicides and this will kill our pollinators. While some companies have pledged to cease their use of these chemicals by “x” year, that means they are still choosing to spray plants. Check out local moms or dads selling plants for a side income at farm swaps, Facebook marketplace or craigslist.

• Sage
• Dill
• Parsley
• Roses (heritage/antique roses with scent work wonderfully)
• Lupines
• Common Rue (can be allergic to some, be wary)
• Fennel
• Azalea (Pink Pinxter & Flame)
• Passionflower (Maypop)
• Scarlet Salvia
• Star Anise
• Black Eyed Susans
• Coral Honeysuckle
• Liatris
• Citrus
• Coreopsis
• Firebush
• PawPaw
• Swamp Mallow
• Swamp Sunflower
• Swamp Milkweed
• Common Milkweed
• Anise Hyssop
• Redbud
• Yaupon Holly
• Stone Fruit trees
• Blueberries/Raspberries/Gooseberries
• Clover
• Amaranth
• Purslane
• Peas
• Lambs Quarters
• Turks Cap Mallow
• Cannas
• Nasturtiums
• Marigolds
• Chamomile
• Lavender
• Calendula
• Holy Basil
• Rose
• Basil
• Chaste Tree
• Buttonbush
• Walter’s Viburnum

While many companies get sales based off the beautiful pictures in their catalogs or online, be sure to do your research since a particular variety of flower or herb may not grow in your area. Florida gets hit with a high heat and humidity, especially during summer season, so not every variety of flower will be able to survive here, and you will waste your money.

You can check out places like flseeds.com, rareseeds.com, botanicalinterests.com and strictlymedicinal.com where they have a wonderful selection of herbs and flowers to lure pollinators to your gardens.

Remember, pollinators need a variety of colors and fragrances so mono cropping a handful of annuals might not be a successful method to employ. Be sure to compile a list of native and zone friendly plants for whenever you are out and about at your local hardware stores and farms. A wise decision would be to match up pollinators with specific plants so that you aren’t just purchasing something because it’s pretty.