15 Plants for Specialist Pollinators
We have a great opportunity to support pollinators in our home gardens and landscapes. Grow what you enjoy, but pollinators will thrive on these 15 plant groups.
I invite you to watch this video from a great YouTube channel I have recently discovered. It is “Flock Finger Lakes.” The host is Summer Rayne Oakes, reporting from her restoration farm in upstate New York.
Here is the video.
About 25% of pollinators are specialists. If you support the specialists, then you’ll also be supporting the generalists.
Solidago
These are your goldenrod species, which also support over 100 caterpillar species in the eastern U.S.
I have Canada goldenrod, pictured here in yellow.
Helianthus
These are your sunflower species, including the Maximilian sunflower.
Symphyotrichum
This includes many plants that were traditionally categorized as “asters” such as this “frost aster” in my garden last year. This was the single busiest plant for pollinators in my garden. There was no close second.
Rudbeckia
Rudbeckia includes brown-eyed Susans, black-eyed Susans and grey-headed coneflowers, like this one.
Chrysopsis
This includes the Maryland golden aster.
Grindelia
Includes curly cup gumweed.
Coreopsis
This includes this lance-leaved coreopsis.
Heterotheca
Includes goldenasters and camphorweed.
Salix
This is your native willows, such as black willow, Missouri River willow and pussy willow.
Verbesina
Includes white wingstem, pictured here with a monarch butterfly visitor.
Bidens
This plant is decidedly non-partisan. ;-) Includes bearded beggarticks and devil’s beggarticks.
Pityopsis
Includes narrowleaf silkgrass.
Cirsium
This include thistles, which are not popular in some circles, but are popular with bees and birds.
Vaccinium
Blueberries and cranberries. Who knew that they ranked among the best plants for specialist pollinators?
Heliopsis
These are your “false sunflowers.” I have only the tiniest and most flowerless examples in my garden to show you. But when they bloom, they will look like sunflowers.
The great thing about these plant groups is that they also rank high in supporting caterpillars. If we take care of our pollinators and caterpillars, a lot else will take care of itself. Pollinator populations and caterpillar populations are strong indicators of overall ecological health.