Master Gardeners of Northern Virginia

Over 40 Years of Growing Gardens and Gardeners

Snow covered branches
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Restoring Nature Action 4: Choose Plants to Support Insects, Birds, and Other Wildlife

by Joan McIntyre, Elaine Mills, & Leslie Cameron, Extension Master Gardeners

Logo of 'Restoring Nature' by MGNV featuring green and white colors with a plant icon.

Nature is in trouble, but we can all play a role in helping to restore essential ecological services in our urban and suburban landscapes, including those of us with modest garden space.

Healthy natural ecosystems are built on wonderfully complex and diverse relationships between plants and animals. Property development and conventional landscape practices have undermined these relationships, but we can design our gardens to help rebuild them. Action 4 of our Restoring Nature series calls for choosing plants to provide pollen, nectar, and other food sources for insects, birds, and other wildlife.

Native plants have developed numerous strategies to attract and reward the services of specific types of insects. In foraging flowers for pollen and nectar, native bees, wasps, flies, butterflies, moths, and beetles fertilize the plants and allow for seeds and fruit to develop. Additionally, insects play a foundational role in nature’s food web as a food source for birds and other wildlife. Unfortunately, studies have repeatedly shown dramatic declines in population size and diversity of insects as a result of habitat loss and fragmentation and use of pesticides and other chemicals, with cascading impacts on animal diversity.

A bee collecting pollen from a bright yellow flower,
Provide native plants to support pollinators
Photo © Elaine Mills

Planting for Pollinators

By providing native plants in our yards, we make important floral resources available for pollinators, helping to maintain their dwindling populations. When planting for pollinators, it’s important to include a diversity of plants, because, in gathering pollen and nectar, insects and animals are attracted to flowers of different shapes and colors. For instance:

A composite image of various flowering plants with pollinators
Provide a diversity of plants, including trees, shrubs, and herbaceous perennials.
All photos © Elaine Mills
  • Bees are most attracted to purple, violet, and blue flowers, and they will also visit flowers that are yellow or white. They cannot see the color red. Bees with short tongues are more likely to feed on flowers with a shallow, open shape, while large, long-tongued bees visit flowers with deep tubular shapes.
  • Wasps prefer white or yellow flowers with shallow corollas.
  • Flies are drawn to dark brown, purple, or pale flowers.
  • Beetles favor open flowers in white, cream, or green.
  • Butterflies are attracted to flat, composite flowers with wide landing platforms in bright colors.
  • Moths prefer pale or white, night-scented, tubular flowers.
  • Hummingbirds are partial to red or orange tubular flowers. 

When planning gardens with pollinators in mind, it’s also critical to provide a continuous succession of native flowering plants from early spring through fall:

A table displaying information about various plants in the Glencarlyn Library Pollinator Garden for spring 2019, including Latin names, common names, heights, bloom colors, moisture needs, soil types, and months of blooming.

Taking Care of the Bees and Birds

Native bees are among the most efficient pollinators, and while some can make use of nectar and pollen from a wide variety of plants, other species, referred to as oligolectic, require the pollen of one genus—or even one species—of plant to provision nests for their young. In the eastern United States, according to Jarrod Fowler, a member of the Northern New England Pollinator Habitat Working Group, approximately 190 of 770 species (almost 25%) of native bees are such specialists. Plant genera that provide the greatest support to these bees are:

Other genera of value to specialists are Chrysopsis (19), Coreopsis (17), Salix (14), Verbesina (14), Cirsium (11), and Vaccinium (10).

A cluster of bright yellow wildflowers featuring long, slender petals and central disks, set against a green foliage background.
Flowers of golden ragwort (Packera aurea)
Photo © Elaine Mills
Close-up view of a bee, showcasing its detailed body structure, fuzzy texture, and colorful wings against a black background.
Pollen specialist bee of Packera – Brooke Alexander, USGS

In addition to planting for pollinators, it’s important also to include plants that will provide food sources for birds and other wildlife. Birds frequently feed on fruits and berries from native plants, and these plants play an important role for migrating birds. Research has demonstrated that native berries are more nutritious with higher levels of fat and energy density than the fruits of invasive shrubs and provide the fuel needed to support long seasonal migrations. Furthermore, birds prefer these berries over non-native options.

Fruit-bearing trees and shrubs recommended to support migratory or overwintering birds include viburnums (Viburnum spp.), dogwoods (Benthamidia and Swida, formerly Cornus, spp.), highbush blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum), winterberry holly (Ilex verticillata), elderberry (Sambucus canadensis), serviceberry (Amelanchier spp.), black chokeberry (Aronia melanocarpa), and spicebush (Lindera benzoin).

Adding grasses—such as little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium) and switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) —or sedges (Carex spp.) provides seeds for birds, especially small birds, during winter.

Finally, other nut- and fruit-bearing trees and shrubs such as oaks (Quercus spp.), hickory (Carya spp.), and pawpaw (Asimina triloba) will provide food for deer, squirrels, some birds, and other animals.

Tips for Plant Selection

While all the factors that go into creating ecosystems that support insect, bird, and wildlife diversity may seem overwhelming, there is considerable overlap in plant recommendations. Many of these recommendations are also identified as keystone species that serve as host plants to moths and butterflies as discussed in Action 3. Indeed, the range of choices provides an opportunity for each of us to select plants that best suit our individual preferences and site conditions.

Here are some tips to help you decide what plants to put in your garden and where they are best suited:

A vibrant garden featuring clusters of pink flowers in the foreground, with yellow blossoms and lush green foliage beneath a clear blue sky.
Plant pollinator resources for efficient foraging
Photo © Elaine Mills
  • Create a table listing existing plants in your yard and desired plants. For each plant, note bloom time, color, whether it is a keystone plant, and other characteristics that support wildlife. Also note characteristics such as height and width at maturity and light and moisture preferences. Once you’ve selected desired keystone plants, the table will allow you to identify gaps in bloom time (aim for three blooms per season) or color, highlight your contributions to supporting wildlife, and track how well plants do over time.
  • Start small with a few trees and shrubs that work for your yard size and conditions or a pollinator bed with a handful of plant species focused on keystone plants and bloom time, and gradually expand over time to fill gaps. Remember that every plant you add will contribute to the biodiversity in your neighborhood.
  • When designing garden beds for pollinators, plant forage plants in masses (at least 3 square feet, if possible) to create better visual attractants for the insects and permit more efficient foraging. Ideally, your garden will link with the gardens of neighbors and connect your yards with existing native plant community fragments and corridors.
  • Avoid cultivars which have altered the color or shape of the flowers or the pigments of the leaves as such changes tamper with those features that have evolved over time to attract insects for pollination or allow larval insects to survive.
  • Know the Latin name for the plants that you’re interested in, because some genera may have both native and non-native species as in the case of the dogwoods (Benthamidia and Swida, formerly Cornus, spp.), oaks (Quercus spp.), or viburnums (Viburnum spp.).
  • Plant canopy trees at least 15-20 feet away from buildings and utility lines and a few feet from driveways and sidewalks. Understory trees under 25 feet should be at least 8 feet from a building.
  • Space shrubs to account for expected full size to avoid overcrowding once the plant reaches maturity. For foundation shrubs, build in an extra foot from the building to allow for air flow and access.
  • Plan for planting perennials close to each other so that they can grow quickly to cover the ground and push out weeds. Plugs can be spaced 8-10 inches apart, quart-sized containers 12 inches, and gallon-sized 14 inches.

SMALL SPACE /BALCONY GARDENING TIPS:

Container gardening on patios and balconies can be used to create mini layered landscapes that support pollinators, other beneficial insects, and birds. With some careful planning and care, even native understory trees and shrubs can thrive in containers.

Container size is key to ensuring enough soil volume to support adequate root growth. Containers should be at least 2 feet x 2 feet x 2 feet, and trees or shrubs might need to be transplanted as they grow. Select species that have compact growth habits that will fit available space or cultivars that have been grown for smaller size than the straight native plant.

Pay attention to hardiness zones and be prepared to insulate plants that are not hardy to at least two hardiness zones north, as containers will not provide the same insulation to cold temperatures as plants grown in soil. Wooden or concrete planters can be left as is, but clay, glazed, or ceramic pots, as well as any containers with less cold-hardy plants, should be insulated with bark mulch or straw or wrapped in bubble wrap. Plastic or resin containers work well too, as they are lighter and easier to move when filled with soil and are generally less expensive. Plants in these containers may also need more protection or insulation over winter.

Container plants will need to be watered more frequently than those grown in soil. Containers can be grouped together with trees and shrubs offering shade to perennials in containers, particularly containers in full sun—southern or western exposures—which can be subjected to more intense heat on balconies and patios. Even sun-loving plants will benefit from some filtered shade.

For additional information on container gardening, see our tips on soil for container plants in Action 2: Cultivate Healthy Soil and the video presentation on Container Gardening with Native Plants.

Sources

Other Resources

Native Plant Resources