Pollinator Friendly Gardening: Gardening for Bees, Butterflies, and Other Pollinators

by Rhonda Fleming Hayes

Want to do your part in helping your local pollinators flourish? Pollinator Friendly Gardening makes it easy.

Are you interested in growing a naturally healthy garden? How about making sure your local environment helps bees, butterflies, and birds survive and thrive? If you are a beekeeper, are you looking for the ideal plants to keep your colony happy?

Pollinators such as monarch butterflies and bees are under threat, and more and more gardeners want to do all they can to create a hospitable space for them. That's where Pollinator Friendly Gardening comes in. It identifies the most visible and beloved bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds, as well as some more unlikely candidates such as ants, wasps, and beetles. It then explains the intriguing synergy between plants and pollinators. This vital information makes it a unique sourcebook to share the ways that anyone can make a yard a more friendly place for pollinators.

Plant selection, hardscape choices, habitat building (both natural and manmade), and growing practices that give pollinators their best chance in the garden are all covered in detail. Plant lists organized by category, helpful tips, and expert spotlights make it a fun and easy book to read too.

Genres: Gardening, Nonfiction, Nature, Animals, Plants, Reference, Ecology

176 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 1, 2016

About the author

Rhonda Fleming Hayes is the author of Pollinator Friendly Gardening: Gardening for Bees, Butterflies and Other Pollinators.

Rhonda is an award-winning writer and photographer applying her passion for all things plant-related with wit and solid research-based advice. She is a monthly columnist for the Minneapolis Star Tribune. She contributes unique feature stories to Northern Gardener magazine as well as her popular “Kitchen Garden” column. She has also been published in Mother Earth Living, The Herbalist, Wichita Eagle, Savannah Magazine and many online sites.

Rhonda is a native Californian with Southern roots now living in Minnesota. Following her husband’s nomadic career she has lived and gardened in Tennessee, Kansas (twice), Illinois (twice), Iowa and even England. Regardless of location she learned to bloom where she’s planted. In between writing assignments in Minnesota she shovels compost or snow depending upon the season.

Rhonda gardens in Minneapolis in an urban neighborhood surrounded by woods and water. The abundant quarter-acre is home to many bees, butterflies, birds and beneficial insects. She loves to share the fruits (and veggies too) of her garden with friends, family and wildlife.

Rhonda became certified as an Extension Master Gardener in 2000 but has been gardening in some form or fashion since she was a child at her grandmother’s knee. She is a member of the Garden Writers Association, The Herb Society of America, The Xerces Society and the Minnesota State Horticultural Society. She is a trustee of the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum.

Reviews

[Penny Ramirez · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good info on butterflies, bees & hummingbirds. Excellent planting suggestions, and stuff I hadn't read before on the types of plants that butterfly larvae need to feed on (not just nectar and flowers!).

[Sherry · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is guaranteed to provoke good pollinator-supporting action. Hayes writes with enthusiasm, using a mixture of science and plain language, and provides practical information regarding food, shelter, and habitat for pollinators. In a nonjudgmental way she calls for actions both modest and significant to motivate all gardeners. I will use this book as a reference.

[Michaeleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved the information on the pollinators and why it's important to consider them in our gardening practices. The author then provides very practical ways to adapt our gardens to improve outcomes for pollinators. Photos are awesome.

[Bettina Peters · Rating 5 out of 5]

So helpful!

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Extremely helpful for establishing pollinator friendly gardens. Easy to follow. I enjoyed the interviews as well.

[Salamah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. If you love to garden then this is a must read. If you do not understand why gardening is important then this is a must read. This book reads like a social justice call for nature and I am in total agreement with what Hayes writes here. It's as though she read my mind for it is one of the reasons I love to garden. We shouldn't garden just to have beautiful flowers and vegetables but to add to the Earth and create ecosystems on this planet in which God's creatures should be able to thrive and live good lives. Human beings constantly strip and destroy the Earth and I know there are people out there like me who wish we can just shake our finger and stop the systems that continue to harm the planet. However, we can do something, even though it's small and that's, start a garden. And Hayes says with one garden at a time we can hopefully stop the eradication of pollinators like bees and butterflies but also other insects that actually help gardens but are being harmed by pollutants, insecticides and other harmful chemicals. This book gives us plenty of factual information about the insects themselves and shares with us what plants are actually helpful to pollinators. I also love how Hayes incorporated scientist's stories!! Yes scientists who work everyday to try and solve the problems associated with the disappearance of pollinators. Especially since pollinators play a key role in making sure we have various types of food in our stores. There is so much more in this book from the beautiful pictures to the resources listed in the back of the book. An excellent read.

[Kerry Shoji · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really wanted to like this book, but I just couldn't get into it. Maybe it was the small typeface or maybe I was distracted by the holiday season.

I am a gardener and wanted to know how I could create a better garden for pollinators. I thought this would be the perfect book for that It did have good information on lists of plants that attract pollinators, how to create pollinator-friendly habitat as well as how to protect pollinators while controlling pests through biological, cultural, chemical and physical controls. I particularly liked the IPM (integrated pesticide management) section on working with nature where the author advises gardeners that they may have to "adjust their expectations and also question what really constitutes genuine harm to their carefully tended gardens" and that many gardeners are conditioned by community standards as well as advertising to react quickly to any threat to their home landscape.

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was inspirational. I was disappointed at first because the plant lists are specific to California, and so although they are similar to my growing region, the natives are off. However this book was full of loads of useful information and helpful links to outside organizations. Overall, I felt inspired to do more in my garden for pollinators and think about their needs as a wholistic picture, and not just having loads of blooms.

[Logan Streondj · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was pretty good overview of lots of different pollinators. Main one I seem to be missing is butterflies, so my main takeaway is plant Dill, hollyhock and milkweed.

Though for other people there are probably lots of others they can help through various flowers. Also am fairly happy to know at least I'm providing adequate habitat for hoverflies which are currently my most abundant pollinators.

[Hari · Rating 5 out of 5]

The severe decline in the populations of two pollinators, Monarch butterflies and honeybees, has brought them to the forefront of media and public attention. Most of the other pollinators, however, continue to toil away with little to no notice or respect. To change people’s mindset about “bugs,” Hayes discusses the primary pollinators from honey and native bees to butterflies, moths, flies, wasps and beetles to non-insect pollinators—birds and bats. Topics covered include using native versus “alien” plants and nativars (cultivars of native plants), enhancing pollinator habitats, sustaining butterflies with larval host plants, allowing nesting sites for bees, providing liquids and shelter, and protecting pollinators while controlling pests. For inspiration and practical know-how from an easy-to-understand, non-judgmental source, this book is an excellent resource.

[GrandpaBooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although published in 2016, I still found this book to be an excellent resource and a good read. I'm sure it will be consulted frequently as my focus on gardening has turned to specifically attracting as many pollinators as possible.

[Chellie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book with a wide breadth of information. For instance, it lists some plants that people commonly use to attract butterflies, but actually aren't so great! (They're either invasive, or butterflies can't eat them.) Notably they recommended California poppies, so I went ahead and got some from the local garden store.

I just have a small balcony, but I've already added a bunch of local flowers to my planters. I'm hopeful to get some visitors soon.

[CraftyChara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Save the bees!

[Carol Burris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Everything you want to know about gardening to support pollinators and more without upsetting your neighbors.

[Jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

So many great lists and ideas. Very comprehensive and practical.

[Marie · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fabulous resource and very informative book! I learned so much (unexpectedly!), especially about the pollinators themselves. Strongly recommend for all gardeners.

[Dani Subject · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favourite resource for learning how to plant for pollinators!

[Jenny Lamy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic, engaging resource!

[Gwendolyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best books on Pollinator Gardening out there! I really enjoyed the understandable language and helpful tops and info.

[Ashleyc · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good summary with excerpts from many great resources/professionals in the field. Includes my fave Burrell

[Greta McKeever · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really fun approach to gardening! I liked learning about the different kinds of native pollinators as there are a lot more than I realized.

[Laurla2]

-the book is pretty much only for bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds, with maybe a page devoted to 'other' pollinators.
-after a while i ended up skipping the remaining info on butterflies and hummingbirds because the plants they pollinate are not the ones i have in my yard or garden. those plants are pretty much all bee pollinated (like my pear trees, and other fruits and vegetables). so i focused on the bee stuff.
-there was interesting info on where the different pollinators live, where they go at night, if they hibernate or die, how they nest, how to attract them for nesting, plants that help host caterpillars so they can grow up into butterflies, how to provide water for different types of pollinators so they can actually access it. and lists of what types of plants for either bees, butterflies, or hummingbirds.
-perennials for bees - anise hyssop, aster, blanket flower, blazing star, california poppy, catmint, culvers root, cup plant, goldenrod, globe thistle, joe pye weed, lanceleaf coreopsis, large beardtongue, lead plant, purple coneflower, purple prairie clover, russian sage, slender mountain mint, sunflower, swamp milkweed, turtlehead, virginia waterleaf, wild bergamot, wild geranium, yellow coneflower. (it does NOT tell what zones these plants will grow in).
-bees are fans of sedum, especially the taller varieties with large crowned flower clusters, and sedum are drought tolerant. suggested varieties: autumn joy, matrona, purple emperor, neon, frosty morn, xenox, rosy glow, class act, dynomite, frosted fire. (it does tell what zones these plants will grow in, and all will grow in zone 4).
-best herbs for bees - angelica, anise hyssop, basil, betony, borage, catmint, chamomile, dill, germander, lemon balm, mint, oregano, rosemary, sage, savory, thyme. (again, no zones given)
-flowering lawn substitutes - (i'm listing only the ones that will grow in zone 4), cheddar pinks, creepying red thyme/coccineus, double birds foot trefoil, dwarf bugleweed/chocolate chips, ornamental strawberry, pussytoes, white stonecrop sedum/coral carpet.
-worthy weeds - chickweed, chicory, dandelion, great mullein, ground ivey/creeping charlie, henbit, milkweed, pennycress, prostrate spurge, purslane, red clover, shepherds purse, wild mustard, yellow sweet clover. (again, no zones).
-landscape plants for bees
annuals - alyssum, bachelor buttons, calendula, cosmos, marigold, moss rose, snapdragon, sunflower, sweet william, zinnia. (no zones given)
bulbs and corms - allium, anemone, bluebells, blue camass, crocus, daffodil, fritillaria, glory of the snow, grape hyacinth, iris, lily of the nile, siberian squill, spanish bluebells, snowdrops, winter aconite. (no zones)
shrubs - azalea, california lilac, chokeberry, common lilac, golden currant, holly, new jersey tea, oregon grape holly, pussy willow, st johns wort, viburnum, witch hazel. (no zones given)
trees - basswood or linden, black cherry, catalpa, crabapple, maple, mountain ash, redbud, serviceberry, sourwood, tulip tree (no zones)
- plants that capture raindrops - bromeliad, columbine, daphne, elephant ear, ladys mantle, lotus, lupine, nasturtium, plantain lily, rodgers flower, sedum, spurge, smoketree. (no zones given)
-in the back, pollinator resources are listed. including prairie moon nursery located in minnesota for native plants and seeds. prairiemoon.com

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an awesome book and fantastic resource for anyone wishing to garden in a pollinator-friendly (and indeed beneficial-insect-friendly way, e.g. also including biological control insects).

For me there was much to recommend this beautiful book.

1) it is truly beautiful with attractive, thoughtful, relevant photos throughout.

2) the book is overflowing with useful information about plants, habitat features, insects, birds, other pollinators, and pretty much every aspect of the yard/garden that might in any way have anything to do with pollinators (and really, which parts of a yard or garden would not be relevant to pollinators?).

3) Hayes bases her information on solid scientific information but also includes anecdotes and 'real life' situations.

4) Hayes writes in a reader-friendly, often amusing, way that is accessible and easy to understand even for those with little/no background on the topic but without ever 'dumbing down' the information.

5) Hayes discusses the problems with invasive species and considers the information and debates about introduced (non-invasive) ornamentals and about 'nativars'.

6) Hayes outlines the ideal types of plantings, settings, etc. but then also recognizes that not every garden every time is able (or necessary has the desire) to create the 'ideal' in her/his garden, so Hayes then makes suggestions on how to 'tweak' the idea to suit the situation while still remaining pollinator-friendly (e.g. putting pollinator plants in pots around a more formal water feature, how to situate grass in order to keep peace with neighbours, etc.).

7) Hayes included interviews with experts of various aspects of pollinator-friendly gardening, adding new voices and information from 'those in the know' (though Hayes herself is obviously expert and 'in the know' herself).

8) The book includes 'fun facts' and 'not so fun facts' to give snippets of important information in an accessible way.

9) The book covers an extremely important and timely topic.

For me there were only three small drawbacks in the book: i) Hayes only includes information in the imperial system (miles, feet, Fahrenheit). Yes, the book is written in the States, but it is sold outside that country, plus she is using scientific information. Science, and most countries outside the US use metric (and no I could not 'google it' while on the bus, in the park, or other areas without internet, but Hayes likely could have while writing her book). ii) Hayes frequently uses the expression 'manmade'. There really is no such thing as 'manmade'. It annoys me terribly when people use this misogynistic expression and surprises me to see it both well into the 21st Century and by a female writer. iii) Most importantly, like some of the other reviewers, I found the font to be much too small for comfortable reading. There were times when I chose a different book to take with me on my travels because I was unable to read this book comfortably on the bus, etc. But instead needed to be home, still, and with really good light to manage it.

Overall, a solid book that is an excellent resource for gardeners. I plan to buy a copy not just for my home shelves (I read a library copy) but also for my work shelves.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this book for free through Goodreads Giveaways.

This books is a great approachable resource for anyone interested in attracting more pollinators to a landscape in efforts to make a difference in the plight of threatened pollinators. The author provides comprehensive information on numerous different pollinators, with many lists of plants that can be added to the garden to attract them. There are wonderful photos of many of these pollinators and plants. Finally, she presents the latest research findings of with experts in the field, along with lists of websites and books to consult for further information, and resources for plants, seeds, and other supplies.
It is very well laid-out for easy access to information. I will definitely be consulting this book often for help make planting choices in efforts to create an increasingly pollinator friendly garden.

[Tara · Rating 3 out of 5]

While wordy, I really liked this gardening book. Lots of good information. Light on planting plans, but heavy on lists.