Pollinator Garden

I am creating a pollinator garden. What flowers do you recommend I plant?  

There are many possibilities. Observe flowers in your area and look for flowers that support both a great number and a great diversity of insect visitors. We suggest consulting with local plant experts to select the best bee friendly plants for your area and for your soil type. Local nurseries and master gardeners are great sources for this type of information! We encourage you to check that the plants/ seeds you buy are not treated with insecticides, as this can negatively affect bee health. Again, nurseries and master gardeners will be able to help you determine that the plants you choose are healthy for bees. 

Bees benefit most if you plan your garden so there is something blooming for pollinators from early spring through the fall. In addition to flowers, pollinators also need places to nest and host plants for larvae. The Habitat Assessment Guide for Pollinators in Yards, Gardens, and Parks can help you to improve your habitat.

I have a native plant garden. Should I plant non-native species for honey bees?

Your native plants will support many kinds of native bees, and honey bees too! If you are establishing a native garden or native landscape, it makes sense to keep on adding more native plants to help bees. We’d suggest focusing on plantings that provide food all season long, from early spring through fall. We also always recommend consulting a plant expert, like your local Master Gardeners.

I have a lot of acres, and I’d like to convert them to bee habitat. What should I plant? 

Planting honey bee forage crops makes sense if you have farmland or acreage where you are not trying to establish perennial plants. People have reported success planting large areas with Sainfoin, clovers, sunflowers, rapeseed, cornflowers, buckwheat, and vetch.

If you are interested in restoring acreage to a native prairie, wetland or woodland that supports many pollinators, we recommend using the Pollinator Toolbox, created by the Board of Water and Soil Resources to help you connect with resources to choose the best sites, find seed mixes, prepare the sites properly for planting, and, the often neglected but extremely important step of maintenance. Local native plant producers including Prairie Restoration, Minnesota Native Landscapes, and Prairie Moon, can help you find the best plants for your area. Site preparation is an important and challenging step in restoring native landscapes, but will save you lots of work in the future. To maintain these habitats, be aware that weed control is essential.

How can I be sure my pollinator plants do not have harmful pesticides?

Even if you ask someone working where you buy plants if a particular plant has been treated with pesticides that could harm pollinators, they may not know. ; Often, treatments can be applied before plants reach the retail market. It is best to buy pollinators plants from producers who have committed to making sure that their plants are not treated with these pesticides. You can also start many pollinator plants yourself from seed. Seeds can sometimes come with pesticide treatments already applied to the seed coating, so be sure that you also trust your seed source.

I have a pollinator garden and want to improve it. What can I do to make my garden more pollinator-friendly?

Take a survey from the UMN Master Gardeners to find out how pollinator friendly your yard is.

Evaluate your garden using this Habitat Assessment Guide from the Xerces Society and the UMN Bee Lab. 

The Pollinator Toolbox from the Board of Water and Soil Resources has resources for every step to creating pollinator habitat.

University of Minnesota Bee Lab | Bee Squad

Not sure what to plant in your pollinator garden? The Plants for Minnesota Bees page provides a list of native and non-native plants that are suitable for varying amounts of shade. These species of plants are loved by pollinators across the state of Minnesota. 

Minnesota Board of Water & Soil Resources

Is your planting site super sunny? Do you prefer shorter flowering plants? The Sunny and Low Garden for Pollinators (PDF) guide is for you! Is lists a variety of drought-tolerant plants that remain under 24" and are perfect for your sunny site, along with tips for new gardeners. 

Minnesota Board of Water & Soil Resources

Are you interested in planting for pollinators, but have a shady property? Look no further! The Shade Garden for Pollinators (PDF) guide offers a list of plant species that are excellent for pollinators, yet tolerant of shady sites. 

Prairie Nursery

The Planting for Pollinators guide is organized by a flower's bloom time (spring, early summer, etc.) and by the types of pollinators that visit those flowers!

University of Minnesota Extension & Master Gardener

Have you tried to plant for pollinators in your landscape but lacked success due to dry, wet, or shady conditions? The Best Plants for 30 Tough Sites lists the best plants for difficult sites - including dry sites, slopes, lakeshores, and various difficult soil conditions. 

Heather Holm

Are you interested in supporting native bees in your pollinator garden? The Native Bee - Native Plant Posters of Minnesota native plants offer suggestions based on your soil type - ranging from clay soil to sandy soil to a shady landscape. 

United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)

Do you want to create a pollinator garden, but are unsure how to design one that aligns with your landscape? The Pollinator Gardens Design Guide (PDF) from the USDA offers descriptions of different pollinator garden designs suitable for dry or wet sites, shady sites, and more. 

Minnesota Department of Natural Resources

Did you recently come across a list of pollinator-friendly plants and want to check if they are Minnesota natives? The Minnesota DNR offers a Plant Checklist (PDF) of our Minnesota native plant species.

Xerces Society

The Great Lakes plant list is for folks in the Great Lakes Region, which includes the eastern half of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio, and parts of Pennsylvania and New York. It will help you ensure that your garden is supporting diverse bees from early spring through fall, with a list of plants that are suitable for your geographic region. 

Xerces Society

The Northern Plains plant list is for folks in the Northern Plains Region, which includes the western half of Minnesota, North and South Dakota, and parts of Montana Wyoming, Colorado, and Nebraska. It will help you ensure that your landscape and pollinator planting are benefiting the pollinators that are native to your region!

Pollinator Partnership

Do you live in the eastern broadleaf forest province? This province runs primarily through central Minnesota and into the southern part of the state. The Selecting Plants for Pollinators guide (PDF) from Pollinator Partnership will help you select plants different kinds of pollinators, including bees, birds, butterflies, and bats that are suitable for the eastern broadleaf forest province, plus information on beneficial plant species and when they will bloom. 

Pollinator Partnership

Do you live in the Laurentian Mixed Forest Province of Minnesota? This area is primarily categorized by deciduous forests mostly in northeastern Minnesota. The Selecting Plants for Pollinators guide (PDF) aims to help you plant consecutive blooms for bees, birds, butterflies, and more, including species that are perfect for the Laurentian Mixed Forest, which is characterized by conifer forests, bogs, and swamps. 

Pollinator Partnership

Do you live in what was historically tallgrass prairie? If you reside in the Prairie Parkland region of Minnesota and want to help pollinators, the Selecting Plants for Pollinators guide (PDF) for this region is for you. The Prairie Parkland is primarily rolling plains with steep bluffs and valleys along the western border of Minnesota. This guide includes a map and description of the area's topography, details about different pollinators and what they need, and a useful plant list with bloom times, perfect for the Prairie Parkland region. 

United States Geological Survey

The Flowering Plants Preferred by Bees of the Prairie Pothole Region offers information on plants that are preferred by both honey bees and wild bees throughout the Prairie Pothole region. This region includes parts of the upper midwestern states of Minnesota, North and South Dakota, and Montana. 

Xerces Society, Monarch Joint Venture, and Garden for Wildlife

Monarch Nectar Plants: Great Lakes is a guided plant list for folks in the Great Lakes Region who want to help monarchs all season long! The Great Lakes Region includes the eastern half of Minnesota, along with Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio, and parts of Pennsylvania and New York. 

Xerces Society and Monarch Joint Venture

Interested in supporting the endangered monarch butterfly? Milkweeds of Iowa & Minnesota lists Minnesota native milkweeds, what they look like, their bloom times, and more. 

North American Butterfly Association

Are you interested in planting for butterflies in your pollinator garden? Top Butterfly Nectar Flowers (PDF) offers information on the flower characteristics, bloom time, and what butterflies you may attract for Minnesota gardens. 

University of Minnesota Bee Lab

Are you interested in planting a garden that can nourish you and the pollinators? The Pollinator Tea Garden webpage can help you choose the right plants for your taste buds, landscape, and local pollinators. 

University of Minnesota Extension

Edible Flowers offers a list of edible plants that are delicious and nutritious for both human visitors and pollinating guests in your garden, and how to identify which are safe to eat.