Common Boneset

Eupatorium perfoliatum and Rudbeckia subtomentosa 'Henry Eilers'

Mid-August pocket meadow

Updating a favorite program today (Native Plants for Pollinators), I figured that I needed to add Common Boneset (Eupatorium perfoliatum) to the mix.

It's been a standout in the pocket meadow (aka pollinator patch) this summer.  The entire pocket meadow has been swarming with flower visitors of all sorts.

Eupatorium perfoliatum (Common Boneset)

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Pocket meadow: pollinators welcome

The pocket meadow in front of the house continues to transform, but is especially lively now, as (normally) fall-flowering plants like Joe-Pye, Vernonia spp., and Solidago are in flower or starting to flower.

Pocket meadow - pollinator-friendly!

On the other side of the driveway, Salvia guaranitica continues to welcome hummingbirds and bees of all sorts, accompanied by a tall Rudbeckia triloba.

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A milkweed on the greenway

I'm thinking this is swamp milkweed, Asclepias incarnata.  I haven't ever bothered to really learn all of the milkweeds and their specific characteristics -- there are actually quite a few species out there, although only a few "in cultivation."

This one is along the Weaver Boulevard greenway in Asheville -- quite lovely. 

I admired the common milkweed at Beaver Lake again this morning -- covered in honey bees, flower flies, and skippers.

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Planting pollinator gardens

There's an excellent new initiative, from a consortium of groups, from non-profits to garden groups, in association with the recent federal initiative around promoting pollinator plantings.

It's called the Million Pollinator Garden Challenge.

It's a good thing.

I "registered" my small landscape yesterday, which includes a pocket meadow and an informal perennial bed full of natives below the house (not to mention all of the native plants planted elsewhere).

It doesn't take much to transform a "traditional" perennial bed into a pollinator-friendly one.  But I'm feeling that we definitely need to encourage folks to do that, as well as transform lawns into life-supporting plantings.

I'm getting weary of seeing nothing but plants that just sit there, and don't "work for a living" in residential and commercial landscapes.

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Gardens, nurseries and pollinators

As a gardener who favors native plants, pollinator-friendly plants, and generally "plants that work for a living," I always enjoy visiting gardens that support flower visitors, whether they're cottage gardens full of nectar- and pollen- rich plants from wherever, or native meadow gardens.

I loved visiting Chickadee Gardens, Scott's garden, and Joy Creek Nursery, especially because of the abundance of flower visitors.  I took lots of photos in each of these places - here are just a few.

bumblebee on Dahlia

bee on Eryngium of some kind

Joy Creek nursery view

honeybee on Agastache

bumblebee visiting a Penstemon cultivar

bumblebee and Monarda cultivar

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National Pollinator Week!

It's been National Pollinator Week and I've had fun participating in garden tours, attending talks, and will do a program tomorrow about native plants for pollinators -- great fun for an excellent initiative.

I started gardening for butterflies three decades ago, but rapidly expanded my interest to native bees, and other flower insects.  I never studied entomology, unfortunately, but my best friend in graduate school as well my hubby (whom I also met in graduate school) studied pollination biology, so I was at least aware of the field!

But as a gardener and educator, it's been a joy to encourage people to include plants that "work for a living" and this includes pollinator-friendly plants of all sorts.  From adding nectar- and pollen-rich flowers to providing habitat for nesting and larval food sources -- we can easily support pollinators in our landscapes.

I've posted a pdf of the presentation on the sidebar.  Just click on the image to view it.

I'm glad I'll have the opportunity to plug pollinator habitat as part of pollinator week!

(The presentation is at a great local native plant garden, the Botanical Gardens at Asheville and is in support of the Pollination Celebration organized by Bee City USA.

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