Save The Bees...Plant These

[mrsclem]

some butterfly bush can be invasive. I have one that has spread all over the neighbors yard. The orange butterfly weed is great but mine has not spread as much as I wanted even with me spreading the seeds. We always considered milkweed to be a weed back in Ohio but monarch butterflys love it so I'm planning on getting a lot of it to grow in my yard.

 

[Big Lou]

I know the butterflies sure love my Butterfly Bush but in some places I think that is an invasive species.

I believe it is the native species butterfly bush that is invasive. We had bought one and planted it to be a eye catching bush. It was anything but. Gangly, unruly with fast growth. Not particularly attractive. Got rid of it after one season.

 

[JBtheExplorer]

We always considered milkweed to be a weed back in Ohio but monarch butterflys love it so I'm planning on getting a lot of it to grow in my yard.

You'd be surprised how many plants are considered to be weeds but actually look nice in certain types of gardens. Actually, weeds are nothing more than plants that have adapted better than others, so they can grow in most conditions, and thats why they take over so many areas.

 

[addy1]

True jw! I have a bunch of sedum growing around, and I am going to spread more of the sedum around for the bees. The other plant they mentioned a lot was...............MINT!
lol and that too I have growing in the pond/bog and ground. Going to plant more in the back field let it take off everywhere. Mint tends to bloom later int he summer. Goldenrod is another great nectar source, we planted a 100 foot fence line out 15 feet full of golden rod, hope it made the winter. Also spread a bunch of seeds around.But first taxes.........got to get them done and sent to az to our cpa.
I am going to toss more seed out today in my wildflower gardens then get the electric fence up and running before the seedlings start to break ground. Darn deer will eat them up.
Sunflowers are also a great nectar source, those too I need to protect from the deer, they love the leaves, strip the plants

 

[Texas ponder]

JB thanks for this post. I have been keeping bees for a couple of years now and am always looking for nectar producing plants.

 

[Big Lou]

True jw! I have a bunch of sedum growing around, and I am going to spread more of the sedum around for the bees. The other plant they mentioned a lot was...............MINT!
lol and that too I have growing in the pond/bog and ground. Going to plant more in the back field let it take off everywhere. Mint tends to bloom later int he summer. Goldenrod is another great nectar source, we planted a 100 foot fence line out 15 feet full of golden rod, hope it made the winter. Also spread a bunch of seeds around.But first taxes.........got to get them done and sent to az to our cpa.
I am going to toss more seed out today in my wildflower gardens then get the electric fence up and running before the seedlings start to break ground. Darn deer will eat them up.
Sunflowers are also a great nectar source, those too I need to protect from the deer, they love the leaves, strip the plants

You may already know this but jus in case you don't mint is very invasive.

 

[addy1]

oh I know lou, but in our area it dies back does not get going real well until mid summer. I have some in my bog, it stays in one place, some in the pond, it stays along one edge, the stuff along a fence can grow as much as it wants, smells great when you mow it down!