Some Simple Guidelines for Making a Pollinator Garden

by Marilee Henry

Image June 2026 Juanita Bay Park by Marilee Henry

Autumn is the best season to plant natives. Perennials will have

finished flowering/fruiting and can put their resources into establishing

deep roots. Fall is also the season for numerous plant sales – see the

list at the end of this article for a few that carry mostly native species.

Research shows that about 90% of flowering plants (including food

crops) require insect/animal pollination for propagation. Habitat loss from

human developments, climate-change-induced droughts and rising

temperatures, and pollution have resulted in alarming declines in

pollinator populations. But all of us can help improve this situation by

planting native species in our yards, in business property landscaping,

or even in containers on apartment balconies.

We can also pressure local, county, and state agencies to use native species

in their open spaces and restorations. Again, according to recent research, 70% of

a region’s vegetation at a minimum must be native to support stable

insect/bird populations.

So let’s start a pollinator garden! Here are a few simple guidelines to

keep in mind when designing your plot.

1. Please do not use any herbicides or pesticides. These

chemicals always have effects on non-target species. When nature is

in balance, pests are usually kept to acceptable levels. Nibbles on

leaves could be from larvae that will turn into beautiful butterflies.

Mole holes can become winter shelters for bees.

2. Diversity is key. According to the Washington Bee Atlas there are

up to 700 species of native bees in our state. Roughly a quarter of that

number are specialists, meaning they require specific native plants for

survival. Bumble bees are generalists; they can gather nectar and/or

pollen from many different plants. A diverse assortment of native

species will benefit far more types of pollinators than a single large

monoculture of lavender which is a non-native, good for generalists

only.

3. Plant clumps of each species. Many pollinators practice “flower

constancy”, visiting the same flower species in succession during a

specific foraging trip rather than randomly visiting any flower in any order.

This habit is more efficient for the pollinator and results in better

germination rates within the visited species.

A good clump of showy fleabane or pearly everlasting contains 3 to 12 plants.

In a large area that can include shrubs, try to plant a minimum of 2 large shrubs

(ex.Mock Orange) or 3 smaller ones (ex. Alpine Spirea) within easy sight

of one another for ease of pollinator visibility. Clumps of perennial

flowers and vines can be spaced close together among logs, trellises,

or rocks for visual interest while providing soil nutrition and aiding

moisture retention. If you have only a small area, go for clumps of a

few species that bloom at different times rather than more species of

only one plant each.

4. Plant a variety of colors and flower types for early, mid, and

late season blooms. For those of you not too familiar with native

plants, this might seem daunting. But keep it simple and start with a

few easy-to-find, easy-to-grow species, adding more in future seasons.

As an example, below is a list of the species I have planted in my

restoration site at Juanita Bay Park with their colors and approximate

bloom seasons. I have tried to include diverse flower types such as

tubular for bumble bees and hummingbirds, to flat-topped clusters for

beetles and butterflies. The site is mostly in full sun, has fast-draining

sandy soil, and does get some supplemental watering about every two

weeks in summer. Planting around logs and mulching with arborist

chips helps retain soil moisture. You can see photos of these species

on the Burke image collection website. Most of them are available at

native plant sales and at native plant nurseries. They are also easily

grown from seeds. Sources for seeds and plants can be found here.

Large Shrubs:

Red-flowering currant/early/red (Ribes sangineum)

Tall Oregon grape/early/yellow (Mahonia aquifolium)

Mock orange/early-mid/white (Philadelphus lewisii)

Redstem ceanothus/mid/white (Ceanothus sangineus)

Ocean spray/mid/white (Holodiscus discolor)

Puget Sound Gumweed/late/yellow Grindelia integrifolia)

Small Shrubs:

Birch-leaved spiraea/mid-late/white (Spiraea lucida)

Vines:

Orange honeysuckle/mid/orange (Lonicera ciliosa)

Groundcovers:

Wild Strawberry/early-mid/white (Fragaria vesca)

Short Perennials (under 2 feet tall):

Early blue violet/early/bluish-purple (Viola adunca)

Yellow monkey-flower/mid/yellow (Erythranthe guttata)

Tall alumroot/mid/cream (Heuchera chlorantha)

Oregon sunshine/mid/yellow (Eriophyllum lanatum)

Cascade penstemon/mid/magenta (Penstemon serrulatus)

Bluebells of Scotland/late/blue (Campanula rotundifolia)

Tall Perennials:

Great Camas/early/blue (Camassia leichtlinii)

Streambank lupine/early-mid/blue (Lupinus rivularis)

Fireweed/mid/magenta (Chamaenerion angustifolium)

California figwort/mid/brownish-purple (Scrophularia californica)

Bigleaf lupine/mid-late/blue (Lupinus polyphyllus)

Showy fleabane/mid-late/purple (Erigeron speciosus)

Pearly everlasting/mid-late/white (Anaphalis margaritacea)

Wild Bergamot/late/lavender (Monarda fistulosa)

Yarrow/late/white (Achillia millefolium)

Goldenrod/late/yellow (Solidago lepida)

5. Nature is a bit messy. Pollinators need your garden to provide

shelter as well as pollen, nectar, and larval host plants. In winter,

many native bees and other pollinators seek nesting spots underground,

in leaf mulch, in hollow flower stems, or in rotting logs.

So chuck out pristine gardening habits: leave a patch of bare dirt and

rodent holes for burrowing bees, cut spent flower stems no shorter

than 18 inches, rake fallen leaves onto your garden beds, and when

large trees must be removed, whenever possible leave a portion of

the trunk standing for insects, woodpeckers, and nesting birds.

6. Go native! Some non-native plants such as lavender, sage,

rosemary, and oregano, attract large numbers of honeybees, bumble

bees, and other generalist pollinators and can make beautiful

additions to a garden. But please limit non-natives to less than a third

of your pollinator beds (and your entire yards.) Remember that birds

cannot raise enough chicks to keep their populations stable without

enough of a critical food source – moth/butterfly larvae – that depend

on native species as their hosts. The exotic and invasive butterfly

bush (from Asia) is not a host plant to any native pollinator in our

state.

Always remember, YOU are nature’s best hope! – Doug Tallamy

Autumn 2026 Native Plant Sales:

Washington Native Plant Society Fall Plant Sale

September 13, 2026 Bellevue Botanical Garden 10am

see WNPS link for details

Arboretum Foundation Fall Plant Sale

September 19, 2026, UW Arboretum, Graham Visitors Center

10am - 2pm

see Arboretum Foundation link for details

SER-UW Fall Native Plant Nursery Sale

October 27 – 31, 2026: Online Ordering

November 9, 2026: In Person Sale

see SER-UW link for details

King Conservation District Bareroot Plant Sale

November 17, 2026: Online Ordering Begins

February 27, 2027: Plant Pick-up

see KCD link for details