The first step to establishing lively Tennessee ecosystems is to choose the appropriate pollinator plants to help bees, butterflies, hummingbirds, and other desirable insects. These native pollinator plants not only supply the surrounding orchards and vegetable gardens with fruit set but also provide their pollination services via the supply of nectar and pollen. The climate of Tennessee, covering the USDA Zones of 6b to 7b, is conducive to a variety of native species with which the local pollinators have evolved over thousands of years.
Tennessee Wholesale Nursery’s decades of experience in supplying pollinator plants have provided us with an understanding of the species that invariably provide the highest number of beneficial wildlife and survive well in Tennessee soils of clay loam and humid summers.
The Role of Pollinators in Healthy Garden Ecosystems
As productive ecosystems, pollinators transfer the pollen between the flowers to facilitate the production of fruit and seeds in around 75% of flowering plant species. Native bees in Tennessee gardens are estimated to confer most of the pollination services, comprising more than 400 species (with an even distribution of tiny sweat bees (Halictidae) and large carpenter bees (Xylocopa virginica)). Butterflies and moths, as well as hummingbirds and beetles, are important in Tennessee gardens.
Plants that attract pollinators generate a chain effect of ecological benefits that are not limited to direct pollination. They help to maintain predatory insect populations, which keep pests in check, feed insect- and seed-eating songbirds, and enhance soil viability by having a root system that supports helpful mycorrhizal fungi.
Tennessee Wholesale Nursery, while providing native plants to rivers to restore their ecosystems and meadows to provide ecosystems, has found that a variety of pollinator plants form robust ecosystems whose maintenance needs very little application of chemicals. An in-depth explanation of pollinator ecology is available in the article on pollinators on Wikipedia, which gives a scientific background.
Characteristics of Plants That Attract Pollinators
Native pollinator plants also have floral attributes to attract a certain type of pollinator. The bees prefer blue, purple, and yellow flowers with landing platforms, and the hummingbirds prefer the red or orange tubular flowers without scent and rich in dilute nectar. Learning how to get pollinated plants to grow in a garden would involve matching flower traits with the preferred species of pollinators.
Important attributes are:
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Bloom sequencing: Supply of nectar from early spring till fall frost.
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Form of flowers: Diverse morphologies that fulfill a variety of pollinator feeding patterns.
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Nectar formulation: Sugar levels that are appropriate to particular pollinator metabolisms (15-25% in the majority of bees)
- Pollen availability: Foraging insects can collect anthers in an exposed manner.
To develop a successful list of pollinator plants, one has to include species that flower throughout the seasons. The spring ephemerals serve the queen bumblebees exiting their winter hibernation; summer flowerers maintain the peak populations; and fall asters (Symphyotrichum spp.) become vital late-season resources before the frost.
Top Pollinator Plants That Thrive in Tennessee Landscapes
The plants that Tennessee Wholesale Nursery offers are locally tested native pollinator plants that have been chosen over decades to be used in ecological restoration projects:
Milkweed
The genus Asclepias is home to several native species that are vital to the survival of monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus), which have milkweed as the only larval host. The Milkweed we sell attracts various native bees, butterflies, and useful wasps and grows well in the full sun and well-drained Soils of Tennessee. Swamp milkweed (A. incarnata) works well as a plant for a pollinator garden, as does common milkweed (A. syriaca).
Cardinal Flower
This is a native perennial (Lobelia cardinalis) that has bright red tubular flowers, which were specifically designed to attract the pollination of the ruby-throated hummingbird (Archilochus colubris). The Cardinal Flower is a wetland plant that grows along river edges and flowers in the summertime (July-September) when all of the hummingbirds are migrating south and therefore need nectar that is high in energy.
Sanguinaria Canadensis
Bloodroot is a native spring ephemeral with white flowers that attract early-emerging native bees, such as mining bees (Andrena spp.). Sanguinaria Canadensis is a woodland garden plant, a necessary early source of nectar at a time when many other pollinator plants bloom.
Black Cohosh
This is a native woodland perennial (Actaea racemosa) that grows tall with white flower spikes, attracting various native bees, flies, and beetles. The Black Cohosh is shade-tolerant in Tennessee and grows in its wet soil, developing midsummer to fill temporal vacuities caused by usual plants that attract pollinators.
Lily Pads
This genus of aquatic plants, Nymphaea, features many pollinators, such as native bees and beetles. Our Lily Pads are a habitat for aquatic insects, and their flowers draw pollinators to water features.
Simple Tips for Maintaining Pollinator Gardens
Pollinator plants do not need a lot of intervention once they are in place. Native pollinator plants are developed in Tennessee soil and tend to need no fertilization—surplus nitrogen actually lowers the nectar production but enhances vegetative growth. The majority of species flourish as an annual spring cleanup after dead stems are eliminated due to the appearance of native bees after overwintering locations.
Employ the following research-based practices:
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Postpone spring cleanup: Wait until April to leave dead stems for overwintering cavity nesters.
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The use of pesticides should be avoided: Not even organic insecticides are safe for the useful pollinators.
- Plant closely: Work out mature plant spacing.
Plants that attract pollinators enhance soil quality with deep root systems that help in the maintenance of useful soil organisms and mycorrhizal fungi. Their disintegrating leaves add organic matter and improve the diversity of microbes. Water in establishment—most species can withstand the Tennessee summer dry periods when established.
Conclusion
The pollinator plants play a vital role in the healthy systems and lovely landscape of Tennessee gardens, as well as the sustenance of the bees, butterflies, hummingbirds, and other insects that benefit from the food systems. Native pollinator plants could only be successful when one is able to understand Tennessee's climate of Zone 6-7, and also be able to choose plants that attract pollinators with different bloom periods. Be it the Milkweed, hummingbird-friendly Cardinal Flower, early-blooming Sanguinaria Canadensis, shade-tolerant Black Cohosh, or aquatic Lily Pads, Tennessee Wholesale Nursery has spent decades providing quality plants to a pollinator garden. Relax and be our customer by using our nursery as a source of an extensive list of pollinator plants that work in Tennessee.
FAQs
What plants attract pollinators in Tennessee gardens?
Native plants that would make excellent pollinator plants and native pollinator plants in Tennessee are native milkweeds, cardinal flowers, asters, and coneflowers, since they are native to the Zone 6-7 climate.
Why are pollinator plants important for ecosystems?
Pollinator plants also help in sustaining bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds, which are needed to help in the production of fruits/seeds, as well as providing resilient ecosystems due to the variety of plants attracting pollinators.
Do native plants attract more pollinators than non-native plants?
Yes, native pollinator plants have more diverse pollinators since they have co-evolved with each other, having better nectar availability and flower morphology.
How can I create a pollinator garden at home?
Plant in groups, choose plants that bloom all spring and all fall, plant plants to have flowering plants grow in a garden, and avoid using pesticides.
Which flowers attract both bees and butterflies?
Native asters, coneflowers, and milkweeds are great examples of plants that not only attract bees but also butterflies, and are multifaceted plants that can attract pollinators.
Where can I buy pollinator plants for Tennessee gardens online?
Tennessee Wholesale Nursery provides established native pollinator plants and a complete list of pollinator plants with over 40 years of experience in the region.