Fall Pollinator Perennials etc.
- Joe Gentile
- Sep 30
- 2 min read
What are perennials?
Perennials are flowers that once planted, return for several years to come, if not much longer than that, either through roots or through seeds spreading. Some examples of perennials are Coneflowers, Black-eyed Susans, Hostas, Daisies and Joe-Pye Weed. They come back year after year for your enjoyment as well as the enjoyment of your pollinators and birds.
What are the best perennials that bloom in late summer into fall?
There are more than a few that a great in the fall season, and your late season bees, butterflies and birds, including hummingbirds, will thank you for it. Asters are the kings of the fall garden in shades of purple, pink and white and in many varieties. True perennial Chrysanthemums are also a winner. (I’m not talking about the ones that everyone thinks of as fall decorations.) Anemones are wonderful, delicate looking flowers that bloom like crazy, but be weary of them just a bit as they like decent water. Sneezeweed, which isn’t a weed and doesn’t make you sneeze, looks like small sunflowers. Helen’s Garnet is a great variety. Turtle heads in purple, pink or white are very interesting perennials as well, but just as anemones need water, so do turtle heads. And there are others, just do your research and consult garden center professionals.
What other plants do pollinators love in fall?
One answer…English Ivy! Yes, I did say it. I’ll say it again…English Ivy! Yes, it spreads like mad. Yes, it smothers other plants and chokes out trees, BUT, no other plant is more important to bees and butterflies in fall. You can literally hear the buzzing of the bees, it’s so loud. The food they get from the very stinky flowers gives them the energy to make their long journeys to warmer climates so they can return next year. And bonus, the berries that form become food for overwintering birds and the late winter returning birds like Robins and Mockingbirds. So, endure the smell and set an area aside that’s out of the way for English Ivy.
Anything else?
Yes, of course. Enjoy fall. The season is always giving back with its beauty, wonderful temperatures and weather. Some people think of it as the season when things die, but it’s not that. It’s the season where we contemplate the year that was and all that we enjoyed, as well as what’s to come. And we do it among the sheer beauty of the grass being as green as can be, the fall flowers, pumpkins, gourds and cornstalks and the leaves in shades of red, yellow and russet. What could be better than that?
*** Plant Health Organics is a 100% Organic land care company serving Central NJ and Bucks County PA. We are PROUD of the work we do and know full well that what we do is BEST for you and our world. Contact us at 908-335-0553.***
Comments