When we talk about planting native plants to support pollinators and ecosystem health, the dominant image that comes to most of our minds is that of a sunny garden reminiscent of a prairie or meadow.
But it’s worth remembering that a large percentage of areas of the United States were occupied primary by forest, especially in the east.
Our beautiful native trees and shrubs are also crucial for wildlife, from insects all the way up the food chain, and these naturally will cast shade on much of the area around them.
But this doesn’t mean that those shady areas can’t support pollinators as well.
Read our article on how native bees use shade gardens for more information on why this is the case.
Another tip for shade garden native plants is to consider plants that are host plants for caterpillars, which helps ensure that butterflies and moths that visit for nectar are able to complete their whole lifecycle and stay for many generations. As compared to native bees, butterflies more overwhelmingly use plants that thrive in full sun, but there are plenty that can do well in part sun or part shade, which you can use in the edge of shade gardens or other parts that get a little more sun than the deeper shade areas.
With all that said, let’s talk about some specific plants.
Good Native Plants to Choose for a Shady Area
Wild Columbine (Aquilegia canadensis): Native to the eastern parts of Canada and the US west to the Mississippi River and south to Georgia and Alabama, this perennial plant has beautiful red flowers (plus yellow and other colors for some varieties native to other parts of the US). The bell-shaped flowers are especially attractive to hummingbirds and they are also appealing to bees. Also known as Eastern Red Columbine, this species can adapt to a variety of conditions from part sun to much shadier sites and is found in woodlands, meadows, and rocky slopes.
Virginia Bluebells (Mertensia virginica): Its bell-shaped blue flowers are highly attractive to bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds. They can handle full shade environments where many pollinator plants struggle, and also spread well to cover larger areas.
Woodland Phlox (Phlox divaricata): This relatively low-growing plant adds beauty to gardens with its clusters of lavender-blue or pale violet flowers that attract butterflies and bees.
Wild Geranium (Geranium maculatum): Geranium maculatum, native to the eastern US as far west as Texas and Oklahoma, typically has a mounding form and reaches a moderate size, with a height ranging from 1 to 2 feet. Its delicate pink or purple flowers are a favorite for bees, butterflies, and even beetles.
Jacob’s Ladder (Polemonium spp.): These plants are native to eastern Canada and the US, down to the southeast, and west to Minnesota, Missouri, and Louisiana. They feature delicate blue, pink, or white flowers that attract various pollinators, including bees and butterflies. Unlike many spring-blooming perennials, Jacob’s Ladder’s interesting foliage persists late into the year, giving your shade garden long-lasting interest. And its creeping habit allows it to form an attractive groundcover.
Coral Bells (Heuchera americana): Native from Ontario south to Georgia and west from Nebraska to Louisiana, this is a great pollinator plant for a shade garden. It’s another popular ornamental where the native straight species can be just as beautiful as the cultivars you’ll find. The colorful leaves are attractive and the tall flowers are a great source of pollen for bees.
Solomon’s Seal: Native to the whole east coast south to Florida and east to Nebraska and Texas, this perennial thrives in the dappled shade and moist soils found in woodland habitats. The dangling, bell-shaped flowers of Solomon’s Seal attract a variety of pollinators, including bees and butterflies, with their sweet nectar and inviting fragrance. Its graceful arching stems and lush foliage create a sheltered and serene environment, making it an ideal habitat for beneficial insects.
Other Tips to Support Pollinators in the Shade
There are other ways to help wildlife in your yard that are especially crucial in shaded areas. One of these is to leave the leaves that land in your gardens, as your woodland plants have evolved to grow through them and they provide habitat for a wide variety of insects to overwinter, including many of the very bees and butterflies we are trying to attract to our native gardens. If we collect these leaves and remove them from our properties, those populations will be unable to survive year over year. What’s more, the leaves act as a natural mulch that helps your plants and soil and also suppresses exotic weeds.
Along with this, leave your perennial stalks in place rather than deadheading spent blooms and cutting plants to the ground in the fall. This helps provide food for birds in the form of seeds, and also supports insects and bees that may use the stems before next spring.
Overall, it’s important to note that the specific pollinators attracted may vary based on your location and the local ecological conditions. Creating a diverse and native plant habitat with a range of flowering species will help attract a variety of pollinators to your garden or landscape.
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