When planning a pollinator garden, it’s easy to think only of spring and summer perennials. But we recommend choosing plants for the easiest season first—fall. This is also a season when birds and pollinators actively seek nourishment before winter. Goldenrods, black-eyed Susans, and asters are the stars and workhorses of the fall pollinator garden.
These native perennial species bloom beautifully in late summer and fall. Their abundant nectar and high-protein pollen attract a wide variety of pollinators. In winter, Juncos and remaining Goldfinches eat the seeds.
Native goldenrod, a resilient perennial, stands strong in the face of drought and the hot, dry days of late summer and early fall. It’s a shame that goldenrods aren’t as commonly used in American gardens as in Europe. One reason for this is the misconception that they cause allergies. With its delicate, light pollen and wind pollination, Ragweed is the real allergy culprit. Goldenrod’s large, sticky pollen doesn’t irritate allergy sufferers but is perfect for insect pollination.
Another reason goldenrods are underused in gardens is that the common Canada Goldenrod spreads aggressively by underground rhizomes. However, many other species of goldenrod are well-suited for gardens. There are many goldenrod species suited for sunny sites. For example, choose the umbral cluster shape of flowers on Ohio Goldenrod and Stiff Goldenrod. Rough Goldenrod is the latest bloomer, attracting many bees and migrating Monarch butterflies well into September and October.
Dependable, easy-care black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta) has become a native garden staple. Daisy-like rays of bright yellow petals and dark center disks rise over broad ovate green leaves with a rough texture. This wildflower is native to the central United States and can be seen growing in natural areas and along roadsides in the Midwest.
Black-eyed Susan produces an abundance of nectar and pollen and draws the attention of bumblebees, butterflies, and moths. The plant’s ability to self-seed makes it an excellent choice for abundant wildflower gardens.
Native asters’ shades of purple and blue make them a must for a colorful fall garden. For a complementary color scheme, plant native asters next to the bright yellow of goldenrods, black-eyed susans, and false sunflowers. Add in some brilliant red from sumac or serviceberry foliage and some tawny fall foliage of native grasses like little bluestem, and the effect is stunning.
Asters are pollinated by long-tongued and short-tongued bees and visited by butterflies and skippers. Asters are also host plants for silvery checkerspot butterfly larvae.
Smooth aster is a great purple-blue for the sun and is popular with various garden bees. Other resilient choices include New England aster (Symphyotrichum novae-angliae), aromatic aster (Symphyotrichum oblongifolium), and silky aster (Symphyotrichum sericeum).
New England aster is common in dry to wet-mesic sites with full sun. A tall plant continues to bloom and set seed through September and October. The flower color can vary from pale pink to dark burgundy to purple. It is one of the last asters in bloom throughout September.
In late fall, one of the last wildflowers to bloom, aromatic aster, is loaded with blue-purple daisy-like flowers. This aster grows into a tidy, compact, self-supporting mound.
Silky aster is the shortest aster in this group, growing to only 6 to 18 inches tall. It thrives in open sites and is drought-tolerant. The stems are wiry, and the leaves are oblong to elliptical and covered with soft hairs. The lavender-to-purple flower heads are showy, with 10 to 22 ray flowers on each. The flower heads are one inch across and attract bees, flies, and small butterflies. Larvae of many species and other adult insects eat the foliage.
Forrest Keeling Nursery grows over 100 species of native perennials and grasses and nearly 400 species of native trees and shrubs. Visit our website to learn more about the Forrest Keeling difference or find availability and ordering information. Forrest Keeling… it’s where the best trees… and perennials… begin!