Bee Plants

4-6" wide, white to pale pink flowers with a contrasting burgundy eye and showy staminal column are produced in summer along the 4-6' high stems attracting bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds. The Halberdleaved Rosemallow, Hibiscus laevis, is a root hardy herbaceous native perennial Hibiscus producing multiple stems at maturity. It is typically found growing along freshwater lakes, rivers, and streams where it has an ample moisture supply and will likely prefer a similar, consistently moist, fertile soil in a full to mostly sunny site for optimum growth and vigor. This will be a good choice for bogs and rain gardens. The Halberdleaved Rosemallow is native to much of the central and eastern US and gets its name from its halberd shaped foliage. Item# 12975

Billowy, ruffly edged, double, purplish pink, 2-3" wide flowers are produced in early to midspring and are held against a foil of deep green, medium textured foliage with the flowers attracting bees, butterflies, hummingbirds, and curious passersby. Hallie Evergreen Azalea is an unusual and uncommon Aromi hybrid that develops into a medium-sized, densely branched shrub. Azaleas do best in average moist, acidic soils that are rich in organic matter but have good to excellent drainage and should be top dressed with an organic mulch such as pine straw and pine bark. We recommend using a slow-release, non-burning fertilizer that is labeled for acidic loving plants. Images courtesy of Maarten Van der Giessen, Van der Giessens Nursery, all rights reserved. Item# 12572

Considered by many to be one of the best Bottlebrush cultivars, Hannah Ray is a vigorous growing selection whose large deep orange-red flowers hang from weeping stems. The new growth is bronze and develops into a soft blue green. An excellent choice anywhere a small evergreen tree or large shrub is desired. Hannah Ray is drought resistant and the nectar and pollen laden flowers are sure to attract hummingbirds, butterflies, and bees. Established plants may be found in flower nearly throughout the warmer months. Item# 11043

The large rounded clusters of flowers open a bright yellow and quickly deepen through shades of orange and red into magenta and purple tones. HEARTLAND™ Neon Lantana is a new more vigorous cousin to the HAVANA™ series growing to about 18-24" high and wide making these great choices for colorful containers as well as in the garden and landscape. The HEARTLAND™ Lantana series are nearly sterile producing almost no fruit or viable seed thus these plants can spend their energy on flower and nectar production. They start flowering earlier giving you a longer season of color from spring into fall attracting a myriad of pollinators throughout the growing season. Provide a full to mostly sunny site in a fertile, average moist soil for optimum vigor and continuous flowering. Images courtesy of Dümmen Orange, all rights reserved. Item# 12813

The large rounded clusters of flowers open a golden yellow and quickly deepen through shades of orange into fiery reds. HEARTLAND™ Really Red Lantana is a new more vigorous cousin to the HAVANA™ series growing to about 18-24" high and wide making these great choices for colorful containers as well as in the garden and landscape. The HEARTLAND™ Lantana series are nearly sterile producing almost no fruit or viable seed thus these plants can spend their energy on flower and nectar production. They start flowering earlier giving you a longer season of color from spring into fall attracting a myriad of pollinators throughout the growing season. Provide a full to mostly sunny site in a fertile, average moist soil for optimum vigor and continuous flowering. Images courtesy of Dümmen Orange, all rights reserved. Item# 12814

Spikes up to 16-20" high are topped by clusters of tubular blue to blue-violet flowers with a contrasting white bee-guide are produced beginning as early as late spring but mainly in summer, occasionally into fall, and attract a variety of native bees along with larger butterflies. Helmet Skullcap, Scutellaria integrifolia, is a small, 12-20" high, clump forming to short rhizomatous perennial native from East Texas, all along the Gulf Coast and up the Eastern Seaboard into southern Massachussets and New York. This is a common component of the brightly lit understory in the Pineywoods and locally we typically see it in dryer or mesic uplands including hardwood and pineforests in well-drained loamy and sandy soils as well as in more moist sunnier sites. Provide a full sun to partly shaded site in a well-drained soil for optimum vigor and flowering. May reseed on exposed soils. Item# 12769

Large dense branched pannicles to 12" x 12" are composed of multitudes of small pale purple tubular flowers are produced over an extended period through much of summer and attract a variety of pollinators including smaller shorter tongued bees like Honeybees as well as larger native bees like Bumblebees. The large palmate foliage of Hempleaf Vitex resembles that of the Hemp plant and thus the specific epithet of "cannibifolia". Like its close cousin the Chaste Tree, Vitex agnus-castus, the Hempleaf Vitex, Vitex negundo var. cannibofolia, is an easy to grow sun and heat loving deciduous shrub that prefers an average to well-drained soil. It appears to have few pests or disease issues and is unlikely to be bothered by deer. Item# 11879

We have quit growing Henry Duelberg Mealycup sage in favor of Big Blue Salvia (sage and salvia  are interchangabled names),   2018 Best of the Best Award at the UGA Trial Gardens! The deep indigo tubular flowers emerge from whorls of dark colored calyxes adorning tall dark spikes that are held above the rich green foliage and are produced from late spring or early summer to frost. Big Blue Salvia, a seed grown strain with the same parentage of and is an improvement upon the award winning Indigo Spires, develops into a full bushy herbaceous perennial growing to about 2-3' high by 2' wide. The summerlong display of flowers attracts a myriad of pollinators and highly popular with larger native bees. Use Big Blue Salvia at the back of the border, in larger containers, as well as in the garden and landscape. Provide a full to mostly sunny site in a fertile, average moist soil with average or better drainage for optimum vigor and continuous flowering. Images courtesy of Ball Horticulture, Inc., all rights reserved. Item# 12876

USDA Cold Hardiness Zones: 8,9,10,11,(7?)

Grows To: 2-3'H x 2'W

Outdoor Light: Full sun, Mostly sunny, Part shade

Huge 4-6" bright yellow, green-eyed daisies are held on4-6'+ sturdy stems and produce an extended summer display. A reliable and vigorous clump forming perennial that is adored by butterflies and pollinators of all shapes and sizes. The rich green deeply cut foliage is disease and pest resistant. Deadhead spent flowers to extend the flowering season well into fall. Appreciates ample moisture when in growth. One of our favorites! Item# 9366.

The dense spikes of bicolor mahogany and yellow pea-like flowers lighten into yellow as they age creating an orangish overall effect from a distance and are produced in mid to late spring to early summer depending on your zone. The flowers attract mainly bees. Honey Roasted Baptisia or False Indigo, a hybrid cultivar of US native species (a.k.a. nativar), is a vigorous, heavy and early flowering selection of this clump forming perennial growing to about 36-42"H x 42-48"W. Baptisias are easy and low-maintenance, deer resistant, long-lived, taprooted perennials that produce more and more flowering spikes with each passing year with some plants producing over a 100 spikes on mature plants. Considered a must for the cutflower garden as the spikes have an excellent vase life. Provide them with a full to mostly sunny site in a soil with average or better drainage and moderate fertility. Images courtesy of Walter's Gardens, Inc., all rights reserved. Item# 12898

Swollen clusters of bright yellow, fragrant flowers of borne from spring to fall on this vigorous growing Butterfly Bush. Honeycomb is probably our favorite yellow flowered Buddleja. Be sure to give it room it is a vigorous growing plant! Item # 968.

Perennial of the Year in 2016, Missouri Botanic Gardens Plant of Merit, and a RHS Award of Garden Merit winner! As per Allan Armitage's Herbaceous Perennial Plants, 4th Edition "It has graced European gardens since the beginning of the American Civil War and is still the most popular and highly sought after white anemone today.". The clusters of 2-3" wide, pure white, upward facing flowers with yellow eyes are held high above the mass of deep green foliage on sturdy wiry, 3-4' high stems in fall. The flowers of this easy heirloom attract bees and other pollinators. Honorine Jobert Anemone is an easy to grow, clump forming, slowly spreading, shade tolerant perennial whose mass of 12" high, medium textured, deep green, Astilbe-like foliage makes a nice accent or groundcover even when the plants are not in flower. Anemones make good companions for spring flowering bulbs. Tough, easy, and reliable. Tolerant of *full sun in cool summer climates, elsewhere provide midday and afternoon shade or filtered shade. Provide an average moist, well-drained, fertile soil for optimum flowering and vigor. Images courtesy of Walter's Gardens, Inc., all rights reserved. Item# 12778

Clusters of light pink, tubular to funnel-shaped flowers may be produced from summer into fall on mature plants and are held against a foil of golden yellow to cream and green variegated foliage. The flowers attract bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds. Hopley's Glossy Abelia, also offered under trademarked names, is a naturally compact and rounded, small to medium-sized, evergreen to semi-evergreen tough and easy shrub that can be utilized for its brightly contrasting foliage as a specimen plant, as an informal hedge, as well as in containers. Abelias are exceptionally tough, easy, and reliable shrubs that are deer reistant as well as moderately drought resistant once fully established. Provide a full sun to partly shaded site in an average moist, average to well-drained, fertile soil for optimum vigor and flowering. An RHS Award of Garden Merit winner. Item# 9006

A sterile exceptionally free flowering Lantana with a compact well-branched habit and improved vigor over similar cultivars that has received high marks in trials across the US. Hot Blooded™ Red Lantana produces rounded clusters of flowers that open golden yellow, deepen to fiery orange and quickly darken to deep brilliant red. The compact habit lends this Lantana for use in containers as a specimen or in combinations as well as in formal and informal garden and landscape settings. Hot Blooded™ Red Lantana develops into a rounded mound of foliage covered in flowers from spring to fall and the flowers attract a wide variety of pollinators including hummingbirds, butterflies, bees, and other garden beneficials. Item# 12105

Spikes of red lipped, pure white or occasionally solid red, two-lipped tubular flowers are produced continuously from spring to fall on this durable drought and heat resistant perennial salvia. Hot Lips Salvia develops into a mounding upright to spreading plant that loves the heat and sun. It is considered a hybrid by some but most experts consider it to be a selection of Littleleaf Sage, S. microphylla. Its bicolor flowers attract a variety of pollinators including hummingbirds, butterflies, and larger bees. Provide a full to mostly sunny site in a fertile well-draining soil for optimum vigor and flower power. In areas that experience hard freezes plant this Salvia out between early spring to midsummer to ensure winter survival. Hot Lips Salvia was selected as a Royal Horticulture Society Award of Garden Merit Winner for 2015. Item# 3002

The conical flower clusters are composed of numerous fragrant purple flowers that are held against a contrasting foil of golden yellow foliage and attract a variety of pollinators from summer into fall. HUMDINGER® Gold Drop Butterfly Bush is heavier flowering, has better foliage color, and has a more compact habit than its predecessor Little Nugget. This is a deciduous to semi-evergreen shrub, to die-back perennial in zone 5-6, with a densely branching compact, naturallly rounded habit that matures to about 3'H x 3-4'W. The fragrant purple flowers attract butterflies, bees, hummingbirds, and other garden beneficals. The HUMDINGER® series of Butterfly Bushes were selected for their compact habit and excellent flower power lending them to use both in the garden and landscape as well as in containers. Provide a well-drained soil in a full to mostly sunny site for optimum vigor and flowering. Images courtesy of Walter's Gardens, Inc., all rights reserved. Item# 12901

Dense spikes of fragrant white flowers nearly cover up this dense and compact selection of our native Summersweet and contrast nicely with its deep green foliage. The fragrant flowers attract loads of pollinators including bees, butterflies, and other garden beneficials. Hummingbird Clethra was selected for its exceptional flower power, as compared to other Clethras, as well as for its dense, compact, naturally rounded habit. Provide Clethras with a well-drained, wet to moist soil. The more direct sunlight you can provide the better the flower show tends to be. In hot summer climates provide shade to filtered shade during the hottest part of the day. Item# 11900

5" wide rounded clusters of pure white trumpet shaped flowers are held above the dark green mounds of strap-like foliage on short sturdy 24-30" high stems beginning in spring to early summer and continuing into early fall. Ice Angel™ Lily of the Nile or Agapanthus is a newly introduced vigorous hybrid with a medium sized vigorous habit with excellent flower power. It's still compact enough for colorful low-maintenance container specimens as well as adding a tropical feel to the garden and landscape. The flowers attract bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds and the plants are deer and rabbit resistant. Provide a full sun to part sun site in an average moist, fertile, well-draining soil for optimum vigor and flowering. Images courtesy of CND Nursery, all rights reserved. Item# 12297

Award winning flower power! Tall dense spikes of fuchsia to red foxglove flowers with contrasting orange, pale yellow, to cream colored throats that are overlaid with dark flecking and are produced from mid to late spring until fall attracting hummingbirds, bees, and other pollinators. Illumination™ Flame Digiplexis was the first of these now highly popular cross-generic hybrids between the tropical Canary Island Isoplexis (now classified as a Digitalis) and Digitalis purpurea producing a vigorous exceptionally free flowering hybrid. This is a rosette forming perennial with large medium-green quilted foliage that is resistant to rust and other foliar diseases common to typical Foxgloves. These new longer flowering hybrids can be added to the garden and landscape but also make showy container specimens. Illumination™ Flame Digiplexis is considered hardy in zone 8B-10, in colder climates it makes a worthy annual or it can be overwintered in a cool, brightly lit area preferably with direct sunlight. Images courtesy of Ball Horticulture, Inc., all rights reserved. Item# 12570

The bare winter stems are adorned with bright sunny yellow flowers in late winter and early spring attracting mainly bees as pollinators. Once the flowering season is finished this beautiful shrub is adorned with gold, yellow and deep green variegated foliage providing color until autumn when the foliage takes on purple tones until it falls away. The Dwarf Golden Variegated Korean Forsythia was first shared with us by the late great nurseryman Sherwood Aikens of Minden, Louisiana and after much research we believe this to be Forsythia viridissima var. koreana 'Ilwang'. We have also selected the cultivar Solid Gold with solid yellow foliage. This is an easy to grow, low maintenance, compact growing deciduous shrub with an arching, fountaining habit growing wider than tall and maxing out at about 3'H x 3-4'W. Its golden foliage can tolerate full sun but may lighten to cream and yellow but this does not appear to affect the plant's vigor it. Provide a fertile soil with average or better drainage and average moisture. Item# 401