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Our Plants

1 / Wild Bergamot (Bee Balm)

  • Scientific name: Monarda

  • Hummingbirds, bees, butterflies

  • 2-4 feet tall

  • Plant in spring or fall

  • Full sun

  • Spreads rapidly through rhizomes (underground stems)

  • Maintenance: after first frost in the fall- leave seed heads for birds or cut plant back to 2 inches above the soil

  • Perennial

2 / Eastern Hemlock Tree

  • Planted beside garden

  • State tree of Pennsylvania

3 / Dill

  • Scientific name: Anethum graveolens

  • Insects and bees, host plant of black swallowtail butterfly

  • 2-3 feet tall

  • Plant in spring or after frost is unlikely

  • Full sun

  • Spreads through the spreading of seeds by the wind

  • Maintenance: picking blooms off will provide for the longest supply of dill. Collect seeds at the beginning of fall to control spread 

  • Annual or biennial

4 / Ohio Spiderwort

  • Scientific name: Tradescantia ohiensis

  • Bumble bees, carpenter bees, butterflies

  • 2-3 feet tall

  • Plant in fall or early spring

  • Partial shade - moist soil

  • Self-seeding perennial, also spreads by offshoots

  • Maintenance: cut back 6-12 inches in mid-summer to allow for fresh growth, divide clumps if area gets overcrowded

  • Perennial

5 / Butterfly Bush

  • Scientific name: Buddleja

  • Bees, hummingbirds, butterflies

  • 6-10 feet tall

  • Early spring or fall

  • Full sun

  • Seeds travel by wind

  • Maintenance: Deadhead in spring and summer

  • Perennial

6 / Zinnias

  • Scientific name: Zinnia

  • Monarchs, swallowtails, hummingbirds, bees

  • 4 feet tall

  • Late spring/ after frost

  • Full sun

  • Will reseed naturally

  • Maintenance: deadhead once fully bloomed

  • Annual

7 / Anise Hyssop

  • Scientific name: Agastache foeniculum

  • Bees, butterflies, beetles

  • 2-4 feet tall

  • Plant in the spring after last frost

  • Full sun

  • Spread by rhizomes

  • Maintenance: trim back in early spring/deadhead

  • Perennial

8 / Basil

  • Scientific name: Ocimum basilicum

  • Butterflies and honeybees

  • 12- 24 inches tall

  • Plant 2 weeks after the last spring frost

  • Full sun

  • Spread by seeds or cuttings

  • Maintenance: remove flower buds

  • Annual

9 / Lavender

  • Scientific name: Lavandula

  • Bumble bees and honey bees

  • 20-24 inches tall

  • Plant in early spring

  • Full sun

  • Spread by vegetation growth or seed dispersal

  • Maintenance: prune each year immediately after bloom

  • Perennial 

10 / Mint

  • Scientific name: Mentha

  • Butterflies and some bees

  • 1 or 2 feet tall

  • Plant in spring after the last frost

  • Spreads by rhizomes or roots

  • Maintenance: pinch off stems regularly to harvest and keep moist

  • Perennial

11 / Daisy

  • Scientific name: Bellis Perennis

  • Bees and butterflies

  • 9 inches to four feet tall

  • Plant in spring or fall

  • Spreads by seeds carried by animals or the wind

  • Maintenance: separate plant when it gets too big or takes over

  • Perennial

12 / Milkweed

  • Scientific name: Asclepias 

  • Host plant for monarch butterflies, bees, and other butterflies

  • 5 feet tall

  • Fall or early springtime

  • Maintenance: deadheading

  • Perennial

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