Minnesota Native Minnesota Native Minnesota Native Why Spring Flowers: Mid-Summer Flowers: Late-Summer–Fall Flowers: Native ? American pasqueflower Fragrant hyssop Spotted joe pye weed (1/2–1ft tall) (2–4ft tall) (4–10ft tall) • Native plants are adapted to our climate, Anemone patens Agastache foeniculum Eutrochium maculatum so they require very little care once they are established.

• Many native plants grow long root systems. This makes them useful Wild columbine Butterfly weed Bottle gentian (1–3ft tall) (1–3ft tall) (1–2ft tall) for erosion control and makes many Aquilegia canadensis Asclepias tuberosa Gentiana andrewsii resistant to drought. • Many cultivars and hybrid plant

species produce very little, if any, nectar or pollen for pollinators. They Marsh marigold Common milkweed Maximilian sunflower have been bred by people for extra (1ft tall) (2–4ft tall) (4–8ft tall) Caltha palustris Asclepias syriaca Helianthus maximiliani petals or novel colors, not their benefit to pollinators. • Native plants are beautiful!

Wild geranium Yellow coneflower Rough blazing star You can see many of these native wildflowers (1–3ft tall) (3–5ft tall) (2–3ft tall) (and more!) in the prairie demonstration Geranium maculatum Ratibida pinnata aspera space around the Tiger and Toucan parking lots at the Minnesota Zoo!

Virginia waterleaf Purple prairie clover Dwarf blazing star Check out mnzoo.org/plantforpollinators (1–2ft tall) (1–3ft tall) (1–2ft tall) for more pollinator favorites! Hydrophyllum virginianum Dalea purpurea Liatris cylindracea

Prairie smoke Rattlesnake master Goldenrod (1ft tall) (3–5ft tall) (3–4ft tall) Geum triflorum Eryngium yuccifolium Solidago sp.

Wild lupine Wild bergamot Smooth blue aster (1–2ft tall) (2–5ft tall) (1–3ft tall) Lupinus perennis Monarda fistulosa Symphyotrichum laevis

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pollinators Full Sun Wet to your garden Partial Sun Moderate

3. Meadow Blazing Star Shade Dry Liatris ligulistylis (3–5 feet tall) Blooms Late Summer to Early Fall This is the preferred plant for monarch butterflies in late August and September as they load up on energy before migrating to Mexico for the winter.

• Plant wildflowers native to your region. • Choose a variety of plants that bloom from 1. Rose (swamp) Milkweed spring to fall. Asclepias incarnata (2–4 feet tall) Blooms mid-summer 4. Black-eyed Susan • Avoid pesticides and avoid purchasing plants that have been treated with They thrive in a variety of soil types, particularly moister soils Rudbeckia hirta (1–3 feet tall) pesticides. Ask your garden store for and are a caterpillar host for Monarchs. The clusters of pink Blooms June through September Plant for flowers will attract many pollinator species. Black-eyed susan is an iconic plant and an important food pesticide-free plants. source for many butterflies and bees. They can thrive in a • Choose plants of different heights. Pollinators variety of soil types. • Choose plants that provide food for butterfly caterpillars. For example, monarch caterpillars can only eat milkweed. Bees, butterflies and other animals pollinate most wild plants, as well as at least a third of our food. Pollinators have been declining due to For more resources about gardening for pollinators and to learn more about Minnesota Zoo’s work to save habitat loss and the lack of nectar and pollen butterflies visit mnzoo.org/savebutterflies resources. Minnesota Zoo scientists are working with many partners to save Minnesota’s endangered prairie 2. Purple Coneflower butterflies. We are breeding butterflies at the Zoo Echinacea sp. (3–4 feet tall) 5. New England Aster and studying reasons for their decline in the wild. Blooms mid-summer Symphyotrichum novae-angliae (1–4 feet) Purple coneflowers are rich nectar and pollen sources for Blooms Autumn You can make a difference in your own garden. pollinators. Narrow- purple coneflower (E. angustifolia) Bright purple flowers make New England asters one of the is native to western Minnesota prairies. The most commonly Printed on recycled paper. No matter how large, pollinator gardens with sold species is purple coneflower (E. purpurea), but it is not most striking plants of fall. It is loved by almost all pollinators native plants can have a huge impact! and is a host plant for crescent butterflies. actually native to Minnesota.

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