Pollinator Garden Pattern No. 9

Overview

These are two get along and live long plants. Their mounding habits and contrasting flowering colors create an impressionistic mood. In June the Salvia’s purple flowering spikes meet up and blend into the Coreopsis’s yellow/gold daisy flowers. Two plants that become one artistic moment. Plus the dark green, oblong foliage of the Salvia mixes so nicely with the soft, narrow, medium green foliage of the Coreopsis. You have a Van Gogh moment!!

Stewardship

There’s no need to dead head either of these plants! When the flowers of the Coreopsis fade the seed heads look like rusty nails, wonderfully contrasting the light green, finely cut foliage. In mid-July when the Salvia is finished flowering it will begin to re-bloom in early August. New flowering spikes coming right up through the old ones. Did you ever think plants could be so giving? The more you listen and observe their nature you will come to know who they are and how they live. Enabling you to create endless plant relationships. And have fun gardening! In March everything can be cut back with a string trimmer. Start cutting the plants from the top to the bottom, about 3 inches from the ground. Then you can mow everything with a mulching mower breaking the remnant plant material into smaller pieces.  

There’s your mulch!!

BUTTERFLIES, BIRDS AND POLLINATORS

The Coreopsis is super attracting native bees, native pollinating flies, moths and butterflies. Birds associating with Coreopsis are finches, Nuthatches, Chickadees and others. You can enhance this information by observing and documenting other birds that visit your garden. The Salvia’s are very beneficial for Bumble Bees and solitary bees. It’s often the best part of being alive to become aware of something you didn’t know that you didn’t know.

*These garden plans can be followed explicitly or adjusted to meet individual needs, unlocking rich perennial landscape designs for individualization and creativity.