The Birds and the Bees

[sidebar]Great Plant Picks is the Pacific Northwest’s premier plant educational program administered through the Elisabeth C. Miller Botanical Garden based in Seattle, Washington. www.greatplantpicks.org[/sidebar]

Buzzing, chirping, and the hum of wings beating 50 times per second—these are the sounds of wildlife that many gardeners want to attract to their gardens. The Great Plant Picks 2016 collection, The Birds & The Bees: Attracting Winged Fauna to the Garden, features a great selection of GPP perennials, vines, trees, conifers, and shrubs that thrive in the maritime Pacific Northwest and invite bees, butterflies, and birds—specifically hummingbirds—into the garden.

Crocus tommasinianus ‘Barr’s Purple’ splashes the garden with color and offers early season sustenance for bees. Photo: Richie Steffen, Great Plant Picks

BEES

The plight of bees is frequently in the news and many gardeners want to provide sustenance in the landscape for these amazing pollinators. As temperatures warm, bees emerge from their winter slumber looking for nourishment. Crocus are among the garden’s earliest blooming bu...