Attracts Pollinators

Native plants attract pollinators. Many people are not aware that most native bees are not the familiar fuzzy yellow and black bumblebees or the yellow-banded honeybees we typically think of. In fact, most native bees do not live in colonies but rather live out solitary lives burrowing in the soil, or in hollow plant stems or tree holes. In Illinois there are more than 225 native bee species that range in size from just a few millimeters to 1.5 inches. Our native bees, which don’t sting unless stepped on by accident, have developed specific life-cycle relationships with native plants. Because of these associations and their efficiency as pollinators, native bees are extremely important to native wildflowers. Below are plants that attract pollinators.