Possibly Fall's best landing pads of deliciousness
Bumbles
Skippers
Locust Borer (
Megacyllene robiniae)
Green Sweat Bee
More Bumbles
Honeybee from neighbor's hive
They might all want to watch out for this Ambush bug (subfamily
Phymatinae), which waits to prey on all of the
Goldenrod visitors!
Goldenrods provide a big flower show each year and any insect that needs pollen and nectar is sure to be found visiting.Today after a week of rain I stood in the garden and could see hundreds of insects stopping by their golden blooms! You can't ask for a better wildlife valuable plant when it comes to fall wildflowers and when you combine them with the ex-asters, you get beauty and happy pollinators.
xoxogil
PS If you want to
provide for fall pollinators you must plant landing pads of deliciousness like
Goldenrods and other wildflowers and you must never, ever, ever, ever, use pesticides in your garden. I mean never!
Gail Eichelberger is a gardener and therapist in Middle Tennessee. She loves wildflowers and native plants and thoroughly enjoys writing about the ones she grows at
Clay and Limestone. She reminds all that the words and images are the property of the author and cannot be used without written permission.
I enjoyed your post, Gail! I have several kinds of goldenrod, and it's a good thing, because they do not all bloom at the same time, and some are finished already. I just bought a couple showy goldenrods at our local arboretum plant sale, and got them planted in the front yard Friday. They remind me of the Wichita Mountain ones I have, but look to be more upright.
ReplyDeleteLovely!
ReplyDeleteHave a wonderful week!
Lea
Lovely to see all those pollinators!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful photos. I love goldenrod's reliability. Lives through the scourge of Texas summer and our eternal drought cycles. And you've got to admire any plant that can spread in packed clay over rock.
ReplyDeleteJust realized with this post that you're the Gail in the FB lynxie group. Small world.
Beautiful photos. I love goldenrod's reliability. Lives through the scourge of Texas summer and our eternal drought cycles. And you've got to admire any plant that can spread in packed clay over rock.
ReplyDeleteJust realized with this post that you're the Gail in the FB lynxie group. Small world.
Very nice, Gail :)
ReplyDeleteI have a couple of goldenrods in the garden - Solidago caesia, which is blooming prettily right now (although the leaves look stressed -- I think it wants more shade than I can give it) and S. sphacelata (which has nice foliage, but has barely bloomed this year...its first year in the garden -- hoping to get some nice flowers next year!)
Which are your favorite goldenrods?
Our golden rod is full of these lovely pollinators. Such fun to watch their business.
ReplyDeleteGorgeous. I was gone when most of my goldenrods were in full bloom, but I do love all the visitors they get. Thanks for sharing your beautiful pictures.
ReplyDeleteDelicious is right. Love these photos and that you take such good care of the pollinators. ~~Dee
ReplyDeleteThe Goldenrods are so beautiful. I've always been a big fan--even when people thought they caused allergies. Now we know--it's not true. They're great for pollinators and they're wonderful cut flowers, too. Your photos, as always, are fabulous.
ReplyDeleteAlways a treat to see your stunning photos of the visitors to your garden, Gail! All the goldenrod in my garden is volunteer, and while some garden purists might think of it as a weed, I think it is beautiful in the fall, especially paired with asters. Obviously, the pollinators think so, too.
ReplyDeleteOh my goodness Gail, you have really outdone yourself with these photos! They are just gorgeous. It's hard to say which I like the best, but maybe the skipper. Or the sweat bee. Or both.
ReplyDeleteSuch wonderful pictures of all the pollinators. It's nice to put names to the faces of the insects I sometimes see. I love goldenrod. We have a lot but its bloom time is so short. No wonder all the pollinators take advantage of it. My two honeybee hives are loaded with good stuff from the goldenrod. We can smell the very distinctive smell from 40 feet away. It's pretty cool! I don't know why goldenrod honey is so distinctive but it really is.
ReplyDeleteI think the season is done here for pollinators. Yours look so ravishing in their closeups.
ReplyDeleteI have a lot of goldenrod that blooms around the edges of the yard and keeps the pollinators quite happy during bloom time. Now most of it has past bloom, and all the buzzing noises have moved on to the asters.
ReplyDeleteFantastic close-up photos, especially the green sweat bee.
ReplyDeleteGail, thanks for the post on the goldenrods. Many people don't like this plant and consider it a weed. I have some in my yard and am happy to know I have a friend that is a goldenrod lover like me.
ReplyDelete