Pollinator/bird friendly plants for the Finger Lakes
- Finger Lakes Native Plant Society. Explore find native plant profiles and native plants of garden interest.
- Habitat Gardening in Central New York. This is the Syracuse Chapter of Wild Ones.There resources include a free including an annual 2020 Native Plant Shopping Guide, a six-part on-line discussion course called Caring for Our Piece of the Earth and many other book suggestions, readings and more.
- Planting for the birds-Audubon Society. Put in your zip code and they will send you a list of plants for your area that can be used to support birds.
- Planting for pollinators and insects. Excellent science-based group that has recently been developing clear and concise tools for people in any environment (site assessment, plant lists etc.) to help pollinators.
- Native Plant Trust. A classic and revered group,They also offer classes, articles and more.
Basic Finger Lakes Native Perennials for Pollinators/Birds
Plant List of some local, native perennials for folks beginning to garden for pollinators and birds around Ithaca. If you have space, there are also many wonderful shrubs & small and large trees. Look these up in the resources below to see how much sun, moisture and what type of soil they need.
Early blooming – Golden Alexanders (Zizia aurea); Cranesbill-Wild Geranium (Geranium maculatum);
Mid-season Blooming – Milkweeds: Swamp Milkweed (Asclepias incarnata), Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca), Butterfly Milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa) ; and Wild Bergamot (Monarda fistulosa); Bee Balm (Monarda didyma); Foxglove Beardtongue (Penstemon digitalis); Hairy Beardtongue (Penstemon hirsutis).
Mid-late season Blooming– Cardinal Flower (Lobelia cardinalis), Great Blue Lobelia (Lobelia siphilitica); Cutleaf Coneflower (Rudbeckia lanciniata)
Late season Blooming– New England Aster (Symphotrichum novae-angliae); Goldenrod spp. e.g. (Solidago flexicaulis or Solidago caesia); Sneezeweed (Helenium autumnale).
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