Container Gardens for Pollinators: Caitlin’s Picks

Caitlin Akkerhuis at our Merrifield location on Gallows road regularly designs some beautiful container gardens with native plants for pollinators! Read on for some inspiration when designing your own containers, or stop by the store and we can make one of these for you!

In this post, Caitlin has used the gorgeous naturally mossed Campo de’ Fiori containers, but you can easily make these more budget friendly by switching to a plastic or alternative container type.

5 Plant Container

This first container offers gentle colors in purples and whites.

  • Polemonium X ‘Bressingham Purple’ (Jacob’s Ladder)
  • Galium odoratum (Sweet Woodruff)
  • Asarum canadensis (Wild Ginger)
  • Viola labradorica
  • Lindernia grandiflora

3 Plant Container

A small container that packs a punch of color in reds and yellows.

  • Spigelia marilandica (Indian Pink)
  • Tiarella cordifolia (Foamflower)
  • Chrysogonum virginianum (Goldenstar or Green and Gold)

Butterfly Host Container, 8 Plants

This container packs a mighty punch with a number of larval host plants for native butterflies. Features the following:

  • Zizia aurea – Black Swallowtail host plant
  • Penstemon smalii – Common Buckeye host plant
  • Solidago rugosa ‘Fireworks’ – Wavy Lined Emerald host plant
  • Echinacea purpurea ‘Glowing Dream’
  • Asclepias tuberosa – Monarch Host
  • Agastache X ‘Kudos Mandarin’
  • Callirhoe invlucrata – Gray Hairstreak and Checkered Skipper host plant

4 Plant Container

This smaller container would work well on a tabletop or bench.

  • Aquilegia canadensis ‘Little Lanterns’ (Columbine)
  • Sisyrinchium angustifolium (Blue Eyed Grass)
  • Asclepias tuberosa (Milkweed – Monarch Host Plant)
  • Sedum ternatum (Stonecrop)

Small Container, 1 Plant

If you only have room for a touch of blooms, this container is a beautiful choice.

  • Achillea millefolium ‘Apple Blossom’