Question

what bio-diversity do you see in your garden

Answer 1

When most gardeners think of a biodiverse garden their thoughts tend towards a garden teeming with birds, butterflies, beneficial insects and other wildlife. Following are several ways you can increase wildlife in your garden and thereby increase its biodiversity. There are also ideas on how you can add to the genetic diversity of the plants in your garden.  By creating a biodiverse garden you are adding to its beauty as well as helping to heal the planet and preserve it for future generations.

Following each discussion are links to resources, such as factsheets and other websites that will help you delve deeper to achieve your objectives. Have fun adding to the biodiversity of your garden and enjoy nature's bounty and diversity.   1. Attract birds to your garden
For birds to visit or live in your garden they need food and shelter, so plant trees and shrubs that provide these. Native plants are excellent choices. And, remember, leaving the seed heads on herbaceous perennials, such as coneflowers, for the winter is a good thing. Put off your final cleanup until late winter or early spring.

Start with these Plants

Aquilegia canadensis
Columbine

Loved by hummingbirds.

Helianthus annus
Sunflower


Many birds will visit to eat the seeds.Echinacea purpurea
Purple coneflower

Leave spent flowers standing and birds will visit for seeds.Amelanchier arborea
Serviceberry


The fruit is loved by many birds.Malus cvs.
Crabapple

The fruit will be eaten by robins, cardinals and cedar waxwings.Juniperus virginiana
Red cedar


Don't forget plants for nesting and cover!The following resources provide excellent information to go further:
How do I Attract Hummingbirds?
Bird Gardening 2. Add a butterfly garden
Butterflies add color and movement to a garden. If you want the colorful adults that feed on nectar flowers, you also need plants the larvae can feed on. The Kemper factsheet linked below lists excellent larval and nectar plants. Also, don’t use chemical pesticides in your garden or the organic pesticide Bt, which can damage or kill butterfly larvae.

Plant these nectar plants - Perennials

Rudbeckia fulgida
Black-eyed Susan 


Easy to grow with a long flowering period.Liatris pycnostachya
Prairie blazing star


Another long-blooming plant with a dramatic spike of flowers.Coreopsis lanceolata
Lanceleaf coreopsis


Most plants in the aster family are very good for birds.Echinacea purpurea
Purple coneflower


A tough native plant that will readily re-seed.Buddleja davidii'Black Knight' 
Butterfly bush


A butterfly magnet!Asclepias tuberosa
Butterfly weed


A lovely plant essential for monarch butterflies.Monardabradburiana
Eastern beebalm


Attracts many pollinators including butterflies.Vernonia baldwinii
Western ironweed 

Late flowering and loved by butterflies.Symphyotrichumnovae-angliae 
New England aster


Aster family plants are very attractive to butterflies.Cephalanthus occidentalis
Buttonbush


Thrives in wet locations.

Plant these nectar plants - Annuals

Pentas lanceolata
Egyptian star flower


Flowers all summer and an easy annual to grow.Lantana camara
Lantana


Easy to grow with lots of flowers all summer long.Rudbeckia hirta
Black-eyed Susan


Easily grown as an annual and will perennialize.Zinnia
Zinnia


Quick to grow from seed. Cut a few flowers to enjoy indoors as well.

Plant these larval plants 

Parsley, dill and/or fennel
(Fennel pictured)


Plant lots so you also have foliage to feed some caterpillars!Asclepia syriaca
Common milkweed


Milkweeds are essential for monarch butterfly caterpillars.Lindera benzoin
Spicebush


Plant for the spicebush swallowtail butterflies.Quercus alba
White oak


An oak tree can support thousands of caterpillars!Aristolochia tomentosa
Dutchman's pipe


Plant to enjoy the pipe vine swallowtail butterfly.Ptelea trifoliata
Hop tree


Plant to enjoy the giant swallowtail butterfly.Betula nigra
River birch


Plant for the mourning cloak butterfly.Viola × wittrockiana 
Pansy


Plant pansies or let violets grow in your garden for the fritillary butterflies.To go further, explore these sources for more information and plant recommendations:

Butterfly Gardening
How do I Plant a Butterfly Garden? 
St. Louis Milkweed for Monarchs Program 3. Add a pollinator garden
There are many more pollinators other than honeybees but attracting honeybees is a good place to start. The Kemper factsheet (linked to below) will give the basics of bees. It also lists many plants that attract and support bees. How about becoming a beekeeper and raising bees? Also, why not expand your range and learn about the whole host of other pollinators? Explore the Pollinators.org website (linked to below) to learn more about pollinators and how to attract them. Beware of using pesticides in your garden. Honeybees and other pollinators are very sensitive to many insecticides.