Virginia Bluebells
Mertensia virginica
One the bees find first — feeds the specialist bees that depend on it, along with hummingbirds and native bees; reaching 1–2 ft, it blooms Mar through May.
- Part shade
- Average–wet
- 1–2 ft
- Blooms Mar–May
Minnesota · Zones 3–5
Native Plants for Bees in Minnesota
The native flowers that feed honey bees, bumblebees, and the hundreds of solitary native bees most gardeners never notice. Minnesota sits in a landscape of Northern tallgrass prairie & North Woods, and the natives that thrive here are the ones built for its cold continental character. The list below — led by Virginia Bluebells and Anise Hyssop — is filtered to species genuinely native to Minnesota and the wider flora of the Midwest and hardy through zones 3–5. Most of our native bees are solitary and unfussy, but they depend on a steady supply of pollen-rich, single (not double) flowers. Open daisy and umbel shapes are easiest for short-tongued bees, while tubular flowers reward the long-tongued bumblebees. Skip pesticides entirely and leave some bare, undisturbed ground and pithy stems where ground- and stem-nesting bees raise their young.
The plants
56 native species for Minnesota
Each one native to your region and hardy in zones 3–5 · see this collection in other states.
Anise Hyssop
Agastache foeniculum
Bee fuel — pollen-rich, single flowers — feeds native bees, hummingbirds, and butterflies; for sand, rocky, and loam ground, it blooms Jun through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Jun–Sep
Wild Bergamot
Monarda fistulosa
One the bees find first — feeds the specialist bees that depend on it, along with hummingbirds and butterflies — happy in clay, rocky, and loam soil, blooming from Jun to Aug.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Jun–Aug
Great Blue Lobelia
Lobelia siphilitica
Pollen-rich and bee-friendly — feeds native bees, hummingbirds, and butterflies — cold-hardy to zone 4, blooming in Aug and Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 2–3 ft
- Blooms Aug–Sep
Foxglove Beardtongue
Penstemon digitalis
One the bees find first — feeds the specialist bees that depend on it, along with hummingbirds and native bees, good through zone 8 and flowering in May and Jun.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms May–Jun
Flowering Dogwood
Cornus florida
Bee fuel — pollen-rich, single flowers — feeds native bees and butterflies; happy in loam soil, it flowers in Apr and May.
- Part shade
- Average
- 15–25 ft
- Blooms Apr–May
Swamp Milkweed
Asclepias incarnata
Bee fuel — pollen-rich, single flowers — feeds native bees and butterflies — 2–3 ft wide, blooming in Jul and Aug.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 3–4 ft
- Blooms Jul–Aug
Lanceleaf Coreopsis
Coreopsis lanceolata
Bee fuel — pollen-rich, single flowers — feeds native bees and butterflies; for sand, rocky, and loam ground, it blooms May through Jul.
- Full sun
- Dry–average
- 1.5–2 ft
- Blooms May–Jul
Winterberry
Ilex verticillata
One the bees find first — feeds native bees; reaching 5–10 ft, it flowers in Jun and Jul.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 5–10 ft
- Blooms Jun–Jul
Purple Coneflower
Echinacea purpurea
Bee fuel — pollen-rich, single flowers — feeds native bees and butterflies, good through zone 9 and flowering from Jun to Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Jun–Sep
Showy Goldenrod
Solidago speciosa
A bee plant first and foremost — feeds the specialist bees that depend on it, along with butterflies and native bees; for sand, rocky, and loam ground, it flowers in Sep and Oct.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Sep–Oct
Golden Alexanders
Zizia aurea
One the bees find first — feeds the specialist bees that depend on it, along with butterflies and native bees, happy in clay and loam soil and flowering from Apr to Jun.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 1.5–2.5 ft
- Blooms Apr–Jun
Eastern Redbud
Cercis canadensis
One the bees find first — feeds the specialist bees that depend on it, along with butterflies and native bees; 20–30 ft tall, it flowers in Mar and Apr.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 20–30 ft
- Blooms Mar–Apr
Aromatic Aster
Symphyotrichum oblongifolium
A bee plant first and foremost — feeds native bees and butterflies — 2–3 ft wide, blooming from Sep to Nov.
- Full sun
- Dry
- 1.5–2.5 ft
- Blooms Sep–Nov
Common Yarrow
Achillea millefolium
One the bees find first — feeds the specialist bees that depend on it, along with butterflies and native bees; for sand, clay, rocky, and loam ground, it blooms May through Aug.
- Full sun
- Dry–average
- 1.5–3 ft
- Blooms May–Aug
New England Aster
Symphyotrichum novae-angliae
A bee plant first and foremost — feeds the specialist bees that depend on it, along with butterflies and native bees; happy in clay and loam soil, it flowers in Sep and Oct.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 3–5 ft
- Blooms Sep–Oct
Obedient Plant
Physostegia virginiana
Bee fuel — pollen-rich, single flowers — feeds native bees, hummingbirds, and butterflies — pink flowers, blooming in Aug and Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Aug–Sep
Culver's Root
Veronicastrum virginicum
A bee plant first and foremost — feeds the specialist bees that depend on it, along with butterflies and native bees — spreading 1.5–2 ft, blooming from Jun to Aug.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 3–5 ft
- Blooms Jun–Aug
Cup Plant
Silphium perfoliatum
One the bees find first — feeds native bees and butterflies; yellow flowers, it blooms Jul through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 5–8 ft
- Blooms Jul–Sep
Wild Columbine
Aquilegia canadensis
Bee fuel — pollen-rich, single flowers — feeds the specialist bees that depend on it, along with hummingbirds and native bees; happy in rocky and loam soil, it blooms Apr through Jun.
- Part shade
- Dry–average
- 1–2.5 ft
- Blooms Apr–Jun
Butterfly Weed
Asclepias tuberosa
One the bees find first — feeds native bees and butterflies — vivid orange flowers, blooming from Jun to Aug.
- Full sun
- Dry
- 1.5–2.5 ft
- Blooms Jun–Aug
Maximilian Sunflower
Helianthus maximiliani
One the bees find first — feeds native bees and butterflies — spreading 2–4 ft, blooming from Aug to Oct.
- Full sun
- Dry–average
- 5–8 ft
- Blooms Aug–Oct
Arrowwood Viburnum
Viburnum dentatum
A bee plant first and foremost — feeds native bees and butterflies, good through zone 8 and flowering in May and Jun.
- Sun to shade
- Average–wet
- 6–10 ft
- Blooms May–Jun
Short-Toothed Mountain Mint
Pycnanthemum muticum
Pollen-rich and bee-friendly — feeds the specialist bees that depend on it, along with butterflies and native bees — silvery bracts flowers, blooming from Jul to Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 2–3 ft
- Blooms Jul–Sep
32 more also qualify: Black-Eyed Susan, Scarlet Beebalm, Wild Geranium, Buttonbush, Dense Blazing Star, Woodland Phlox, Pasque Flower, Chocolate Flower, Prairie Smoke, Blanketflower, Spotted Joe-Pye Weed, Prairie Blazing Star, Smooth Hydrangea, Serviceberry, Foamflower, Ninebark, Showy Milkweed, Compass Plant, Blue Vervain, Wild Lupine, Bearberry, New Jersey Tea, Common Milkweed, Stiff Goldenrod, Rattlesnake Master, Red-Twig Dogwood, American Elderberry, Creeping Phlox, Spicebush, Common Boneset, Fragrant Sumac, Purple Prairie Clover.
Sourcing
Where to find these in Minnesota
Seeds & live plants on Amazon
Seed packets, plugs, and starter plants for many of these species ship to your door.
Browse on AmazonSome links here are affiliate links — we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. The surest source of locally-adapted stock is a native-plant nursery or a native plant society sale in your area.