Winterberry
Ilex verticillata
Nectar and pollen for the garden — it draws pollinators, native bees, and songbirds as it flowers in Jun and Jul.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 5–10 ft
- Blooms Jun–Jul
Indiana · Zones 5–7
Native Pollinator Plants in Indiana
Native plants that turn a yard into a season-long buffet for bees, butterflies, and the insects that keep the food web running. For Indiana, the right natives are shaped by Eastern Corn Belt Plains & oak savanna and a humid continental climate. Every species below, from Winterberry and Serviceberry to the rest of the list, is genuinely native to Indiana and the wider flora of the Midwest and hardy through zones 5–7. A garden that feeds pollinators all season needs something in bloom from the first warm days of spring through the last of fall. Aim for at least three species flowering at any given time, plant in generous drifts of one kind rather than singletons so foragers can work efficiently, and leave seed heads and hollow stems standing over winter to shelter the next generation.
The plants
56 native species for Indiana
Each one native to your region and hardy in zones 5–7 · see this collection in other states.
Serviceberry
Amelanchier canadensis
Nectar and pollen for the garden — it draws pollinators, butterflies, and native bees right through when it flowers in Apr and May.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 15–25 ft
- Blooms Apr–May
Trumpet Honeysuckle
Lonicera sempervirens
A reliable nectar stop — it draws pollinators, hummingbirds, and butterflies as it blooms Apr through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 8–15 ft
- Blooms Apr–Sep
Flowering Dogwood
Cornus florida
A reliable nectar stop — it draws pollinators, butterflies, and native bees right through when it flowers in Apr and May.
- Part shade
- Average
- 15–25 ft
- Blooms Apr–May
Dense Blazing Star
Liatris spicata
A reliable nectar stop — it draws pollinators, butterflies, and native bees right through when it flowers in Jul and Aug.
- Full sun
- Average–wet
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Jul–Aug
Wild Columbine
Aquilegia canadensis
Keeps pollinators fed — it draws pollinators, hummingbirds, and native bees right through when it blooms Apr through Jun.
- Part shade
- Dry–average
- 1–2.5 ft
- Blooms Apr–Jun
Great Blue Lobelia
Lobelia siphilitica
A reliable nectar stop — it draws pollinators, hummingbirds, and butterflies right through when it flowers in Aug and Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 2–3 ft
- Blooms Aug–Sep
Foamflower
Tiarella cordifolia
A reliable nectar stop — it draws pollinators and native bees as it flowers in Apr and May.
- Part shade
- Average
- 6–12 in
- Blooms Apr–May
Aromatic Aster
Symphyotrichum oblongifolium
Keeps pollinators fed — it draws pollinators, butterflies, and native bees while it blooms Sep through Nov.
- Full sun
- Dry
- 1.5–2.5 ft
- Blooms Sep–Nov
Anise Hyssop
Agastache foeniculum
A reliable nectar stop — it draws pollinators, hummingbirds, and butterflies while it blooms Jun through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Jun–Sep
Cardinal Flower
Lobelia cardinalis
Keeps pollinators fed — it draws pollinators, hummingbirds, and butterflies right through when it blooms Jul through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Jul–Sep
Lanceleaf Coreopsis
Coreopsis lanceolata
Keeps pollinators fed — it draws pollinators, butterflies, and native bees right through when it blooms May through Jul.
- Full sun
- Dry–average
- 1.5–2 ft
- Blooms May–Jul
Eastern Redbud
Cercis canadensis
A reliable nectar stop — it draws pollinators, butterflies, and native bees right through when it flowers in Mar and Apr.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 20–30 ft
- Blooms Mar–Apr
Virginia Bluebells
Mertensia virginica
Keeps pollinators fed — it draws pollinators, hummingbirds, and native bees right through when it blooms Mar through May.
- Part shade
- Average–wet
- 1–2 ft
- Blooms Mar–May
Obedient Plant
Physostegia virginiana
A reliable nectar stop — it draws pollinators, hummingbirds, and butterflies while it flowers in Aug and Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Aug–Sep
Woodland Phlox
Phlox divaricata
Works hard for pollinators — it draws pollinators, hummingbirds, and butterflies as it flowers in Apr and May.
- Part shade
- Average
- 10–15 in
- Blooms Apr–May
Buttonbush
Cephalanthus occidentalis
Keeps pollinators fed — it draws pollinators, hummingbirds, and butterflies while it blooms Jun through Aug.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 5–10 ft
- Blooms Jun–Aug
Swamp Milkweed
Asclepias incarnata
Keeps pollinators fed — it draws pollinators, butterflies, and native bees while it flowers in Jul and Aug.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 3–4 ft
- Blooms Jul–Aug
Maximilian Sunflower
Helianthus maximiliani
Keeps pollinators fed — it draws pollinators, butterflies, and native bees while it blooms Aug through Oct.
- Full sun
- Dry–average
- 5–8 ft
- Blooms Aug–Oct
Short-Toothed Mountain Mint
Pycnanthemum muticum
Works hard for pollinators — it draws pollinators, butterflies, and native bees as it blooms Jul through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 2–3 ft
- Blooms Jul–Sep
Arrowwood Viburnum
Viburnum dentatum
A reliable nectar stop — it draws pollinators, butterflies, and native bees while it flowers in May and Jun.
- Sun to shade
- Average–wet
- 6–10 ft
- Blooms May–Jun
Showy Goldenrod
Solidago speciosa
A reliable nectar stop — it draws pollinators, butterflies, and native bees right through when it flowers in Sep and Oct.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Sep–Oct
Cup Plant
Silphium perfoliatum
Works hard for pollinators — it draws pollinators, butterflies, and native bees right through when it blooms Jul through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 5–8 ft
- Blooms Jul–Sep
Butterfly Weed
Asclepias tuberosa
Keeps pollinators fed — it draws pollinators, butterflies, and native bees while it blooms Jun through Aug.
- Full sun
- Dry
- 1.5–2.5 ft
- Blooms Jun–Aug
32 more also qualify: Wild Bergamot, Scarlet Beebalm, Prairie Smoke, Golden Alexanders, Purple Coneflower, Wild Geranium, Common Yarrow, Foxglove Beardtongue, Black-Eyed Susan, Culver's Root, Pasque Flower, New England Aster, Spotted Joe-Pye Weed, Smooth Hydrangea, Prairie Blazing Star, Common Milkweed, Bearberry, Compass Plant, Purple Prairie Clover, Wild Ginger, Stiff Goldenrod, Wild Lupine, Creeping Phlox, Ninebark, American Elderberry, Fragrant Sumac, Blue Vervain, Red-Twig Dogwood, New Jersey Tea, Rattlesnake Master, Spicebush, Common Boneset.
Sourcing
Where to find these in Indiana
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.