Wild Geranium
Geranium maculatum
Keeps pollinators fed — it draws pollinators, native bees, and specialist bees while it blooms Apr through Jun.
- Part shade
- Average
- 1.5–2 ft
- Blooms Apr–Jun
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- Pollinators
Rhode Island · Zones 6–7
Native Pollinator Plants in Rhode Island
Native plants that turn a yard into a season-long buffet for bees, butterflies, and the insects that keep the food web running. Rhode Island sits in a landscape of Narragansett coastal lowland, and the natives that thrive here are the ones built for its cool, humid, maritime character. The list below — led by Wild Geranium and Golden Alexanders — is filtered to species genuinely native to Rhode Island and the wider flora of the Northeast and hardy through zones 6–7. 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
48 native species for Rhode Island
Each one native to your region and hardy in zones 6–7 · see this collection in other states.
Golden Alexanders
Zizia aurea
Nectar and pollen for the garden — it draws pollinators, butterflies, and native bees while it blooms Apr through Jun.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 1.5–2.5 ft
- Blooms Apr–Jun
Wild Bleeding Heart
Dicentra eximia
Works hard for pollinators — it draws pollinators, hummingbirds, and native bees while it blooms Apr through Aug.
- Part shade
- Average
- 12–18 in
- Blooms Apr–Aug
Lanceleaf Coreopsis
Coreopsis lanceolata
Works hard for pollinators — it draws pollinators, butterflies, and native bees while it blooms May through Jul.
- Full sun
- Dry–average
- 1.5–2 ft
- Blooms May–Jul
Foxglove Beardtongue
Penstemon digitalis
A reliable nectar stop — it draws pollinators, hummingbirds, and native bees as it flowers in May and Jun.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms May–Jun
Great Blue Lobelia
Lobelia siphilitica
A reliable nectar stop — it draws pollinators, hummingbirds, and butterflies as it flowers in Aug and Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 2–3 ft
- Blooms Aug–Sep
Swamp Milkweed
Asclepias incarnata
A reliable nectar stop — 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
Woodland Phlox
Phlox divaricata
Nectar and pollen for the garden — it draws pollinators, hummingbirds, and butterflies as it flowers in Apr and May.
- Part shade
- Average
- 10–15 in
- Blooms Apr–May
Virginia Bluebells
Mertensia virginica
A reliable nectar stop — it draws pollinators, hummingbirds, and native bees while it blooms Mar through May.
- Part shade
- Average–wet
- 1–2 ft
- Blooms Mar–May
Black-Eyed Susan
Rudbeckia hirta
Works hard for pollinators — it draws pollinators, butterflies, and native bees as it blooms Jun through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 1.5–3 ft
- Blooms Jun–Sep
Smooth Hydrangea
Hydrangea arborescens
Works hard for pollinators — it draws pollinators and native bees while it blooms Jun through Aug.
- Part shade
- Average
- 3–5 ft
- Blooms Jun–Aug
Purple Coneflower
Echinacea purpurea
A pollinator magnet — it draws pollinators, butterflies, and native bees as it blooms Jun through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Jun–Sep
Buttonbush
Cephalanthus occidentalis
A reliable nectar stop — it draws pollinators, hummingbirds, and butterflies while it blooms Jun through Aug.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 5–10 ft
- Blooms Jun–Aug
Dense Blazing Star
Liatris spicata
Keeps pollinators fed — 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
Serviceberry
Amelanchier canadensis
Works hard for pollinators — it draws pollinators, butterflies, and native bees while it flowers in Apr and May.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 15–25 ft
- Blooms Apr–May
Trumpet Honeysuckle
Lonicera sempervirens
Keeps pollinators fed — it draws pollinators, hummingbirds, and butterflies as it blooms Apr through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 8–15 ft
- Blooms Apr–Sep
Winterberry
Ilex verticillata
Keeps pollinators fed — it draws pollinators, native bees, and songbirds right through when it flowers in Jun and Jul.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 5–10 ft
- Blooms Jun–Jul
Wild Bergamot
Monarda fistulosa
Works hard for pollinators — it draws pollinators, hummingbirds, and butterflies as it blooms Jun through Aug.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Jun–Aug
New England Aster
Symphyotrichum novae-angliae
Keeps pollinators fed — it draws pollinators, butterflies, and native bees right through when it flowers in Sep and Oct.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 3–5 ft
- Blooms Sep–Oct
Arrowwood Viburnum
Viburnum dentatum
A reliable nectar stop — it draws pollinators, butterflies, and native bees right through when it flowers in May and Jun.
- Sun to shade
- Average–wet
- 6–10 ft
- Blooms May–Jun
Spotted Joe-Pye Weed
Eutrochium maculatum
Works hard for pollinators — it draws pollinators, butterflies, and native bees as it blooms Jul through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 4–7 ft
- Blooms Jul–Sep
Scarlet Beebalm
Monarda didyma
Works hard for pollinators — it draws pollinators, hummingbirds, and butterflies while it flowers in Jul and Aug.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 2.5–4 ft
- Blooms Jul–Aug
Culver's Root
Veronicastrum virginicum
Nectar and pollen for the garden — it draws pollinators, butterflies, and native bees right through when it blooms Jun through Aug.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 3–5 ft
- Blooms Jun–Aug
Foamflower
Tiarella cordifolia
Keeps pollinators fed — it draws pollinators and native bees right through when it flowers in Apr and May.
- Part shade
- Average
- 6–12 in
- Blooms Apr–May
24 more also qualify: Flowering Dogwood, Butterfly Weed, Common Yarrow, Anise Hyssop, Obedient Plant, Wild Columbine, Short-Toothed Mountain Mint, Cardinal Flower, Eastern Redbud, Showy Goldenrod, American Elderberry, Spicebush, Red-Twig Dogwood, Inkberry Holly, Common Boneset, New Jersey Tea, Wild Lupine, Fragrant Sumac, Common Milkweed, Wild Ginger, Creeping Phlox, Ninebark, Bearberry, Blue Vervain.
Sourcing
Where to find these in Rhode Island
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.