Here in West Michigan, the “Butterflies are Blooming” event at our local botanical garden is one of the biggest attractions every year in late winter. So, we thought, why not build a butterfly house right here at Garden Crossings? We love watching butterflies and grow many of the nectar and host plants they need, so
We’ve all heard the alarming statistics. We rely on pollinators for every third bite of food we eat. At least 75% of all the world’s flowering plants are pollinated by insects and animals. It can be overwhelming! Let’s bring that down that to a local level. What can YOU do in your own backyard to help pollinators feel welcome and wanted? Let’s focus on five things you can do right now, this season, to make an impact.
If a durable, lower maintenance landscape is what you’re seeking, you’ll find this list of reliable native shrubs and perennials helpful. We offer many cultivars of native plants (sometimes referred to as “nativars”) here at Garden Crossings, but we’ve selected these ten for their unique beauty and ease of growth. Find details about where they’ll
When creating a garden, it is important to not only design based on beauty and bloom time but also to include pollinator-friendly plants that will bring the butterflies and bees to your garden. There are a few plants that really stand out to me as my Top 5 must-have plants for a garden that is a pollinator’s dream come true.
Some plants are just better together—a concept that has given rise to the idea of companion planting. If you grow vegetables, you may be familiar with this term. There, companion planting is more about one plant attracting or deterring insects from the other or about plants creating physical support for one another. When it comes
When designing your garden, it’s important to consider elements like color, texture and shape, but don’t forget fragrance too. The sweet perfume of fragrant plants will enhance the way you experience your garden by engaging more of your senses, evoking memories tied to certain scents, and causing you to interact with your flowers more closely.
It’s late August in Michigan and as I am sitting here looking out my window into my garden, I’m seeing an incredible number of bees whizzing by while a beautiful yellow Eastern swallowtail butterfly hangs upside down to feed on my six-foot tall ‘Uchida’ lilies. I am blessed to welcome so many pollinators into my
