Plants to attract pollinators in shade: bright flowers

Choosing plants that attract pollinating bees and butterflies is a fundamental part of sustainable gardening. Improving the range of creatures visiting our gardens is good for biodiversity and fascinating to watch

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<i>Mahonia</i> provides nectar for pollinators through the winter
Mahonia provides nectar for pollinators through the winter

Quick facts

  • Having a variety of flower types can attract more pollinators
  • Choosing plants that flower at different times of the year provides more opportunities for pollinators
  • Many insects are attracted to bright colours

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The planting plan

James Lawrence, RHS Principal Horticultural Advisor, has designed this simple, attractive, and most importantly, sustainable border design for a shady spot, which you can try at home with purple- and blue-flowered plants that are easy to grow, widely available and look good together.

Shade plants for pollinators with bright flowers

© James Lawrence

Choosing plants for pollinators

Pollinating insects are in decline, but there are plenty of flowering plants to help them. Increasing flowering plants in our gardens can also improve fruit and vegetables: with more pollinating insects around, harvests will be bigger and better.

The plants included below provide a succession of pollen and nectar for insects across the growing season.

The Bergenia and Geranium provide some ground cover and will help prevent erosion of bare soil. Ground cover plants can also help to reduce moisture evaporation from the soil surface and suppress weed growth. 

Until the plants have filled out, an organic mulch, preferably homemade compost, can help to improve soil moisture retention and weed suppression. Mulches should be spread when the soil is already moist to help trap some of that moisture before it dries out in summer. 

1 - Mahonia x media ‘Winter Sun’
2 - Viburnum opulus
3 - Sarcococca hookeriana var. digyna ‘Purple Stem’
4 - Digitalis grandiflora
5 - Geranium phaeum ‘Album’
6 - Bergenia ‘Harzkristall’
1 - Mahonia x media ‘Winter Sun’ is an evergreen shrub with long, spiny, glossy, pinnate leaves and clustered spikes of bright yellow fragrant flowers in winter, followed by blue-black berries.

2 - Viburnum opulus is a deciduous shrub which forms the rear centrepiece. Flattened clusters of white flowers, borne in late spring and early summer, are followed by long-lasting, translucent red berries. The deeply-lobed green leaves turn shades of orange and red in autumn. 

3 - Sarcococca hookeriana var. digyna ‘Purple Stem’ is an evergreen shrub that gives some solidity to the centre of the scheme. Small, glossy green leaves are joined by beautifully fragrant white flowers in winter.

4 - Digitalis grandiflora is a clump-forming perennial to 80cm tall, with dark evergreen foliage and upright spires of creamy-yellow tubular flowers in summer.

5 - Geranium phaeum ‘Album’ is a herbaceous perennial with relatively large, pure white flowers with golden anthers. The lobed leaves are mid-green.

6 - Bergenia ‘Harzkristall’ is a compact, clump-forming evergreen perennial with rounded, shiny dark green leaves and clusters of bell-shaped, pink-flushed white flowers on upright, reddish brown stems in spring.

About plants for pollinators

Using scientific evidence, our extensive experience and the records of gardeners and beekeepers, we’ve selected a range of year-round flowering Plants for Pollinators to tackle the decline in pollinator numbers. Visit our Plants for Pollinators page to discover more of the best plants for attracting pollinators.
 

Growing plants for pollinators

​Many insects are suffering from a lack of pollinator-friendly plants in the countryside to provide nectar and pollen. By offering a good range of pollinator friendly plants in our gardens, we can help these essential creatures to thrive. Increasing biodiversity is also benefical for encouraging a healthy garden ecosystem in general.

Choose plants with a variety of different flower types and structures in order to attract a wider range of pollinators across the seasons. A succession of overlapping flowering times ensures there is always something available.
 

Why choose a sustainable planting combination?

Using the ethos of ‘right plant, right place’ to create a sustainable planting combination is great for the environment. It helps to avoid waste and the use of products and practices needed to try and help ailing plants, such as applying fertiliser. It also creates robust, long-lived planting that benefits soil health and garden biodiversity. For more information about sustainable gardening, please see the RHS Sustainability Strategy.

Additionally, this combination will also attract more pollinating insects into the garden, creating better diversity by in turn encouraging birds and other wildlife into the garden.

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The Royal Horticultural Society is the UK’s leading gardening charity. We aim to enrich everyone’s life through plants, and make the UK a greener and more beautiful place.