Seed planting guide

Plant seeds from our store to feed and shelter beneficial insects like wild bees and butterflies.

RESOURCES

Native plants and butterflies, western Canada: https://davidsuzuki.org/what-you-can-do/attract-butterflies-with-native-plants-western-canada/

Lower Mainland and Victoria planting guide: https://davidsuzuki.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/native-plants-for-vancouver-butterfly-gardens-2.pdf

Native plants and butterflies, eastern Canada: https://davidsuzuki.org/what-you-can-do/attract-butterflies-with-native-plants-eastern-canada/

Toronto planting guide: https://davidsuzuki.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/native-plants-for-Toronto-butterfly-gardens.pdf

ABOUT THE PLANTS

All seeds can be planted outdoors in fall (six to eight weeks before the first frost) or spring. All plants boost ecosystem health by providing habitat for essential pollinators like butterflies and native bees.

Blue vervain Verbena hastata

Fast-growing, long-blooming and deer-resistant, this perennial self seeds easily. Spikes of purple-blue flowers appear in mid-summer. Leaves, roots and dried flowers used medicinally by Indigenous Peoples. Attracts butterflies, native bees and other beneficial insects.

Plant seeds 30 centimetres (12 inches) apart in full sun or partial shade and medium to wet soil. Seeds need to be cold stratified. Sow indoors two months before the last frost, outside after the last frost or in the fall.

Common sneezeweed Helenium autumnale

Also known as “mountain sneezeweed,” this perennial gets its name because people once inhaled snuff made from its dried leaves to make them sneeze. Late-blooming (from early summer to fall) and deer-resistant, its yellow, daisy-like blossoms attract birds, bees and butterflies.

Plant seeds 30 centimetres (12 inches) apart in full sun and medium to wet soil. Clay soil is fine. Avoid sandy soils. If you can, incorporate organic compost into the soil to increase drainage.

Farewell-to-spring Clarkia amoena

So named because it usually blooms as summer starts. Also known as “godetia,” this easy-to-grow, self-seeding annual fares well in containers and gardens. Showy pink, cup-shaped flowers close each night and open in each morning. Great nectar source for bees and butterflies.

Seeds need light to germinate, so don’t bury them — sow them on the surface of cool, moist or dry, well-drained soil. Prefers full sun to light shade. Drought-tolerant and requires little maintenance.

Grey-headed coneflower Ratibida pinnata

A drought-, heat- and flood-tolerant member of the aster family, this perennial blooms from July through September. Its daisy-like blooms of droopy yellow petals surround a dense central cone. It’s also known as “prairie,” “yellow” or “drooping” coneflower, “weary Susan” and “Mexican hat.” Attracts bees and butterflies.

Sow seeds 45-60 centimetres (18 to 24 inches) apart. Prefers full sun to partial shade and medium to dry-medium soil. Seeds need to be cold stratified. Sow indoors two months before the last frost, outside after the last frost or in the fall.

Hairy beardtongue Penstemon hirsutus

This perennial has hairy stems and long, thin blossoms in shades ranging from pale purples and blues to white. Named for its trumpet-shaped flower openings that look like open mouths with protruding fuzzy tongues. Blooms from late May to late June. Attracts hummingbirds, native bees and butterflies.

Plant seeds 25 to 30 centimetres (10 to 12 inches) apart. Prefers medium wet to dry soil and tolerates varied sun conditions. Seeds need to be cold stratified. Sow indoors two months before the last frost, outside after the last frost or in the fall.

Many-flowered aster Symphyotrichum ericoides

Also known as “heath aster” and “tufted white Prairie aster,” this low-maintenance, drought-tolerant perennial blooms from late summer till early fall. It has tiny, densely-packed white flower clusters with yellow centres. Attracts butterflies, native bees and other beneficial insects.

Sow seeds 30 centimetres (12 inches) apart. Prefers full sun and dry to moist, well-drained soil. Plants may spread from underground rhizomes. White flowers appear all along the stems. Self seeds easily.

Mountain sneezeweed Helenium autumnale

Also known as “common sneezeweed,” this perennial gets its name because people once inhaled snuff made from its dried leaves to make them sneeze. Late-blooming (from early summer to fall) and deer-resistant, its yellow, daisy-like blossoms attract birds, bees and butterflies.

Plant seeds 30 centimetres (12 inches) apart in full sun and medium to wet soil. Clay soil is fine. Avoid sandy soils. If you can, incorporate organic compost into the soil to increase drainage.

Swamp milkweed Asclepias incarnate

Named for the milky juice that seeps from its broken stems and leaves, this easy-to-grow, deer-resistant perennial is a monarch butterfly host plant. Milkweed is the only plant where monarchs lay their eggs and their caterpillars’ first food. Also attracts hummingbirds and other beneficial insects like butterflies and native bees. Blooms in July.

Sow seeds 30 centimetres (12 inches) in full sun and medium to wet soil. Milkweed and monarchs have a close evolutionary relationship. Milkweed foliage contains a bitter chemical. Monarch caterpillars eat the leaves, making them taste bad and protecting them from predators.

When milkweed seeds mature in fall, the pods turn brownish grey. To prevent spreading, collect the pods before they pop open and the seeds fly away on their silky parachutes. Store in a paper bag. Share with butterfly-loving friends.

Upland white aster Solidago ptarmicoides

This perennial is also known as the “controversial flower,” because taxonomists disagreed about how to classify it. It was considered an aster, then a goldenrod and now is grouped with other former goldenrod species. Blooms in August. Definitely attracts bees and is a valuable food source for butterflies.

Sow seeds 25 centimetres (10 inches) apart. Does best in full sun. Adapts to dry to medium, even moist, well-drained soils. Great planted in groups or mixed with other native perennials.

Western yarrow Achillea millefolium

An important native North American wildflower with fern-like leaves and small white flowers that grow in clusters, this drought- and deer-resistant perennial provides nectar throughout the summer, attracting butterflies and a variety of wild bees.

Plant three millimetres (1/8-inch) deep in well-drained soil, in full sun. Prefers, hot, dry conditions. Its scent repels aphids and its leaves and stems contain enzymes that will help break down compost.

Woolly sunflower Eriophyllum lanatum

Also known as “Oregon sunshine,” this showy yellow flower is not actually a sunflower. Blooms from May to August, with silvery leaves and bright yellow flowers. Works well in containers and is deer-resistant. Attracts butterflies like skippers and commas and is a host plant for the painted lady butterfly.

Scatter seeds or mix with clean, dry sand (not salty beach sand!) before spreading thinly (not more than three times the seeds’ thickness) on soil, in full or partial sun. Tolerates a variety of soils.