Serviceberry
Amelanchier canadensis
One the bees find first — feeds native bees and butterflies — white spring lace flowers, blooming in Apr and May.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 15–25 ft
- Blooms Apr–May
Iowa · Zones 4–6
Native Plants for Bees in Iowa
The native flowers that feed honey bees, bumblebees, and the hundreds of solitary native bees most gardeners never notice. Every species here is genuinely native to Iowa and the wider flora of the Midwest and hardy through zones 4–6 — proven performers for Iowa's humid continental, cold winters climate across Western Corn Belt tallgrass prairie, not a generic list. Local standouts include Serviceberry and Aromatic Aster. Most of our native bees are solitary and unfussy, but they depend on a steady supply of pollen-rich, single (not double) flowers. Open daisy and umbel shapes are easiest for short-tongued bees, while tubular flowers reward the long-tongued bumblebees. Skip pesticides entirely and leave some bare, undisturbed ground and pithy stems where ground- and stem-nesting bees raise their young.
The plants
56 native species for Iowa
Each one native to your region and hardy in zones 4–6 · see this collection in other states.
Aromatic Aster
Symphyotrichum oblongifolium
One the bees find first — feeds native bees and butterflies — 1.5–2.5 ft tall, blooming from Sep to Nov.
- Full sun
- Dry
- 1.5–2.5 ft
- Blooms Sep–Nov
Wild Columbine
Aquilegia canadensis
A bee plant first and foremost — feeds the specialist bees that depend on it, along with hummingbirds and native bees, cold-hardy to zone 3 and flowering from Apr to Jun.
- Part shade
- Dry–average
- 1–2.5 ft
- Blooms Apr–Jun
Short-Toothed Mountain Mint
Pycnanthemum muticum
Pollen-rich and bee-friendly — feeds the specialist bees that depend on it, along with butterflies and native bees; 2–3 ft wide, it blooms Jul through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 2–3 ft
- Blooms Jul–Sep
New England Aster
Symphyotrichum novae-angliae
One the bees find first — feeds the specialist bees that depend on it, along with butterflies and native bees; spreading 2–3 ft, it flowers in Sep and Oct.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 3–5 ft
- Blooms Sep–Oct
Buttonbush
Cephalanthus occidentalis
Bee fuel — pollen-rich, single flowers — feeds native bees, hummingbirds, and butterflies — white pincushions flowers, blooming from Jun to Aug.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 5–10 ft
- Blooms Jun–Aug
Lanceleaf Coreopsis
Coreopsis lanceolata
One the bees find first — feeds native bees and butterflies; spreading 12–18 in, it blooms May through Jul.
- Full sun
- Dry–average
- 1.5–2 ft
- Blooms May–Jul
Anise Hyssop
Agastache foeniculum
One the bees find first — feeds native bees, hummingbirds, and butterflies — good through zone 9, blooming from Jun to Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Jun–Sep
Cup Plant
Silphium perfoliatum
Bee fuel — pollen-rich, single flowers — feeds native bees and butterflies; good through zone 9, it blooms Jul through Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 5–8 ft
- Blooms Jul–Sep
Obedient Plant
Physostegia virginiana
Pollen-rich and bee-friendly — feeds native bees, hummingbirds, and butterflies — reaching 2–4 ft, blooming in Aug and Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Aug–Sep
Flowering Dogwood
Cornus florida
A bee plant first and foremost — feeds native bees and butterflies — reaching 15–25 ft, blooming in Apr and May.
- Part shade
- Average
- 15–25 ft
- Blooms Apr–May
Spotted Joe-Pye Weed
Eutrochium maculatum
A bee plant first and foremost — feeds the specialist bees that depend on it, along with butterflies and native bees — good through zone 8, blooming from Jul to Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 4–7 ft
- Blooms Jul–Sep
Showy Goldenrod
Solidago speciosa
One the bees find first — feeds the specialist bees that depend on it, along with butterflies and native bees; 1.5–2 ft wide, it flowers in Sep and Oct.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Sep–Oct
Purple Coneflower
Echinacea purpurea
Pollen-rich and bee-friendly — feeds native bees and butterflies, happy in clay, rocky, and loam soil and flowering from Jun to Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Dry–average
- 2–4 ft
- Blooms Jun–Sep
Great Blue Lobelia
Lobelia siphilitica
One the bees find first — feeds native bees, hummingbirds, and butterflies, good through zone 9 and flowering in Aug and Sep.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 2–3 ft
- Blooms Aug–Sep
Prairie Blazing Star
Liatris pycnostachya
A bee plant first and foremost — feeds the specialist bees that depend on it, along with butterflies and native bees; purple-magenta flowers, it flowers in Jul and Aug.
- Full sun
- Dry–average
- 3–5 ft
- Blooms Jul–Aug
Maximilian Sunflower
Helianthus maximiliani
Pollen-rich and bee-friendly — feeds native bees and butterflies; reaching 5–8 ft, it blooms Aug through Oct.
- Full sun
- Dry–average
- 5–8 ft
- Blooms Aug–Oct
Wild Geranium
Geranium maculatum
Bee fuel — pollen-rich, single flowers — feeds the specialist bees that depend on it; 1.5–2 ft tall, it blooms Apr through Jun.
- Part shade
- Average
- 1.5–2 ft
- Blooms Apr–Jun
Prairie Smoke
Geum triflorum
Bee fuel — pollen-rich, single flowers — feeds the specialist bees that depend on it — hardy in zones 3–7, blooming in Apr and May.
- Full–part sun
- Dry
- 6–16 in
- Blooms Apr–May
Butterfly Weed
Asclepias tuberosa
Bee fuel — pollen-rich, single flowers — feeds native bees and butterflies; reaching 1.5–2.5 ft, it blooms Jun through Aug.
- Full sun
- Dry
- 1.5–2.5 ft
- Blooms Jun–Aug
Virginia Bluebells
Mertensia virginica
Bee fuel — pollen-rich, single flowers — feeds the specialist bees that depend on it, along with hummingbirds and native bees; reaching 1–2 ft, it blooms Mar through May.
- Part shade
- Average–wet
- 1–2 ft
- Blooms Mar–May
Foamflower
Tiarella cordifolia
A bee plant first and foremost — feeds native bees — 1–2 ft wide, blooming in Apr and May.
- Part shade
- Average
- 6–12 in
- Blooms Apr–May
Common Yarrow
Achillea millefolium
A bee plant first and foremost — feeds the specialist bees that depend on it, along with butterflies and native bees — 1.5–3 ft tall, blooming from May to Aug.
- Full sun
- Dry–average
- 1.5–3 ft
- Blooms May–Aug
Culver's Root
Veronicastrum virginicum
One the bees find first — feeds the specialist bees that depend on it, along with butterflies and native bees, white candelabra flowers and flowering from Jun to Aug.
- Full–part sun
- Average–wet
- 3–5 ft
- Blooms Jun–Aug
32 more also qualify: Dense Blazing Star, Wild Bergamot, Foxglove Beardtongue, Swamp Milkweed, Golden Alexanders, Pasque Flower, Smooth Hydrangea, Winterberry, Arrowwood Viburnum, Black-Eyed Susan, Blanketflower, Chocolate Flower, Eastern Redbud, Scarlet Beebalm, Woodland Phlox, Common Milkweed, Creeping Phlox, Compass Plant, Blue Vervain, Common Boneset, Wild Lupine, New Jersey Tea, Ninebark, American Elderberry, Rattlesnake Master, Showy Milkweed, Spicebush, Red-Twig Dogwood, Fragrant Sumac, Purple Prairie Clover, Bearberry, Stiff Goldenrod.
Sourcing
Where to find these in Iowa
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.