in si de ha lto n. co m O ak vi lle B ea ve r | T hu rs da y, Ju ne 7, 20 18 | 42424 Creating an Instagram-worthy planter for your garden or balcony that will also provide nutritious food for pollinators, like honey bees, is as easy as can bee. First, select your pot. Gardening expert Mark Cullen recommends a clay pot be- cause it allows the plants to breathe. The other fantastic thing about clay pots is that they're easy to paint if you are crafty in addition to having a green thumb. Wide, shallow clay pots will allow you to plant a variety of plants and flowers that will look good in your space and provide a varied diet for pollinators. However, where the option is available, it is best to plant in the ground. When selecting plants, speak to your local garden centre about what will look good and be attractive to pollinators like honey bees. If they aren't sure, there are resources, like Pollinator Partnership, that can help you to figure out which flowers are attractive to pollinators, and identify which will also grow well in your area. Generally, you want to select flowers in bright colours with petals that aren't tightly closed. So if it's a rose with many petals, like you'd see at Valentine's Day, it's probably not the best for honey bees. An open flower, like a daisy, offers honey bees an all-access path because they can get at the nectar and pollen they need to build up a store of food for the winter. When you're planning your picture-per-When you're planning your picture-per-When you're planning your picture-per fect planter or garden: • Choose flowers with a variety of heights and blossom sizes to ensure you have a foreground, mid-ground and back-foreground, mid-ground and back-foreground, mid-ground and back ground for your shot; • Consider differences in texture so your photo has interest and you can at-your photo has interest and you can at-your photo has interest and you can at tract pollinators who access nectar and pollen different ways; and • Check the plant's tag to see when it will bloom so that you can keep your new pollinator friends well fed throughout the blooming season. Here are some pol- linator- and Instagram-friendly flowers to consider for your picture-perfect planter or garden: • Lance-leaved Coreopsis (Coreopsis lanceolata) With bright yellow flowers, the lance-leaved coreopsis is a low-growing perennial that thrives in the hot, late sum- mer all across North America. The state flower of Florida, lance-leaved coreopsis isn't just an attractive plant for honey bees, but also a food source for caterpil- lars. • New England Aster (Symphyotrichum novae-angliae) A highly varied species, the New England aster has more than 50 dif-New England aster has more than 50 dif-New England aster has more than 50 dif ferent varieties with distinct colours, sizes and shapes. Flourishing in bright sunlight, the New England aster can grow to four feet tall and provide a generous amount of pollen for honey bees. • Dense Blazing Star (Liatris spicata) A tall, thickly flowering plant, the dense blaz- ing star grows long spikes of clustered pur-ing star grows long spikes of clustered pur-ing star grows long spikes of clustered pur ple flowers. The dense blazing star grows wild across eastern Canada, but thrives in gardens across the country. With a tough stalk and numerous flowers, it's an ideal plant to attract and foster pollinators. • Golden Tickseed (Coreopsis tincto- ria) From the same genus as the lance- leaved coreopsis, the golden tickseed has a unique and unmistakable blossom of rich red surrounded by bright yellow and a speckled floret at its centre. The deep red of the petals was once used as a dye by Southwestern Native Americans. • Sneezeweed (Helenium autumnale) A perennial flower with bright yellow blos- soms, sneezeweed is named for a his- torical medicinal use of its dried flowers to induce sneezing when inhaled. The sneezeweed is drought tolerant and en- joys full sun. When flowering, the tall stalks grow large spherical florets well- loved by butterflies and honey bees. All of these plants are relatively low maintenance and prefer full sun and well- drained soil. If you do select a wide, shal- low pot, daily watering is recommended, especially in the hot summer months. The flowers above are fairly drought tolerant, in case you forget. If you aren't able to find these specif-If you aren't able to find these specif-If you aren't able to find these specif ic flowers at your local garden centre or nursery, the garden experts on hand will happily provide other pollinator-friendly suggestions for you. You can also visit BeesMatter.ca for helpful resources on honey bee health and pollinator-friendly planting, including this infographic outlin- ing pollinator-friendly plants by province. Bees Matter offers free Buzzing Gar-Bees Matter offers free Buzzing Gar-Bees Matter offers free Buzzing Gar dens seed kits containing the pollinator- friendly flowers noted above that will grow anywhere in Canada. This year, Bees Matter has designated National Planting Week from June 4th to 10th so there's no better time to create your pollinator-friend- ly garden. Order your free seed kit at www. BeesMatter.ca. Interlocking & Concrete Specialists • Pebble Concrete • Stamped Concrete • Interlocking • Flagstone • Walkways • Garage Floors • Patios • Driveways • Curbs (French) Call Mario 905.842.7171 sunmarlandscape.com Interlocking & Concrete Specialists ™ Overhead Door Co. of Hamilton-Burlington 5450 Harvester Road, Burlington Overhead Door (Hamilton-Burlington) Ltd. 905-333-1772 info@overheaddoorburlington.ca overheaddoorburlington.ca Proud to be servicing the Gta for 32 years. Thermacore® Forpremiumconstructionandmaximumthermal efficiency, a Thermacore® insulated steel door is the ideal choice. This series of doors feature our sandwich construction of steel-polyurethane- steel as well as between-section seals with thermal breaks to reduce air infiltration. With several panel designs to choose from, these doors offer design flexibility, durability and thermal efficiency that will help keep your home comfortable in cold or hot climates. Insulated Steel Garage Doors What's the Buzz: How to create an Instagram-worthy and pollinator-friendly garden Home and Garden Sneezeweed Wild Chives Lavender Hyssop Prairie Crocus