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KWEC Garden

KWEC garden

KWEC’s pollinator garden contains plants specifically chosen as pollinator or butterfly/moth host plants. Most of the over 50 plants are prairie wildflowers native to the area, with a few nonnative flowers added for their pollinator and host plant importance. Due to the harsh conditions of the area around KWEC, these are extremely hardy plants recommended for this area. Please click the link below for a list of the plants.

Download: KWEC Garden Plant List

 

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Golf ball planting by Linda Dougherty, Toni Bodine and Veronica Coons. The golf balls mark plant locations, providing a guide to create a design. The annual bed is always planted in a formal geometric pattern.

 

Volunteers make the garden bloom

Several volunteers have donated plants from their own gardens, helped with planting and weeding, creating a floral attraction for pollinators. They’ve donated many hours tending to the plants, which have thrived despite drought and heat. Dee Anne and John Grummon, Connie Dyer, and Rebecca Dunlap also worked many hours getting the garden ready to plant in addition to all the other garden chores. Many thanks to them and to Linda, Toni and Veronica, who completed master gardening classes this year and are fulfilling some of their volunteer hours at KWEC.

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The final step to planting – adding mulch!

 

Blooms from the Garden:

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Butterfly milkweed - Asclepias tuberosea

Wonderful nectar plant for bees and butterflies and eaten by monarch caterpillars.

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Common milkweed - Asclepias syriaca

Another great pollinator flower and monarch host plant.

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Beebalm - Monarda fistulosa

Hummingbirds and butterflies love this flower.

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Indian blanket flower - Gaillardia aristata

A prairie standout, Gaillardia is extremely drought tolerant.

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Larkspur - Delphinium ssp.

Larkspur flower color varies from white and pink to deep blue. Prairie larkspur, another common prairie wildflower is a white flower.

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Coreopsis “Jethro Tull” - Coreopsis lanceolata

Another cultivar of a prairie wildflower, coreopsis is a hardy pollinator plant.

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Hollyhocks - Alcea ssp.

A great bumblebee flower.

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Day lily “Stella d’Oro

Hemerocallis ssp.

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Swamp milkweed - Asclepias incarnate

One of the best milkweeds for the flower garden, it is a monarch host plant and great pollinator favorite.

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Yarrow - Achillea millefolium

A favorite pollinator flower, yarrow also has many medicinal uses.