Plants native to the Carpathian Basin that bees, butterflies and other pollinators like to visit. Each plant page gives the flowering time.
60 plants from our verified database, by name. A plant is only listed when the data this list relies on is not in doubt. How our data is made
Gypsophila paniculata 90 cm × 90 cm after 10 years
In summer its much-branched, wiry dome turns into a cloud of tiny white or pale pink flowers, which makes it ideal for hiding the gaps left by…
Prunus padus 6 m × 3.5 m after 10 years
A native, fast-growing small tree or large shrub that is covered in drooping, strongly scented white flower racemes in April and May, just after the…
Rubus fruticosus 2.5 m × 3 m after 10 years
Blackberry is a vigorous fruiting plant with long arching canes that is best tied to wires or a fence. It is self-fertile, so one plant gives a…
Sambucus nigra 4 m × 3.5 m after 10 years
A native, very fast-growing, spreading shrub or small tree that carries large, creamy white, strongly scented flower plates from late spring and…
Prunus spinosa 3 m × 2.5 m after 10 years
A native, very thorny shrub that is covered in white blossom in early spring before the leaves, and one of the best wildlife hedges: impenetrable,…
Geranium sanguineum 30 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
A tough ground-covering perennial that forms a low mound of finely cut leaves, dotted with magenta-pink flowers from late spring into summer, and…
Dianthus carthusianorum 50 cm × 25 cm after 10 years
The pink of dry grasslands: thin, wiry stems rise in summer from grassy evergreen tufts and carry tight heads of small magenta flowers that…
Campanula glomerata 50 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
A garden form of a wild meadow bellflower: in early summer upright stems carry tight, rounded heads of violet-blue, upward-facing bells that bees…
Cytisus scoparius 1.5 m × 1.5 m after 10 years
An upright shrub of whippy, almost leafless green stems that disappear under pea flowers in May: the species is yellow, while the hybrids sold by…
Aquilegia vulgaris 70 cm × 45 cm after 10 years
A graceful perennial with nodding, spurred flowers in blue, purple, pink or white in late spring and early summer above blue-green, lobed leaves. It…
Cornus sanguinea 3 m × 2.5 m after 10 years
Common dogwood is a tough native shrub of woodland edges: its white flower heads feed insects in early summer, the black berries feed birds, the…
Hedera helix 10 m × 3 m after 10 years
Common ivy provides year-round greenery over shady ground, fences and walls. Keep its vigorous growth within bounds with regular trimming, and avoid…
Achillea millefolium 80 cm × 80 cm after 10 years
A tough native perennial with finely cut, aromatic foliage and flat flower heads that bees and butterflies visit all summer; garden cultivars also…
Cornus mas 3 m × 2.5 m after 10 years
A slow-growing, long-lived large shrub or small tree that covers itself in tiny yellow flowers at the end of winter, before the leaves, and is one…
Primula veris 25 cm × 20 cm after 10 years
A low, rosette-forming perennial of meadows and wood edges that opens nodding, fragrant, egg-yellow flowers in April on stems held above the leaves.…
Euphorbia cyparissias 30 cm × 1 m after 10 years
A perennial whose fine blue-green, needle-like foliage makes it look like tiny conifer seedlings, covering a dry sunny bank or gravel patch in…
Lysimachia punctata 90 cm × 1 m after 10 years
A vigorous, upright perennial covered in bright yellow flowers for weeks in summer and asking for almost no care. It looks best in sun or part shade…
Acer campestre 4.5 m × 3 m after 10 years
A native, undemanding small to medium tree that copes with drought, lime and clay, city air and hard clipping, and turns a good yellow in autumn. Left…
Veronica longifolia 90 cm × 45 cm after 10 years
An upright, clump-forming perennial that carries long, slender lilac-blue spikes above narrow toothed leaves in summer; there are white and pink…
Acer platanoides 'Globosum' 4 m × 3 m after 10 years
A Norway maple grafted on a tall stem whose dense, dark green crown stays a regular ball without pruning and widens into a flattened globe with age.…
Aruncus dioicus 1.8 m × 1 m after 10 years
A big, bushy woodland perennial native to the region that lights up shady corners in early summer with head-high plumes of creamy white flowers. Plant…
Salix caprea 2 m × 1.5 m after 10 years
Goat willow is a large shrub or small tree, but in gardens you nearly always get the weeping 'Pendula' ('Kilmarnock') grafted on a stem: its height is…
Astrantia major 70 cm × 45 cm after 10 years
Great masterwort is a loosely bushy perennial for cool part shade: its white, pink or wine-red flower heads, each ringed by papery bracts, last for…
Calluna vulgaris 40 cm × 50 cm after 10 years
A low evergreen dwarf shrub with tiny scale-like leaves that covers itself in pink, purple, red or white flower spikes from late summer into autumn;…
Tilia platyphyllos 7 m × 4 m after 10 years
Large-leaved lime is a long-lived shade tree that grows very big and opens its strongly scented, bee-magnet flowers in early June, the first of the…
Doronicum orientale 50 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
One of the earliest yellow daisy-flowered perennials: it blooms in spring alongside tulips, above fresh green heart-shaped leaves. It suits part shade…
Vinca minor 20 cm × 1 m after 10 years
Plant it beneath trees and shrubs for a carpet of glossy evergreen leaves and violet-blue spring flowers. It performs best in partial shade and…
Salvia verticillata 75 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
A loose, bushy perennial with soft, hairy leaves that carries whorled spikes of smoky purple flowers from June to September, constantly visited by…
Dianthus deltoides 20 cm × 45 cm after 10 years
A low pink that forms loose evergreen mats and is covered for weeks from early summer with small magenta, pink or white flowers. Plant it in sun in…
Fraxinus ornus 5 m × 3.5 m after 10 years
Manna ash is a medium-sized tree with a rounded crown that covers itself in creamy white, scented flower plumes around May and turns yellow to…
Salvia pratensis 70 cm × 50 cm after 10 years
A violet-blue wildflower of dry meadows: from late May slender flower spikes rise above a basal rosette of wrinkled leaves and draw bees and…
Acer platanoides 8 m × 6 m after 10 years
A large native shade tree with a dense, rounded crown that flowers yellowish green and honey-scented before the leaves open and turns golden yellow in…
Origanum vulgare 60 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
Oregano is a wildflower and a kitchen herb in one: from midsummer its pinkish-purple flowers are busy with bees and butterflies. It is happy in sunny,…
Campanula persicifolia 90 cm × 45 cm after 10 years
Peach-leaved bellflower sends up slender, upright stems from a rosette of narrow leaves in early summer, carrying large blue or white bells. It…
Lythrum salicaria 1.2 m × 90 cm after 10 years
A native perennial of watersides and wet meadows: from midsummer into autumn its stiff, upright stems carry long, vivid purple-magenta flower spikes…
Salix purpurea 1.5 m × 1.5 m after 10 years
A willow of river banks with thin, pliable purplish shoots that grows into a 3 to 5 metre bush in the wild, but gardens almost only get its dense,…
Lychnis flos-cuculi 60 cm × 40 cm after 10 years
A slender, airy wildflower whose pink (rarely white) petals are each cut into four narrow strips, giving the flowers their ragged look from May to…
Lychnis coronaria 80 cm × 45 cm after 10 years
Above rosettes of silver-grey, felted leaves it opens vivid magenta (in some forms white) flowers on branching grey stems in early summer. It is…
Sorbus aucuparia 5 m × 3 m after 10 years
A slender small tree with an open crown that offers white flower clusters in spring, orange-red berry bunches from late summer and yellow to reddish…
Iris sibirica 90 cm × 75 cm after 10 years
A graceful iris with grassy leaves that carries blue, purple or white flowers on tall stems in May and June, and keeps a handsome, grass-like clump of…
Tilia tomentosa 7 m × 4 m after 10 years
Silver lime is a large shade tree with a regular crown; its leaves are dark green above and felted silvery white beneath, so the canopy shimmers in…
Tilia cordata 8 m × 6 m after 10 years
A long-lived native shade tree with heart-shaped leaves that grows large. Its strongly scented flowers open in late June and early July and are…
Achillea ptarmica 70 cm × 60 cm after 10 years
Unlike other yarrows it has narrow, undivided dark green leaves, and it carries small white flowers all summer; gardens grow the double forms with…
Saponaria officinalis 70 cm × 1 m after 10 years
An old cottage-garden perennial with pale pink or white flowers from midsummer into autumn that are strongly scented in the evening and draw moths. It…
Veronica spicata 50 cm × 40 cm after 10 years
A slender perennial with upright spikes of blue flowers (pink or white in some cultivars) that draw bees and butterflies for weeks in summer. Give…
Euonymus europaeus 3 m × 2.5 m after 10 years
An undemanding large shrub or small tree with green twigs whose main season is autumn: the leaves turn red and purple, and the pink capsules split…
Lamium maculatum 20 cm × 90 cm after 10 years
Spotted dead-nettle is a low, fast-knitting ground cover for shade and part shade: its silver-marked leaves brighten dark corners and pink, purple…
Lychnis viscaria 40 cm × 30 cm after 10 years
A native wildflower that sends up spikes of vivid magenta-pink flowers in May and June from tufts of grass-like leaves; the stems are sticky below the…
Prunus avium 4.5 m × 3.5 m after 10 years
Sweet cherry is covered in white blossom in spring and gives the first fresh fruit of summer from late May to July. It is sold grafted and the…
Inula ensifolia 30 cm × 45 cm after 10 years
A low, dense, dome-shaped perennial with narrow sword-like leaves, covered for weeks in summer with golden yellow daisies. It suits sunny, dry, even…
Acer pseudoplatanus 8 m × 5 m after 10 years
Sycamore maple is a huge, fast-growing shade tree with a dense crown that is happiest in a cooler, more humid spot with fresh soil, and its spring…
Acer tataricum 3.5 m × 2.5 m after 10 years
A tough native small tree or large multi-stemmed shrub with a rounded crown and unlobed, toothed leaves that fits into small gardens too.…
Lythrum virgatum 1 m × 45 cm after 10 years
A slender, clump-forming perennial with wand-like stems that carries loose spikes of purplish pink flowers for many weeks in summer and draws bees and…
Sorbus aria 5 m × 3 m after 10 years
A native small tree with a dense, rounded crown whose oval leaves are dark green above and white-felted beneath, so the whole crown flashes silver…
Sedum album 10 cm × 50 cm after 10 years
An evergreen succulent whose tiny cylindrical leaves knit into a low, dense mat that disappears under a haze of white flowers in early summer. It is a…
Salix alba 10 m × 7 m after 10 years
A native, very fast-growing, huge waterside tree whose narrow leaves are silky silver underneath. For gardens it is mostly sold as the golden…
Ligustrum vulgare 3 m × 2.5 m after 10 years
Wild privet is a native, undemanding and very drought-tolerant shrub and the classic material for a clipped hedge: it grows fast, takes any amount…
Salvia nemorosa 60 cm × 50 cm after 10 years
A tough perennial of dry loess grasslands whose garden cultivars carry dense, upright spikes of violet, blue, pink or white in early summer, always…
Salvia nemorosa 'Caradonna' 60 cm × 50 cm after 10 years
Deep purple flower spikes and almost black stems work well in sunny borders, alongside ornamental grasses or in larger pots, and attract…
Lamium galeobdolon 40 cm × 1 m after 10 years
A shade-tolerant ground cover with hooded yellow flowers in spring; its plain green wild form is native to the moist deciduous woods of the region.…
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