Container Gardening for Pollinators
Building Balcony Botanicals and Pollinator Penthouses in the Sky
to skip directly to the plant list click here: Native Garden for NE KS list.pdf
If you live in the greater Kansas City area, you will notice that apartment buildings are a popular option for affordable living. Many have nice balconies that get ample unfiltered sunlight. This presents itself as an excellent opportunity for gardeners like me. My colleague, Anthony Reardon, has written articles about growing vegetables in containers, especially if you don’t have space for a traditional garden. What about those who want native plants but don’t have a flowerbed?
I know the popularity of native plants has been on the rise for several years. Many people who are interested in doing their part in providing native pollinators with their required food sources think they have no possible way to contribute. Well, just like veggies on your balcony, you can also have a pollinator oasis on your balcony.
Container gardening isn’t anything new. Cultures worldwide have used containers to grow their favorite plants in all sorts of conditions. Using plants native to your area has the added benefit of supporting the native wildlife. In today’s market, there are native cultivars, or “nativars”, that have a lot more flowering interest than the regular wild type. These nativars can be used to bridge the gap between wild-looking natives and the prim and proper cultivated plants.
When selecting your pots, it is important to have one with drainage holes. If you are about to place them on a balcony, putting a water basin under the pot can save water from running off to your downstairs balcony neighbors. Using potting mix in your containers is still necessary for success. However, when fully dry, potting mix becomes hydrophobic, meaning water will run off the surface of the media instead of penetrating deeper into the pot. A basin under your pot can allow water to be soaked into the potting mix through capillary action.
Now for the fun part: design your containers. What you choose will need to tolerate the light, heat, and water you can give. The most eye-appealing option that you can use is the classic thriller (tall), filler (wide), spiller (draping) design that lots of container and floral designers use. This isn’t the only thing you can do; having several pots with different plant material grouped together will give you a similar wild effect.
There is a size limit to what you can have. Plants that get tall with large leaves can act as a parasail that catches all the wind the Midwest throws at it. Heavy clay or ceramic pots can help anchor your plants and prevent tipping over.
The purpose of a native oasis is to provide a food source and habitat for native insects. Your chosen plants should have staggered bloom times to be a thriving pollinator oasis. This will ensure a consistent nectar or pollen source for visiting insects. If you cannot source plants with different flowering periods, another consideration would be to have host plants for our native insects. Just like milkweeds for monarchs, there are several plants that caterpillars of all shapes and colors feed on. Not just caterpillars and butterflies, but wasps and bees can also utilize hollow or sturdy stems to create homes for their offspring.
If you want to provide food and habitat to the wildlife around the metro area, get started on your containerized native garden. For more details on what plants to select for your containers, visit Container Gardening for Pollinators, part 2.
To learn more about pollinators and native plants in our area, visit Wonders of Discovery at Pollinator Prairie in Olathe on June 20th.
by Markis Hill, Horticulture Ornamentals and Turf Agent, 2025