When I first started gardening, I thought any pretty bloom would make the bees happy. I’d load up on whatever looked good at the garden center, assuming it was all helpful.
But I quickly learned that many of those eye-catching flowers do almost nothing for pollinators. Some have been so heavily bred for looks that they’ve lost their nectar or pollen entirely. Others might even contain chemicals that harm bees and butterflies.
Once I understood that, I started choosing plants with real value—and my garden’s never been buzzier.
1. Double-Flowered Hybrid Sunflowers
Those massive, showy sunflowers with doubled petals might catch your eye at the garden center, but they offer almost nothing to hungry bees. Plant breeders have modified these flowers to produce extra petals instead of pollen-rich centers, essentially creating a food desert for pollinators.
Many gardeners don’t realize these ornamental varieties lack accessible nectar and pollen. The complex layers of petals make it physically impossible for bees to reach what little pollen might exist. I made this mistake in my first garden, planting an entire row of stunning but useless doubles.
For a pollinator-friendly alternative, choose single-flowered sunflower varieties like ‘Lemon Queen’ or traditional open-faced types. These natural forms provide abundant food sources while still adding bright yellow charm to your garden space.
2. Modern Hybrid Tea Roses
Despite their popularity and heavenly scent, modern hybrid tea roses offer surprisingly little value to pollinators. Years of breeding for perfect blooms and disease resistance have resulted in flowers with reduced pollen and difficult-to-access reproductive parts.
Garden centers prominently display these roses every spring, marketing their perfect form and color without mentioning their ecological limitations. The tight, spiral arrangement of petals makes it nearly impossible for bees to reach what little pollen remains. After years of growing roses, I’ve shifted toward more open varieties.
Consider planting old-fashioned or wild rose varieties instead. These simpler flowers with exposed centers provide abundant pollen and are much more beneficial to bees and other pollinating insects while still offering lovely fragrance and charm.
3. Petunias
Common petunias fill garden center shelves each spring, tempting shoppers with their blooms in every color imaginable. What most people don’t know is that these modified flowers produce minimal nectar and their tubular shape often prevents all but the longest-tongued pollinators from accessing what little exists.
The situation worsens with newer varieties. Many modern petunias have been bred specifically for humans—maximizing color and bloom time while unintentionally eliminating the features bees need. Their sticky stems can even trap and kill smaller insects that land on them.
My front porch used to be lined with petunia baskets until I noticed how few bees visited them compared to my neighbor’s native flowers. Try planting native alternatives like bee balm or penstemon that serve similar landscape purposes while actually feeding your local pollinators.
4. Begonias
Begonias rank among the top-selling bedding plants nationwide, yet they provide almost no ecological value to pollinators. Their waxy, often doubled flowers contain minimal nectar, and many varieties produce little to no pollen that bees can access.
Garden centers market these plants heavily for their shade tolerance and blooming, rarely mentioning their pollinator limitations. Most begonias sold today are complex hybrids, bred to maximize visual appeal. The first year I replaced my begonias with native shade plants, I was amazed at the increase in butterfly visitors.
For shady areas where you might typically plant begonias, consider alternatives like native columbine, foamflower, or woodland phlox. These provide similar visual interest while actually supporting local pollinator populations with accessible nectar and pollen.
5. Hybrid French Marigolds
French marigolds appear in virtually every garden center display, marketed as must-have companion plants. Unfortunately, the truth about these popular flowers is disappointing—most modern varieties have been bred for appearance rather than function, resulting in tightly packed petals that block pollinators from accessing nectar.
The complex breeding history of these marigolds has transformed them from beneficial plants into mere decorations. Chemical treatments applied to many commercial varieties can further harm bees that do manage to visit.
If you enjoy marigolds, seek out open-pollinated, single-flowered varieties like ‘Naughty Marietta’ or signet marigolds (Tagetes tenuifolia). These maintain the pest-repelling benefits while actually providing accessible food for bees and other beneficial insects.
6. Dahlia Pompom Varieties
Pompom and ball dahlias create spectacular displays with their perfectly symmetrical, tightly packed blooms. Unfortunately, these show-stopping flowers have been bred specifically for their dense, layered petals—a feature that completely blocks pollinator access to reproductive parts.
Garden centers heavily promote these showy varieties, especially the prize-winning exhibition types. What they don’t mention is that these ornate flowers provide essentially zero ecological function in your garden. I’ve noticed how these spectacular blooms sit untouched by bees while simpler varieties buzz with activity.
For pollinator support, choose single or semi-double dahlia varieties instead. Options like ‘Bishop of Llandaff’ or ‘Happy Single’ series maintain the dramatic colors and impressive size while exposing pollen-rich centers that bees, butterflies, and other beneficial insects can actually use.
7. Calibrachoa (Million Bells)
Calibrachoa hanging baskets dominate garden center displays with their seemingly endless tiny petunia-like blooms. Despite their abundance of flowers, these plants offer minimal ecological value—their nectar is often inaccessible to most native bees, and their pollen production is significantly reduced.
Many varieties come pre-treated with systemic pesticides that can remain active throughout the growing season. These chemicals can transfer to nectar and pollen, potentially harming any pollinators that do manage to feed from them.
Better alternatives include native verbena species, lobelia, or native trailing phlox. These provide the same cascading effect in containers while actually supporting local pollinator populations with accessible food sources rather than just adding empty color to your porch or patio.
8. Impatiens
Standard impatiens fill garden center shelves every spring, marketed as the perfect solution for shady spots. Few shoppers realize these ubiquitous bedding plants offer virtually nothing to pollinators—their nectar is minimal, and their pollen is largely inaccessible to most bee species.
The simplified flower structure results from years of breeding focused solely on human preferences. Even hummingbirds, which can access deeper nectar sources, rarely visit standard impatiens. My garden transformed from a quiet zone to a buzzing ecosystem when I replaced my impatiens beds with native alternatives.
For shady areas, consider planting native woodland plants like Virginia bluebells, woodland phlox, or even hostas (which, surprisingly, provide more pollinator value than impatiens). These options thrive in similar conditions while providing genuine ecological benefits to your garden visitors.
9. Geraniums (Pelargoniums)
Annual geraniums (technically Pelargoniums) appear in nearly every garden center and big box store each spring. Their bright clusters of flowers might seem attractive to pollinators, but most modern varieties produce minimal nectar and pollen that’s difficult for bees to access.
Years of breeding for showy blooms and heat tolerance have diminished their value to wildlife. The pollen in many varieties has been reduced to improve their appearance and longevity for human enjoyment. When I replaced my geraniums with native alternatives, the increase in butterfly and bee activity was immediate.
For container gardens and sunny spots, try native perennial geraniums (true Geranium species) instead. Plants like wild geranium (Geranium maculatum) or cranesbill geranium provide similar aesthetic appeal while offering genuine food sources for local pollinators through their accessible, pollen-rich flowers.
10. Double Hybrid Hollyhocks
Double-flowered hollyhock varieties create dramatic vertical interest in gardens but fail to serve their natural ecological purpose. Traditional single hollyhocks are pollinator magnets, but these doubled versions have been modified to replace pollen-producing stamens with extra petals—essentially removing their food value.
Their impressive blooms catch the eye, but their ability to support wildlife has been sacrificed. My grandmother’s garden contained heritage single hollyhocks that hummed with bees all summer, something I rarely see on modern doubled varieties.
Choose traditional single-flowered hollyhock varieties if you want to support pollinators. Alcea rosea in its non-hybrid form provides abundant pollen that bees eagerly collect, while still delivering the classic cottage garden look and impressive height that makes hollyhocks garden favorites.
11. Annual Salvia Hybrids
Many annual salvia varieties sold at garden centers have been extensively hybridized for unusual colors and compact growth habits. This breeding process has often narrowed their flower tubes or altered nectar production, making them much less valuable to pollinators than their wild counterparts.
Garden centers typically stock these modified salvias rather than the more beneficial native perennial types. The bright red annual salvias commonly sold are particularly problematic—they’ve been bred to attract hummingbirds but often have nectar production reduced or flower tubes modified to be too narrow for bees.
For true pollinator support, choose native perennial salvias like Salvia azurea (blue sage) or Salvia coccinea. These species provide abundant, accessible nectar through properly formed flowers that haven’t been manipulated for human aesthetics at the expense of ecological function.
12. Pollenless Sunflowers
Marketed as “mess-free” options for cut flowers, pollenless sunflowers represent one of the most direct examples of breeding plants specifically against pollinator interests. These varieties have been deliberately engineered to produce no pollen whatsoever, eliminating their primary value to bees.
Garden centers and seed catalogs promote these varieties for their cleanliness in floral arrangements, rarely mentioning the ecological trade-off. Bees will still visit these flowers initially but quickly abandon them when they discover there’s no food reward.
If you want sunflowers that actually support pollinators, avoid any variety labeled “pollenless” or “pollen-free.” Traditional varieties like ‘Mammoth’ or ‘Italian White’ produce abundant pollen that native bees collect enthusiastically while still making excellent cut flowers if that’s your goal.
13. Gerbera Daisies
Commercial gerbera daisies fill floral departments with their perfect, colorful blooms, but most varieties offer surprisingly little to pollinators. These heavily modified flowers have been bred for size, color range, and vase life—often at the expense of accessible pollen and nectar.
Many commercial varieties feature densely doubled centers that block bee access to reproductive parts. Even single varieties have often been selected for reduced pollen production to improve their longevity as cut flowers and prevent the “mess” of pollen drop.
For daisy-lovers wanting to support pollinators, native coneflowers (Echinacea), black-eyed Susans (Rudbeckia), or asters provide similar aesthetic appeal with genuine ecological benefits. These native alternatives offer abundant, accessible pollen and nectar while bringing the same daisy form to your garden.
14. Heavily Modified Canna Lilies
Modern canna lily varieties with exceptionally showy blooms might create tropical drama in gardens, but many have been bred to prioritize ornamental traits over ecological function. The most heavily modified varieties feature flowers so complex that pollinators cannot access reproductive structures.
Garden centers promote these dramatic plants for their bold foliage and flowers without addressing their limited wildlife value. Some varieties have stamens that have been converted to petal-like structures, completely eliminating their pollen production.
If you enjoy the tropical look of cannas, seek out species types or simpler varieties closer to the original wild forms. These maintain the dramatic foliage and height while providing accessible flowers that hummingbirds and native bees can actually use for food, combining exotic aesthetics with genuine ecological function.
15. Chrysanthemums (Florist Mums)
Fall garden centers overflow with potted chrysanthemums in every color, but these autumn favorites offer almost no ecological value. Most commercial mums have been bred to produce dense, doubled flowers where extra petals replace pollen-producing parts, creating a food desert for late-season pollinators.
The timing makes this especially problematic—autumn is when many bee species desperately gather final food stores before winter. When I stopped planting decorative mums and switched to native fall bloomers, I was amazed at the increase in late-season pollinator activity.
Better alternatives include native asters, goldenrod, or mountain mint, which provide crucial late-season food for pollinators preparing for winter. These native options offer similar fall color and bloom time while actually supporting your local ecosystem during a critical seasonal transition.