Gaura is a genus of flowering plants in the Onagraceae family, native to North America. The common names for Gaura plants include bee blossoms and butterfly bushes, which provides a clue that they are good pollinator plants. But what exactly is a pollinator plant, and does Gaura specifically attract and support pollinators?
What is a Pollinator Plant?
A pollinator plant is one that attracts and supports pollinating insects and animals. Pollinators include bees, butterflies, moths, hummingbirds, bats, and other creatures that assist with the pollination and reproduction of flowering plants.
Pollinator plants provide nectar as a food source for pollinators. They also give pollinators places to nest and shelter. Their flowers are designed in a way that makes it easy for pollinators to access the nectar and pollen. The pollen then gets transported by the pollinators to other flowers, enabling cross-pollination and fertilization.
Good pollinator plants typically have the following characteristics:
- Produce abundant nectar to feed pollinators
- Have pollen that is easily accessible and attractive to pollinators
- Bloom profusely over an extended flowering period
- Have flowers with shapes and colors that attract pollinators
- Are native plants well-adapted to local growing conditions
Plants with these traits are vital for supporting healthy pollinator populations. By providing crucial habitat and food sources, pollinator plants help sustain bees, butterflies, hummingbirds, and other pollinating creatures.
Key Features of Gaura Plants
So do Gaura plants possess the ideal qualities to be considered good pollinator plants? Let’s examine some of the key features of Gaura more closely:
Abundant Nectar Production
One of the defining features of Gaura is that they are prolific nectar producers. The nectar is held in tubes or nectaries at the base of the flowers.
Gaura can generate significant amounts of nectar, providing a rich food source for pollinators. Studies have measured nectar volumes anywhere from 1 to 5 microliters of nectar per Gaura flower.
The abundance of nectar rewards visitors and encourages pollinators to frequent Gaura plants.
Accessible Pollen
In addition to nectar, Gaura flowers also offer plentiful pollen that is easy for pollinators to access.
The flowers have visible stamens with exposed anthers where pollen is readily available. The pollen grains are small and powdery, making them easy to transfer.
The stamens protrude from the flowers, often extending beyond the petals. This placement allows ready contact with pollinators.
Prolific Blooms
Gaura are known for their long bloom time, with flowers opening progressively over weeks or months. The plants bloom from early summer well into fall.
Deadheading spent blooms can prolong the bloom period even further. The prolific flowers ensure there are always fresh nectar and pollen sources available.
Different Gaura species and cultivars bloom in whites, pinks, and reds. This variety supplies pollinators with bloom through the seasons.
Flower Shape and Orientation
The structure and orientation of Gaura’s flowers also appeal to pollinators. The flowers typically have four slender, pointed petals. The flower shape has been compared to butterfly wings or propellers.
The flowers are borne on long, airy stalks that flutter readily in the breeze. The filaments and style extend beyond the flower, suspending the anthers and stigma.
This unique orientation promotes contact with passing pollinators. The elastic petals and filaments also aid in transferring pollen onto pollinators.
Hardiness and Adaptability
Gaura are native to Texas and Louisiana. But they have proven hardy and adaptable to a wide range of climates, from hot and humid southern regions to drier western states.
Once established, Gaura plants are heat and drought tolerant. Their hardiness and adaptability to local conditions make them a low maintenance pollinator plant over a wide geographical range.
Pollinators Attracted to Gaura
Those key characteristics demonstrate why Gaura attract and support a variety of different pollinators. Here are some of the notable pollinators that visit Gaura plants:
Bees
Bees are strongly attracted to Gaura flowers. Their shape and nectar content appeals to honeybees, bumblebees, mining bees, mason bees, and other native bee species.
Observations show bees actively visiting the abundant small white, pink, or red blooms when they are in peak flower. The powdery pollen adheres well to the hairy bodies of bees, enabling them to transfer pollen between flowers.
Butterflies
Butterflies are also frequent flower visitors. Gaura’s small, tubular blooms with protruding stamens and styles are accessible for butterflies to extract nectar with their long proboscises.
The swaying flower spikes make it easy for butterflies to land and feed. Recorded butterfly visitors include swallowtails, sulphurs, hairstreaks, brushfoots, and skippers.
Moths
Like butterflies, moths can hover easily at the dangling Gaura blooms to insert their proboscis into the nectar-filled tubes. Moths active at dusk or night may be especially attracted to Gaura, since some varieties have flowers that open in evening hours.
Hummingbirds
Hummingbirds favor the red varieties of Gaura for their high-energy nectar. They use their specialized long, slender bills to drink the nectar while hovering by the fluttering flowers.
Hummingbirds also feed on any small insects attracted to the flowers. They appreciate the steady bloom supply through summer and fall.
Beneficial Insects
Along with the major pollinator groups, Gaura plants also draw in diverse beneficial predatory and parasitic insects like lady beetles, lacewings, syrphid flies, tachinid flies, and mini wasps.
These insects help control pests while also incidentally assisting with some pollen transfer as they visit the flowers.
Supporting Evidence that Gaura is a Pollinator Plant
Beyond those observational reports of pollinator activity, researchers have also directly studied how Gaura attracts pollinators in the field. The evidence consistently confirms its benefits.
Floral Visitors and Pollen Transfer
A study published in 2014 in the journal The American Midland Naturalist examined floral visitors and pollen deposition for two species of Gaura at a prairie site in Arkansas.1
The researchers found Gaura flowers received a high diversity of insect visitors, with flies, wasps, beetles, butterflies, moths, and bees all recorded. Bees were the most common and consistent flower visitors.
Examining pollen loads on insect bodies showed Gaura pollen being widely transported by this array of floral visitors. The research demonstrated the positive role these insects play in pollinating Gaura.
Nectar Production Rates
Another 2014 study published in the Southwestern Naturalist measured nectar production in Gaura plants over the flowering season.2
Across three different Gaura species at a Texas site, nectar volumes per flower ranged from around 1 to 5 microliters. Production was highest in the peak flowering period.
The results provide quantitative evidence of the abundant nectar rewards Gaura offers to attract pollinators.
Native Plant Recommendations
Researchers at the University of Georgia tested a diversity of native plants for their ability to recruit and retain pollinators. They recommended Gaura as one of the top native perennial plants for supporting wild pollinators in the southern United States.3
Specialists at the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation also endorse Gaura as an outstanding pollinator plant based on its floral characteristics and demonstrated pollinator services.4
These recommendations from experts further validate Gaura as a pollinator-friendly plant.
How to Use Gaura as a Pollinator Plant
Given the strong evidence that Gaura attracts and nourishes diverse pollinators, how can gardeners and land managers maximize these ecosystem benefits?
Here are some tips for successfully utilizing Gaura as a pollinator plant:
Select Appropriate Species and Cultivars
Choose native Gaura species adapted to your ecoregion. Recommended species include Gaura lindheimeri and Gaura coccinea in the southern plains, Gaura biennis farther northeast, and Gaura neomexicana in the Southwest.
Seek out cultivars like ‘Whirling Butterflies,’ ‘Crimson Butterflies,’ and ‘Blushing Butterflies’ specifically promoted for pollinators.
Plant in Masses
Pollinators are drawn to larger clusters and drifts of plants versus isolated specimens. Plant Gaura in aggregated clumps or undulating rows to create a bold pollinator friendly statement.
Provide Sequence of Bloom
Combine early, mid, and late season blooming varieties of Gaura to supply pollinators with extended floral resources. Partner with other summer and fall bloomers like Salvia, Rudbeckia, Solidago, and Monarda.
Allow Plenty of Space
Give Gaura room to grow to its mature size without crowding. Dense spacing stresses plants and reduces flowering. Space 18-24 inches apart in garden settings.
Use Repeated through the Landscape
Scatter drifts of Gaura throughout beds, borders, and pockets of space. Consistent repetition creates an interconnected mosaic of habitat and forage.
Provide Water in Dry Periods
Once established, Gaura are drought tolerant, but still benefit from occasional watering during extended dry spells. This maintains flowering, nectar production and attractiveness to pollinators.
Deadhead Faded Blooms
Remove spent flowers to promote reblooming. Cutting plants back by a third after initial flowering can also stimulate a flush of new growth.
Allow Self Sowing
Let some seeds fall in place to generate new generations of plants. This creates a natural effect and expands the pollinator friendly plantings.
Avoid Pesticides
Minimize use of insecticides, herbicides, and fungicides, which can be toxic to pollinators and other beneficial insects. Use organic approaches instead to support healthy ecosystems.
Conclusion
In summary, Gaura’s copious nectar, showy flowers, adaptable growth and long blooming make it highly attractive to a diversity of pollinators ranging from bees to butterflies, moths, and hummingbirds.
Research confirms Gaura’s ability to draw in and nourish these essential pollinating insects and animals. When utilized properly in the landscape, Gaura can be a beautiful, carefree, and ecologically friendly method to support pollinators.
The bouncing spikes of delicate color supplied by Gaura provide visual interest in the garden while also delivering tangible environmental benefits through pollinator promotion. Both gardeners and pollinators can relish and thrive with the inclusion of Gaura’s gracious, fluttering blooms.
