Planting plans for pollinators: hoverflies

James Lawrence, RHS Principal Horticultural Advisor, has designed this simple, attractive, and most importantly, sustainable border design for you to try at home, with plants that are easy to grow, widely available and look good together.

James Lawrence

Pollinating insects are in decline, but there are plenty of flowering plants to help them. Including more flowering plants in our gardens can also improve fruit and vegetables – with more pollinating insects around, harvests will be bigger and better.

The Origanum and Erigeron provide some ground cover and will help to prevent erosion of bare soil. Ground cover plants can also help to reduce moisture evaporation from the soil surface and suppress weed growth.

Until the plants have filled out, an organic mulch, preferably homemade compost, can help to improve soil moisture retention and weed suppression. Mulches should be spread when the soil is already moist, to help trap some of that moisture before it dries out in summer.

1 –Viburnum opulus ‘Notcutt’s Variety’ is a large deciduous

Deciduous refers to plants (mainly trees and shrubs) that lose their leaves seasonally, usually during autumn. This is a natural process triggered by the season's shorter days and lower temperatures and allows plants to conserve energy during the winter months. shrub with deeply lobed, glossy, dark green leaves that turn orange-purple and dark red in autumn, and flattened clusters of large white flowers in late spring and early summer.

2 –Foeniculum vulgareis an aromatic perennial

Perennials are plants that live for multiple years. They come in all shapes and sizes and fill our gardens with colourful flowers and ornamental foliage. Many are hardy and can survive outdoors all year round, while less hardy types need protection over winter. The term herbaceous perennial is used to describe long-lived plants without a permanent woody structure (they die back to ground level each autumn), distinguishing them from trees, shrubs and sub-shrubs. with fine, feathery mid-green leaves and branching stems bearing flat umbels of small yellow flowers in summer.

3 –Viburnum opulus ‘Compactum’is a deciduous shrub, smaller than ‘Notcutt’s Variety’, with lobed dark green leaves that turn purple-red in autumn, and flat heads of creamy-white flowers in early summer.

4 –Echinacea purpureais a herbaceous perennial with hairy, spear-shaped leaves, and daisy-like flowerheads with purple-pink petals and golden-brown centres from midsummer to autumn.

5 –Echinacea purpurea ‘White Swan’ is a herbaceous perennial with hairy, spear-shaped leaves, and daisy-like flowerheads with white petals surrounding orange-green centres from midsummer to autumn.

6 –Origanum ‘Rosenkuppel’ is a compact, low-growing perennial with aromatic, purple-flushed leaves and flat clusters of tiny purple flowers in summer.

7 –Erigeron ‘Sommerneuschnee’ is a herbaceous perennial forming a low, spreading clump with masses of white summer flowers that turn pink with age.

Using scientific evidence, our extensive experience and the records of gardeners and beekeepers, we’ve selected a range of year-round flowering plants for pollinators to tackle the decline in pollinator numbers. The RHS Plants for Pollinators lists were systematically reviewed by our team of experts in 2025 and relaunched with new plants added. Visit our Plants for Pollinators page for details, and to discover more of the best plants for attracting pollinators.

Many insects are suffering from a lack of pollinator-friendly plants in the landscape to provide nectar and pollen. By offering a good range of pollinator-friendly plants in our gardens, we can help these essential creatures to thrive. Increasing biodiversity

The variety of living organisms (plants, animals, fungi and microorganisms) in a particular environment. Boosting the biodiversity of your garden has many benefits, including supporting wildlife, improving soil health and reducing the likelihood of pest and disease problems. is also beneficial for encouraging a healthy garden ecosystem in general, which in turn helps to keep our plants healthy.

Choose plants with a variety of different flower types and structures in order to attract a wider range of pollinators across the seasons. A succession of overlapping flowering times over the course of the year ensures there is always something available.

Gardens are a valuable habitat for hoverflies, which are vital for the food chain and provide important pollination services. Hoverflies get their name from their ability to hover in mid-air. Many hoverflies mimic wasps, honeybees or bumblebees with stripes, bands and markings of black and yellow. However, hoverflies do not bite or sting.

The larvae of many hoverfly species feed on aphids, while others are efficient nutrient recyclers, making a valuable contribution to a natural balance in gardens. Visit our hoverflies in your garden guide and recommended plants for hoverflies to discover more information about attracting hoverflies to your garden.

Using the ethos of ‘right plant, right place’ to create a sustainable planting combination is great for the environment. It helps to avoid waste, and the use of products and practices needed to try and help ailing plants, such as applying fertiliser. It also creates robust, long-lived planting that benefits soil health and garden biodiversity

The variety of living organisms (plants, animals, fungi and microorganisms) in a particular environment. Boosting the biodiversity of your garden has many benefits, including supporting wildlife, improving soil health and reducing the likelihood of pest and disease problems. . For more information about sustainable gardening, please see the RHS Sustainability Strategy.

By attracting more pollinating insects, this combination will help to improve overall biodiversity by in turn encouraging birds and other wildlife into your garden.