Vanier Pollinator Garden

Nault Park Pollinator Garden

A pollinator garden was planted at Nault Park at 325 St. Denis, Vanier in June 2023, with the help of several Vanier volunteers, and the Beautification Committee of the VCA. Funding for the garden was received from the City of Ottawa’s Community Environmental Projects Grant Program. The garden is located on the unceded land of Anishinaabe Algonquin people.

The garden features a large full sun garden on the northeast corner of the park and a small shade garden in the northwest side of the park. Over 250 native plants were planted, with more than 25 different species of native plants. These plants will provide nectar, pollen and habitat for pollinators such as bees, flies, moths, butterflies, wasps, some beetles, and some bird species. Pollinators are critical to safeguard our food supply and to support biodiversity. The Nault Park Pollinator Garden will contribute to a healthier and more vibrant ecosystem in Vanier.

Illustration: Yin yang symbol with a monarch butterfly and a bee on one side, and a flower on the other side.

Become a pollinator citizen scientist!

You can help monitor the biodiversity within Nault Park by becoming a member of the iNaturalist project: https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/nault-park-pollinator-garden-vanier-ottawa-on

Download the iNaturalist app on your smartphone (Android app on Google Play or iPhone app in the Apple App Store). Then, create an account and join the Nault Park project on iNaturalist. When you’re in the park, take pictures of any pollinators that you see, including bees, butterflies, beetles, wasps, flies and other insects. Upload your pictures to iNaturalist and tag them according to the species. It’s important to geo-tag your photos, so the app will know where the picture was taken. Once you’ve uploaded your pictures, you can ask other iNaturalist community members who are experienced in identifying pollinators to help you identify what you’ve found. Collecting data using iNaturalist will help you and your community understand which pollinators are present in Nault Park.

Learn more about native plant gardening

Check out these resources:

French resources:

Shade Garden

Plants in the Shade Garden and the Pollinators they attract:

Photo of Joe Pye Weed flower with monarch butterfly

Sweet Joe Pye Weed:

Thrives in moist soil and partial shade. Attracts butterflies such as monarchs, swallowtails, and painted ladies, as well as honeybees and bumblebees.

Close up photo of the Flat Topped White Aster

Flat Topped White Aster:

Can grow in drier soil and full sun. Attracts butterflies such as eastern tailed-blues and pearl crescents, as well as honeybees and bumblebees.

Photo of Heart Leaf Asters in full bloom

Heart Leaf Aster:

Prefers moist soil and partial shade. Attracts butterflies such as monarchs, painted ladies and eastern tailed-blues, as well as honeybees and bumblebees.

Close up of Zig Zag golden rod bloom

Zig Zag Golden Rod:

Can grow in a wide range of soil and sun conditions. Attracts a variety of bees, including honeybees, bumblebees, and solitary bees, as well as butterflies such as monarchs.

Photo of Wild Columbine flower

Wild Columbine:

Adapts to many growing conditions. Its early blooms attract migrating hummingbirds. It is the larval host plant for the Columbine Duskywing Butterfly. It also attracts bees, including honeybees, bumblebees and sweat bees.

Close up photo of the Hairy Beardtongue flower

Hairy Beardtongue:

Prefers well-drained soil.  Attracts a variety of bees, including honeybees, bumblebees, and leafcutter bees, as well as butterflies such as the eastern tiger swallowtail and painted lady.

Photo of White Wood Aster blooms

White Wood Aster:

Grows well in moist soil and partial shade. Attracts various types of bees, including bumblebees, honeybees, miner bees, and sweat bees, as well as butterflies such as monarchs and eastern tailed-blues.

Photo of Bottle Brush Rye fronds

Bottle Brush Rye:

Thrives in well-drained soil and in partial shade to full sun. Attracts a variety of native bees, including squash bees, leafcutter bees, and mining bees, as well as butterflies such as the painted lady and eastern tailed-blue.

Photo of Northern Sea Oats

Northern Sea Oats:

Grows well in moist soil and partial shade. Attracts bumblebees, honeybees, and other long-tongued bees, as well as butterflies such as the eastern tiger swallowtail and great spangled fritillary.

Close up photo of Blue Violets flowers

Blue Violets:

Grows in well-drained soil and partial sun. Attracts various types of bees, including sweat bees, mining bees, and bumblebees, as well as butterflies such as the great spangled fritillary and eastern tailed-blue.

Clump of Pennsylvania Sedge

Pennsylvania Sedge:

Grows well in shade. It supports several caterpillar species and provides shelter and nesting material for birds.

Full Sun Garden

Plants in the Sun Garden and the Pollinators they attract:

Photo of Wild Bergamot flowers

Wild Bergamot:

Grows well in well-drained soil and sun. It is a larval host plant for the Hermit Sphinx Moth. Attracts a variety of bees, including bumblebees, and sweat bees. Attracts beetles, wasps, flies, moths and butterflies such as the eastern tiger swallowtail. Attracts hummingbirds and the hummingbird clearwing moth.

False Sunflower:

Prefers well-drained soil and full sun. Attracts a variety of bees, as well as beetles, wasps, flies and butterflies such as the painted lady and eastern tiger swallowtail.

Close up photo of Anise Hyssop flowers

Anise Hyssop:

Thrives in well-drained soil and full sun. Attracts a variety of bees, including bumblebees and honeybees, as well as butterflies such as the monarch and eastern tailed-blue.

Close up photo of Stiff Golden Rod flower head with bee in background

Stiff Golden Rod:

Suitable for sunny, dry areas. Attracts a variety of bees, including mining bees, long horned bees, sweat bees, leafcutter bees, carpenter bees and bumblebees. Attracts many types of wasps and flies and attracts butterflies such as the monarch and eastern tiger swallowtail.

Photo of Vervain flowers with bee flying toward the camera

Vervain:

Prefers moist soil and full sun. Attracts various types of bees, including bumblebees, sweat bees, leafcutter bees, mining bees and honeybees. Attracts flies and butterflies such as the eastern tiger swallowtail.

Photo of Mountain Mint flower heads

Mountain Mint:

Grows well in moist soil and full sun. Attracts wasps, flies, beetles, ants, bees and butterflies.

Close up of Hairy Beardtongue flower with butterfly

Hairy Beardtongue:

Prefers well-drained soil.  Attracts a variety of bees, including honeybees, bumblebees, and leafcutter bees, as well as butterflies such as the eastern tiger swallowtail and painted lady.

Photo of Prunella flowers.

Prunella (Heal All):

Grows in a wide range of soil and sun conditions. Attracts various types of bees, including bumblebees and honeybees, as well as butterflies such as the eastern tiger swallowtail and painted lady.

Close up photo of New England Aster flowers

New England Aster:

Thrives in well-drained soil and full sun. Late summer and fall blooming.  This is the larval host plant of the Pearl Cresent Butterfly and the Canadian Sonia Moth.  Attracts a variety of bees, including mining bees, honeybees, carpenter bees, leafcutter bees, sweat bees, long horned bees, cuckoo bees and bumblebees, as well as butterflies such as the painted lady and eastern tiger swallowtail.

Photo of Orange Butterfly Weed flower heads

Orange Butterfly Weed:

Prefers well-drained soil and full sun. This is a larval host plant for monarch butterflies and the Milkweed Tussock Moth.  Attracts a number of other butterflies including sulphur butterflies and fritillary butterflies.  Attracts various types of bees, beetles and wasps.

Close up photo of Nodding Onion flowers

Nodding Onion:

Grows in a wide range of soil and sun conditions. Attracts various types of bees, including bumblebees, leafcutter bees and sweat bees. Also attracts beetles and butterflies such as the eastern tiger swallowtail and painted lady.

Photo of Pearly Everlasting flower heads with bee

Pearly Everlasting:

Grows well in well-drained soil and full sun. Attracts various types of bees, including sweat bees and mining bees.

Close up photo of Lance Leaved Coreopsis flowers

Lance Leaved Coreopsis:

Prefers well-drained soil and full sun. Attracts various types of bees, including honeybees and bumblebees, as well as butterflies such as the eastern tiger swallowtail and painted lady.

Photo of Switch Grass

Switch Grass:

Thrives in well-drained soil and full sun. Attracts a variety of bees, including honeybees and bumblebees.

Photo of Little Bluestem grass clump

Little Bluestem:

Prefers well-drained soil and full sun. Attracts butterflies and bees. Benefits birds with nesting materials and seeds that are important winter food.

Photo of Prairie June Grass fronds

Prairie June Grass:

Grows in sunny, dry locations. Attracts birds and provides nesting materials and structure for native bees.

Photo of False Indigo flowers

False Indigo:

Grows in sun. This plant is native to the north-eastern United States and considered a near native in Ottawa. It attracts many pollinators.

Image of spotted bee balm flowers with bee in background

Spotted Bee Balm:

Grows in sunny, dry locations. Attracts the Great Black Wasp and Great Golden Digger wasps. Attracts beetles and bees including sweat bees, long horned bees and bumblebees.