Landscapes sustain us by giving us food to eat, air to breathe and space to live in — let’s repay the favor. When choosing what we plant, it’s important to respect our natural landscapes and the wildlife they support. Sustainable garden practices teach us that biodiversity, wildlife habitats and native plants are essential for a thriving, healthy environment. Busy pollinators, including bees, hummingbirds and some butterflies and birds, ensure that the natural processes of our landscapes remain in balance. Let’s look at summer-blooming native plants hailing from coast to coast that will help keep your garden and its unsung heroes singing. R DESIGN Landscape Architecture P.C. Treasured for its sunshine-yellow flowers, black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta, zones 3 to 9) shines brightly in cottage and perennial gardens. As an important food for butterflies and hummingbirds, this classic American flower is more than just a pretty face.

Benefits and tolerances: Pretty tolerant of dry conditions and can thrive in most kinds of soil

When to plant: Put nursery plants in the ground from late spring through midsummer; sow seeds in fall or spring.

See how to grow black-eyed Susan | Find your U.S. climate zone J. Peterson Garden Design Tubular blooms of climbing crossvine (Bignonia capreolata, zones 6 to 9) beckon hummingbirds in for a drink. Train it up a patio trellis or along a garden wall and enjoy the view.

Benefits and tolerances: Tolerant of both heat and cold; can be grown in the ground or in containers

When to plant: Plant nursery pots in fall or spring.

See how to grow crossvine Benjamin Vogt / Monarch Gardens The wildlife value of Culver's root (Veronicastrum virginicum, zones 3 to 8) tops many gardener's lists, including that of Central Plains gardener Benjamin Vogt, who considers it a staple design plant. Don't let the "root" part fool you; this plant has spiky white flowers that butterflies, moths and bees adore.

Benefits and tolerances: Makes a perfect rain garden addition

When to plant: Sow seeds anytime but cover with mulch during winter.

See how to grow Culver's root Benjamin Vogt / Monarch Gardens Most beneficial insects, from butterflies to bees to moths, find Virginia mountain mint (Pycnanthemum virginianum, zones 3 to 7) appealing. This U.S. Central Plains native grows almost anywhere and provides valuable nectar and wildlife shelter year-round.

Benefits and tolerances: Its flowers attract all kinds of insects, and the foliage shelters birds in winter. It’s tolerant of most soils.

When to plant: Seeds can be sown year-round.

See how to grow Virginia mountain mint Jocelyn H. Chilvers Garden visitors of all sorts can't resist the purple pom-poms of purple prairie clover (Dalea purpureum, zones 3 to 9). This playful perennial will have your garden abuzz with bees and butterflies this summer. It is a legume, meaning it also is a nitrogen fixer, adding natural fertilizer to the soil.

Benefits and tolerances: Prefers full sun; tolerates drought and heavy clay soils.

When to plant: Sow seeds spring through fall.

See how to grow purple prairie clover Plant Select® Fernbush (Chamaebatiaria mellifolium, zones 4 to 8) hails from the rocky slopes of the western United States. This unsung native attracts bees, butterflies and birds with its fragrant foliage and petite white flowers.

Benefits and tolerances: Heat and drought tolerant; adapts to most soils

When to plant: Plant cuttings or sow seeds spring through fall

See how to grow fernbush Benjamin Vogt / Monarch Gardens Moving into fall, blue sage (Salvia azurea, zones 4 to 9) fuels hummingbirds on their migration south and draws beneficial bees in with its tubular blooms. This true blue flower dramatizes the native prairie garden oh so subtly.

Benefits and tolerances: Easy to grow from seed and relatively drought tolerant

When to plant: Divide plants in spring, or you can start seeds indoors over winter.

See how to grow blue sage Barbara Pintozzi Damp soil and standing water pose no threat to the often-forgotten Joe Pye weed (Eupatorium purpureum, zones 5 to 10), shown here with blazing star (Liatris spicata) and purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea). Plant this prairie native and welcome hummingbirds, bees and butterflies summer through fall. It requires consistently damp soil.

Benefits and tolerances: Tolerates full, hot sun

When to plant: Plant seeds or readily available nursery containers in fall.

See how to grow Joe Pye weed Edger Landscape Design Southern California’s iconic Cleveland sage (Salvia clevelandii, zones 8 to 11) invites hummingbirds, butterflies and bees all summer long. Plant it for its floral scent, which recalls native California chaparral.

Benefits and tolerances: Known for its fragrance, Cleveland sage is also drought tolerant and a fire-wise choice.

When to plant: Spring or fall

See how to grow Cleveland sage Noelle Johnson Landscape Consulting Autumn sage (Salvia greggii, zone 7) wows gardeners, hummingbirds and butterflies with its vibrant blooms and prolific blooms. Native from New Mexico, Mexico and Texas, desert gardeners will find that autumn sage thrives best in dappled shade or under a tree canopy, while Southern gardeners can plant the flowering shrub in full sun.

Benefits and tolerances: Drought tolerant, but prefers deep, weekly watering; attracts butterflies and hummingbirds

When to plant: Fall or spring

See how to grow autumn sage Ellen Sousa/Turkey Hill Brook Farm Woodland gardens in the eastern U.S. can make room for the attractive and well-behaved native trumpet honeysuckle (Lonicera sempervirens, zones 4 to 9). This flowering vine climbs up arbors, over walls or porch railings, with small trumpet-shaped flowers opening up for hummingbirds and bees to drink their nectar.

Benefits and tolerances: Foliage is deer-resistant; hummingbirds and native bees feed on flowers’ nectar; birds eat berries; butterfly and moth species use it as a host plant

When to plant: Spring through fall

See how to grow trumpet honeysuckle Crimsoneyed rosemallow (Hibiscus moscheutos, zones 4 to 9), a prolific bloomer in the Hibiscus genus, produces flowers up to 8 inches across that will make you think you’re transported to a tropical paradise. This southeast and eastern U.S. native is a wetland plant and will attract hummingbirds and native bees when planted in a rain garden, swale or pond edge.

Benefits and tolerances: Long bloom season; tolerates wet soil, brackish water and tidal marshes; attracts native bees and hummingbirds

When to plant: Transplant in fall; collect seeds in autumn for spring planting

See how to grow crimsoneyed rosemallow Spotted beebalm (Monarda punctata, zones 3 to 8) is a resilient, low maintenance and long-blooming Eastern native that attracts important pollinators, including bees and wasps, as well as other beneficial insects. Colorful bracts extend the length of time the plant appears to be in bloom. Mid-Atlantic gardener Curtis Adams recommends planting spotted beebalm in a mix of native plants around a vegetable garden.

Benefits and tolerances: Deer resistant; soil tolerant; attracts pollinators and beneficial insects

When to plant: Sow seeds in fall or early spring; plant bare root plants or nursery containers in spring

See how to grow spotted beebalm Pete Veilleux, East Bay Wilds California buckwheat (Eriogonum fasciculatum, zones 5b to 10) is a must-have plant for wildlife in the California native garden. This mounding shrub, with its reliable, showy white flowers, is an important food source for pollinators, who feed on its nectar in summer. Birds and mammals feed on its seeds and also find cover in its foliage.

Benefits and tolerances: Deer resistant; attracts butterflies like bees and butterflies; slope stabilizer

When to plant: It’s ideal to plant in fall so that the plant can establish roots in the rainy season, but it can also be planted throughout the year

See how to grow California buckwheat Holm Design & Consulting LLC Gardeners, and pollinators, across North America can enjoy Maximilian’s sunflower’s (Helianthus maximiliani, zones 2b to 8b) towering stalks of summer blooms. Maximilian blooms in late summer into fall, during a lull in the blooming season, and provides necessary nectar and pollen for pollinators.

Benefits and tolerances: Tolerates many soil types, with the exception of heavy, wet clay; prefers full sun, but an overall versatile plant; attracts pollinators and beneficial insects

When to plant: Spring

See how to grow Maximilian’s sunflower

Your turn: Is your garden abloom with plants that birds and butterflies love? We’d love to see a photo!