Most insects have a positive impact in our landscapes. Native plants can be selected to attract specific bees and beneficial insects including predatory and parasitic wasps, beetles, flies, true bugs, and lacewings. Learn about the predator-prey relationships of these flower-visiting beneficial insects and how they help keep problem insect populations in balance. The life cycles, diversity, and nesting habitat of native bees will also be covered along with examples of native plants for different site conditions.
About Heather Holm
I am a a biologist, pollinator conservationist, and award-winning author. I passionately inform and educate audiences nationwide, through my writing and many presentations, about the fascinating world of native pollinators and beneficial insects, and the native plant communities that support them.
I am the author of four books: Pollinators of Native Plants (2014), Bees (2017), Wasps (2021), and Common Native Bees of the Eastern United States (2022). Both Bees and Wasps have won multiple book awards including the American Horticultural Society Book Award (2018 and 2022 respectively). My expertise includes the interactions between native pollinators and native plants, and the natural history and biology of native bees and predatory wasps. My work has been featured in the New York Times, Minneapolis Star Tribune, and many local publications. I am also an accomplished photographer and my pollinator photos are frequently featured in print and electronic publications.