Creating a wildlife friendly hugelkultur bed.

Greetings all. I wanna find out what it takes to create a hugelkultur bed for wild creatures such as butterflies, hummingbirds, bees, songbirds and other earth dwelling insects such as worms, pillbugs and others. I've created one in my backyard a few years ago planted elderberry, milkweed, sunflowers, wild mint, dropseed and others. Could you share me more and ideas to help my hugelkultur garden more suitable to native creatures and native flora for generations to come? Thanks!

Blake said, "Could you share me more and ideas to help my hugelkultur garden more suitable to native creatures and native flora for generations to come?

If I were creating a hugelkultur garden especially for butterflies and other pollinators I would try to start with perennial native flowers and herbs.

How large are you planning for this garden?

I would like to suggest starting with Creeping Thyme, Thymus praecox which is a perennial that is usually recommended as a ground cover.  I feel this will help hold the soil on the sides of the hugel. Creeping time comes in a variety of colors.


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Joe Pye Weed is a taller growing perennial that would be good for the top of the garden bed.


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Another good perennial would be Purple Coneflowers (Echinacea purpurea):


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Some hostas and native annuals would be good to fill in and add more cover.  My favorite is Firewheel or Blanket Flower:


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This thread might give you more suggestions:

https://permies.com/t/61605/Creating-Edible-Medicinal-Garden-Butterflies

What about shrubs and trees? And could we add little ponds or small pools for birds to bathe and stuff?

Turk's Cap cap is a shrub that might work for you it is a late bloomer as it does not bloom until August.



I believe a lot of your threads have "Midwest" in the title and I am not real familiar with plants for that area.  I lived in Indiana for a short time, though I didn't pay a lot of attention to trees and shrubs.

Rosemary is a nice smelling shrub though it likes to spread its wings (limbs) so it would need about 4 or 5 ft.

As for a pond or pool for birds that would be great as all wildlife need water.  Depending on the amount of space you have a bowl or pan might work for that.

Blake, you might want to plant Witchhazel (hamamelis virginiana) if you have room.  It is great native medicinal and also a late season food source for bees.  Flowers bloom at beginning of winter.

I think I have more room at my community farm down on the south side. How about buttonbush, snowberry, coralberry, and others that will deal with erosion and maintaining soil stability. You planted partridge pea before as a cover crop?