The Little Shovel - Pollinator Gardens in Bozeman, MT

Plants in Action Series

Erica Mita of The Little Shovel takes pride in creating and installing gardens that accomplish a variety of goals. She has used the 3,600 sq ft lot adjacent to her own home in Bozeman, MT to showcase how native plant-driven design can function and offer enjoyment to homeowners and pollinators alike.

The planting site includes a mix of uses including a native-focused garden area that combines true natives and some ornamental cultivars, traditional lawn, and a permeable paver pad for travel-trailer parking. With this project, Erica aimed to create a functional example of how homeowners can integrate multiple goals at one site - you can create a pollinator garden without sacrificing a yard that can tolerate foot traffic. She hopes that her yard will serve as inspiration and offer ideas that others can adapt depending on what they want to accomplish.

The overarching goal of this garden project was to create a comprehensive and structured pollinator planting with a focus on bloom time to ensure continuous food sources for pollinators. Erica’s descriptions of the garden through the seasons:

“SPRING:

Streambank wild hollyhock provides tall, early-season vertical structure and has proven to be disease-resistant, unlike many traditional cottage-style hollyhocks. Western coneflower adds texture and form without introducing additional color, contributing a sense of calm and cohesion. Penstemons offer shorter structure and color, with a mix of early- and mid-spring bloomers, which pair great with Yarrow, Cutleaf Daisy, and Common Self Heal.

SUMMER:

In summer, Maximilian sunflower becomes a standout along the contemporary white siding of the house, offering height, long-lasting bloom, and volunteer seedlings that can easily be shared with neighbors and friends. In the main garden, Narrow-leafed and Pale Purple Coneflower paired with Swamp Milkweed, and Purple Prairie Clover keep the meadow alive with summertime blooms. Anise Hyssop and Desert 4 O’clock are also reliable long bloomers mixed with Prairie Drop Seed Grass along the charred finished retaining wall.

One of the most interesting plantings in the garden has been Hooker’s evening primrose, which formed a dense stand that visually softened and largely concealed utility boxes over a three-and-a-half-year period. The area shown in the photos began with a single purchased plant that was allowed to self-seed at the end of year two. Seedlings quickly established the following season, and by the fourth season had filled in extensively —all without irrigation beyond natural rainfall. As a short-lived perennial, the primrose then began to taper, demonstrating how native plants can solve practical site challenges while remaining dynamic over time. When in bloom, the flowers appear almost as if yellow butterflies have settled across the planting.”

Small adjustments have been made over the course of the garden’s development. As a multi-year project, Erica has been able to witness how the plant's resources and relationships have changed with time, and adapted the garden in response. 

One of her primary takeaways from this project is the value that she has found in being able to source and use true native plants. She finds great value in having access to locally grown native plants from Great Bear Native Plants because of the expanded opportunities they present in supporting our native pollinators.

Erica's Top Plant List

• Maximillian Sunflower

• Streambank Hollyhock

• Prairie Dropseed

• Hooker's Evening Primrose