435 W. Starin Rd
Whitewater, WI
262-473-2140
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Pollinator Garden
Fairhaven Pollinator Garden
The Fairhaven Pollinator Garden converted more than 1,000 square feet of lawn in two locations into pollinator habitats with native plants at Fairhaven Senior Services. Created by a committee including Fairhaven residents in 2025-2026, the garden is funded and maintained through generous community donations — including grants from Wild Ones Kettle Moraine for the plants and the Whitewater Community Foundation for the signage — and volunteers.
Why Pollinators matter
Nearly one out of every three bites of food we eat depends on pollinators. Bees, butterflies, moths, flies, beetles, hummingbirds, and other animals help flowering plants produce fruits and seeds. Native plants provide the nectar, pollen, and habitat these important species need throughout the growing season. The resulting caterpillars and larvae are a critical food source for native songbirds hatchlings in the spring and the plants’ seeds feed adults throughout the year.
The Fairhaven Pollinator Garden helps native pollinators by:
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Providing nectar from spring through fall
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Supporting native bees and butterflies
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Creating habitat for beneficial insects
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Feeding birds through seeds and insects
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Improving biodiversity
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Demonstrating how small gardens can make a big difference
Plants in the garden
The following native plants were planted in the two pollinator gardens in May 2026. Plant groupings in the garden are marked with plant stakes for ease of identification.
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Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta)
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Blue-stemmed goldenrod (Solidago caesia)
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Butterfly weed (Asclepias tuberosa)
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Cardinal flower (Lobelia cardinalis)
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Dotted mint (Monarda punctata)
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Great blue lobelia (Lobelia siphilitica)
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Heart-leaved aster (Symphyotrichum cordifolium)
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Ironweed (Vernonia fasciculata)
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Jacob's ladder (Polemonium reptans)
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June grass (Koeleria cristata/macrantha)
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Lavender hyssop (Agastache foeniculum)
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Little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium)
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Moss phlox (Phlox subulata)
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New England aster (Aster novae-angliae)
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Nodding onion (Allium cernuum)
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Path rush (Juncus tenuis)
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Prairie blazing star (Liatris pycnostachya)
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Prairie coreopsis (Coreopsis palmata)
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Prairie dropseed (Sporobolus heterolepis)
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Prairie phlox (Phlox pilosa)
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Prairie smoke (Geum triflorum)
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Purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea)
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Purple love grass (Eragrostis spectabilis)
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Purple prairie clover (Dalea purpurea)
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Queen of the Prairie (Filipendula rubra)
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Showy goldenrod (Solidago speciosa)
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Side-oats grama (Bouteloua curtipendula)
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Silky wild rye (Elymus villosus)
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Smooth blue aster (Aster laevis)
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Spiderwort (Tradescantia ohiensis)
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Spotted Joe-Pye weed (Eupatorium maculatum)
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Sweet Joe-Pye weed (Eupatorium purpureum)
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Tall coreopsis (Coreopsis tripteris)
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White-tinged sedge (Carex albicans)
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Wild bergamot/bee balm (Monarda fistulosa)
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Wild columbine (Aquilegia canadensis)
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Wild geranium (Geranium maculatum)
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Wild/sundial lupine (Lupinus perrenis)
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Zigzag goldenrod (Solidago flexicaulis)
Donate to the garden fund
Donations to the garden are appreciated and help us replace plants and make other improvements. Checks in support can be made out to the Fairhaven Pollinator Garden fund and sent to David Gackstatter at 435 W. Starin Rd. Whitewater, WI 53190 or simply left at the Fairhaven front desk.
The Fairhaven Pollinator Team
The original Fairhaven Pollinator Garden team, which first started meeting in the summer of 2025, included residents Betty Brown, Sue Chuppa, Karen Coburn, Kaye Eckert, Chris Lange, Becca Penn, Janet Rothman, Dan Sable, and Sue Weigel, and community member Kristine Zaballos.
Contact Us
For questions about the garden itself, contact the volunteer caretaker at fairhavenpollinatorgarden@gmail.com
For questions about Fairhaven, fill out the contact form.