If you want flowers that will attract bees to your garden like crazy, consider growing agastache foeniculum (anise hyssop or licorice mint). I discovered this plant by accident years ago when I planted some seeds from a mislabeled seed packet. Agastache foeniculum is a perennial herb that blooms from seed the first year. The leaves smell like licorice when you crush them and can be used in teas and desserts and as a salad garnish.
Agastache foeniculum grows 2-1/2 to 3 feet tall in full sun to part shade. Its listed as a Zone 6-10 plant, but it survives normal winters in my Zone 5 garden and has done well in my mom’s Zone 4 garden. Even if the main plant dies out over winter, there are always a few volunteers the next year. I use the volunteers to fill emergency spots where rabbits have wreaked havoc on my annuals.
The plants have no disease or pest problems and grow on stiff stems that do not need staking. Out of hundreds of plants that I grow, Agastache foeniculum is the clear favorite of the bumblebees and honeybees that visit my garden.
If you’re looking for a smaller plant, there’s an AAS-winning cultivar called ‘Golden Jubilee’ which grows only 20 inches tall and has golden-yellow foliage.