With the worldwide bee population in decline and the detrimental effect it will have on ecosystems plus if the bees die there will be no more honey and that is a crying shame. Despite their decrease in numbers Stamford researchers have discovered that bees are picky when it comes to pollination. The RSPB state that not all garden centre flowers are alike or good pollinators. There definitely are bee friendly flowers out there but our gardens may be filled with the wrong types.
So, what can we do to help them thrive?
We could buy acres of land and dedicate them to bees and other wildlife, we could petition our local council and parks to provide a wildflower meadow, you could take up bee keeping as a hobby, buy or build a little bee home out off a box and some tubing for your garden or balcony or plant some bee friendly flowers.
Did you know bees have a favourite colour and that it’s purple? Image – A. Jay
Let’s be realistic the last two options are probably the best even the most environmentally conscious among us can aspire to. A little space can make a big difference, a window box, a standalone pot by your front door or a corner of your garden would work very well. There are a number of bee friendly plants and they loosely separate into a few broad categories.
- Purple flowers
- Herbs
- Spring bulbs
- Tubular flowers
Did you know bees have a favourite colour and that it’s purple and a lot of these plants cross purposes? For example, chives or rosemary flowers class as both herbs and purple.
There are a number of bee friendly plants.
Here’s a, by no means comprehensive, list of the best plants for bees:
Bluebells
Chives
Coriander
Crocus
Daffodils
Fennel
Foxglove
Lavender
Lilac
Poppy
Rose
Rosemary
Sage
Snowdrops
Sunflowers
Thyme
So, if any take your fancy, plant something you like. The writer has a fondness for practicality, especially where lack of space is a concern, as in the single pot or window box for example and would maybe go for a mixture of kitchen herbs, have a bee garden and a kitchen garden in one. Make it as useful and as pretty as possible with moderate upkeep. So Sage, Rosemary and Thyme (there’s a song in that somewhere) with some Coriander and a bit of Lavender for fragrance and butter would be the perfect mix of hardy and tasty to you and the bees.
Stamford researchers have discovered that bees are picky when it comes to pollination. Image – A. Jay
