Planting for Bees

[susbees]

It's Himalayan Balsam . Illegal in UK to plant in wild. Acres of it. Attempts made to eradicate it.

And with quite some success round here.

 

[Easy Beesy]

Poached egg plant - self seeds and carpets an area

 

[Goran]

Our aster, I don't know is it good for your conditions. It gives nectar and pollen here at the end of August and in September. Easily spread, when planted the same year flowering, and no need for replanting. Also this variety isn't too tall and doesn't lay to the ground as some other tall varieties ( or wild ones).

 

[alldigging]

Poached egg plant - self seeds and carpets an area

I have seeds for that - and some borage seeds I salvaged off a plant before some idiot stood on it.

 

[BrianO]

Lovely pic... bring on the spring/summer .. heres hoping !

Interesting re Impatiens G. being a banned plant.

Watching the main man H.F.Whittingstall last night metioning what i had read previously that Pussy willow is one of the earliest food sources for our bees, and grows easily from cuttings, and large ones at that to get a headstart.

So going on my list to plant near hives, also Galanthus/snowdrops. Any other Humdingers ? that produce an abundance of nectar/pollen ? O.S.Rape is a given and the patches on our allotment drive the bees i viewed late last year wild it seems.

Sedum also as a late , i observed was particularily attactive for the loveable bumblebees

 

[whoosling]

Thank you for all contributions so far - this is a brilliant thread.
My number one late season plant recommendation is cosmos. Very easy to grow from seed, very lovely looking and extremely attractive to bees. Lots and lots of flowers from a single plant, ideal gap filler but also great in meadows.

cosmos in a good year will flower until well into October, japanese anemoni (prob spelt wrong) seemed popular with insects not sure if it's good for honey bees, lugwort is excellent, sea holly last for ages as well.

 

[BrianO]

Another one to note, just taken from a reference book,

" One of the bees favourite Wildflowers is Chamerion Angustifolium / Rosebay Willow Herb which is especially rich in pollen "

Also

" there are several types of Spiraea, medium sized shrubs that bear milky pink and white flowers , they are all prolific pollen producers full of nectar, so it is not unusual to find bees on the flowers all day long " http://images.search.yahoo.com/search/images?_adv_prop=image&fr=mcafee&va=Spiraea+bees

Another one for the list !

 

[Goran]

For BrianO:
If may I ask, what are your main forages in area and when. Or You have just some slow in flow whole season?

 

[madasafish]

Korean Evodia (Bee Tree)..

http://tinyurl.com/atpneac

Huge pollen nectar flows..

http://wolfescrossingfarm.com/11.html

I have grown 5 from seed. After 12 months they are 0.75 meters tall.

 

[Skyhook]

Watching the main man H.F.Whittingstall last night metioning what i had read previously that Pussy willow is one of the earliest food sources for our bees, and grows easily from cuttings, and large ones at that to get a headstart.

If you're planting willow for pollen, make sure you get a male clone!

 

[Somerford]

re sunflowers, I seem to recall reading somewhere (source lost) that some varieties aren't attractive to honeybees....

can anyone verify this ?

S

 

[Excession]

re sunflowers, I seem to recall reading somewhere (source lost) that some varieties aren't attractive to honeybees....

can anyone verify this ?

S

Nope, honeybees love sunflowers.

 

[SixFooter]

I dont always have colonies at home and I notice very little difference in the number of honey bees in the garden between when I do and when I dont. The Bees bombing out of the hives in mid summer seem to miss the garden by miles. I suspect the honey bees which are in my garden are mostly other people's.wever, I want bees in the graden any way, so I mostly only plant things that bees like.

Borage is a good un.

 

[alanf]

re sunflowers, I seem to recall reading somewhere (source lost) that some varieties aren't attractive to honeybees....

can anyone verify this ?

S

Have not seen any that don't attract bees. They can be weather dependant, in that nectar flows are better on warm days.

 

[peteinwilts]

re sunflowers, I seem to recall reading somewhere (source lost) that some varieties aren't attractive to honeybees....

can anyone verify this ?

S

Good to see you back on the forum!

I planted several hundred 'mixed' sunflowers a few years ago on the edge of one of the apiarys. After a fierce battle with slugs only about two hundred survived.
The butterflys and bumbles loved them... I often sat and watched the honeybees flying straight past them to the wild mint and brambles.
I would say they are probably not at the top of the shopping list when there is abundant other preferable sources..

 

[dáithí]

lots of pollen free cultivars out there, intended for use as cut flowers

 

[BrianO]

Korean Evodia (Bee Tree)..

http://tinyurl.com/atpneac

Huge pollen nectar flows..

http://wolfescrossingfarm.com/11.html

I have grown 5 from seed. After 12 months they are 0.75 meters tall.

Would love to try and grow some , can you tell me where you got seed ?

Also attended a fantastic lecture last night from the head gardeners of a famous state owned walled garden here in Dublin in our Phoenix park, who were discussing there experiences as first year beekeepers. Apart from being a brilliant lecture they mentioned many plants of interest in relation to planting for bees.

Oregano being one with a good nectar flow in summer over a prolonged period, also Thyme, Hellebores for early foraging.

 

[BeeJayBee]

re sunflowers, I seem to recall reading somewhere (source lost) that some varieties aren't attractive to honeybees....

can anyone verify this ?

S

lots of pollen free cultivars out there, intended for use as cut flowers

 

[BrianO]

Thought worth resurecting this

Re reading it found it very useful.

To add ,read recently quite often different cultivars of some species were better than others, like Lavender , Lavender Hidcote Giant proved better at attracting Bees than the standard Hidcote

 

[beecology]

this is exactly why the plant is so problematic. Bees and wasps turn to it at the exspense of natives and then the seed bank grows and grows.

Go native with planting, plenty of wonderful natives for bees. Spreading non natives for the sake of a honey harvest is a, illegal and b, shortsighted

Not that im suggesting you would personally