Have you heard the buzz surrounding bees? These critters are more than just fuzzy little insects in your garden, they’re a vital part of the world’s ecosystem and they need your help! So, if you’re looking to plant bee-friendly flowers, here’s a few faves that both you and the bees will love.
Why are bees important?
For such small creatures, bees play an incredibly important role in our planet. Their primary job is to pollinate flowers, which helps the plants grow and reproduce to create more plants. But we’re not just talking about daffodils and bluebells, bees also pollinate the flowers for important food crops too. It’s estimated that 75% of the world’s crops depend on pollinators – from almonds and apples to strawberries, squashes, and even coffee. Imagine not being able to start the day with your morning brew.
Not to mention, all the trees, flowers, and shrubs that bees pollinate, create a diverse habitat for lots of animals and insects to thrive in.
Long story short, bees are incredibly important.
Bee-friendly flowers
Unfortunately, bee populations have been in decline over recent years due to habitat loss, pesticides, and climate change. But we can help!
Your garden is the perfect space to create a safe, food-rich haven for bees. Even a small patio can be fantastic to plant some bee-friendly flowers for them to pollinate. Not sure which flowers to choose? Keep reading to learn about some amazing bee-friendly flowers.
Lavender
Not only does this flower smell amazing, but it’s also a great addition to your bee-friendly garden. Bees can see the colour purple more easily than any other colour, which makes lavender a great pick for your garden.
Winter honeysuckle
While bees are most active in the summertime, there are a few species that are around during the cooler months too. Liven up your winter garden while providing a great source of food for bees by planting winter honeysuckle, a fantastic bee-friendly flower.
Thyme
Did you know bees love the flowering tops of herbs? Kitchen favourites like thyme, rosemary, chives, and sage make great pollen-rich choices for your garden and provide wonderfully fragrant plants you can use in your own kitchen. A win for the bees and your teas!
English bluebell
Bees absolutely love English bluebells, which carry rich nectar and pollen. They do well in shady areas, which is great if your garden or patio doesn’t get much sun. Plant these bee-friendly flowers to help the little guys out and bring a bit of colour to your outdoor space.
Foxglove
This flower is especially important to bees with long tongues, like the carder bee. The colourful petals attract the bee to the plant, and the long tube shape of the flower gives the bee a place to land before gathering up the nectar and pollen. The perfect, pretty pitstop!
How to care for your bee-friendly flowers
Your flowering garden is the perfect place to use your compost as it gives the flowers vital nutrients to let them grow and thrive. As well, you and your little ones can create a bee hotel for bees to nest in. Soon your garden will be a true haven for bees!
Got time to learn more?
If you liked our guide on bee-friendly flowers, you’ll love these great garden reads:
- – Rewilding: What is it and how does it work?
- – 4 major ways composting helps the environment
- – Are worms beneficial to composting?
- – How to make your own DIY compost bin
- – Children’s corner: Composting critters
Join our milkround
Now you’re ready to plant bee-friendly flowers, why not continue your green do-gooding with a little help from our milkround? Our mission is to reduce waste by making the switch to sustainable shoppingas easy as possible. That’s why all our packaging is either returnable, reusable, recyclable or home-compostable – to turn landfills into land-empties.
Sign up to our milkround and you’ll get waste-fighting groceries and essentials on your doorstep before 7.30am. And with deliveries up to three times a week, you’ll never have a milk-less morning or egg-less evening again.
