Sweet Flowering Plants for the Beekeeper’s Garden

If the idea of beekeeping appeals to the gardener, she’ll need a garden that will offer those buzzing honey-makers a good selection of sweet flowering plants.

The Bees’ Dance

When a bee flies from one plant to another, it collects the pollen and nectar from those flowering plants it has contact with, and in this dance, the pollen gets transplanted to other plants in the garden, as well as to those plants beyond the garden walls. This sustains the bee, giving it enough fats, proteins, and sugars to continue the cycle of pollinating the flowers, as well as bringing nectar to the hives.

Locating the Bee Garden

Consider the location for those plants carefully when making a bee garden. It should be in a sunny area sheltered from strong winds. Locating the bee garden is the first step.

The Best Flowers for Bees

Bees are drawn particularly to low-growing flowering plants planted in large clumps. They use a lot of energy on their forages, so a garden filled with all the foods they love will keep them coming back, and will keep the gardener in honey for a very long time.

1. Some of the most attractive and best flowers for bees include California poppies, forget-me-nots, cornflowers, love-in-a-mist, clarkia, sunflowers, candytuft, heliotrope, phacelia, cosmos and zinnias. These are all annuals.
2. Perennials include geum, dahlias, bellflowers, goldenrod, lamb’s ears, monarda, oriental poppies, anemone, thrift, sea holly and liatris. Bees are also drawn to some bulb plants including fritillaries, crocus, snowdrops and allium.
3. The best herbs include asparagus, mint, lavender, marjoram, sage, borage, foxgloves, thyme and rosemary. Rosemary is a tender perennial and may have to be brought inside for the winter in lower garden zones.
4. Bees are drawn to numerous wildflowers including dandelions, marsh marigolds, meadowsweet, clover, thistles and viper’s bugloss. Leaving a little clover in the lawn is not only pretty, but the bees will love it.
5. The gardener could also add some trees and shrubs to this list. They love lilacs, virginia creeper, maple trees, honeysuckle, roses, weigela, potentilla, buddleia, quince, dogwoods and currents.

This is a very short list of the most common, hardy and easily found flowering plants that bees are attracted to. Bees love diversity, so a good selection of these plants is necessary if the gardener or beekeeper want to keep them coming back. And many of these flowers will also bring hummingbirds to the garden.

The Bee’s Role in the Ecosystem

Bees play a huge role in the ecosystem. These little pollinators are responsible for the apples on the trees and the berries on the bushes. It has been shown that bees will keep the plants in the garden productive and healthy. Simply by adding a few clumps of the plants bees love to a protected area of the garden will result in healthier plants, and beekeepers will have improved hives.

References

• Ontario Ministry of Agriculture Food and Rural Affairs: Beekeeping and Honey Production Business Information Bundle
• Central Beekeepers Alliance