| 1 |
Blackberry |
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6 |
9 |
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| 1 |
Borage |
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| 1 |
Buckwheat |
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| 1 |
Clover |
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White is
best, crimson for useful early summer |
| 1 |
Cotoneaster |
Cotoneaster spp. |
|
|
s |
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Often
covered in bees when in flower. |
|
| 1 |
Field Beans |
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| 1 |
Fruit blossoms |
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| 1 |
Hawthorn |
Crataegus monogyna |
5 |
6 |
t |
|
|
A major
honey plant. |
|
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| 1 |
Heath |
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|
like
heather? |
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| 1 |
Heather |
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| 1 |
Laburnum |
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|
When
laburnum is in flower the hum of bees can be heard from some
distance. |
| 1 |
Lime |
Tilia spp. (vulgaris (common)
& platyphyllos ) |
6 |
7 |
t |
|
|
A major
honey source, but only for very large gardens. Some varieties
may be poisonous for bees. |
| 1 |
Mustard/Charlock |
|
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|
|
Charlock
a troublesome weed |
|
| 1 |
Sainfoin |
|
5 |
6 |
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| 1 |
Sycamore |
|
5 |
6 |
t |
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| 1 |
Willowherb |
|
6 |
8 |
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| 1 |
Willows |
|
1 |
4 |
t |
|
|
Important
early pollen sources. See footnote [1] |
|
| 2 |
acacia (false) |
Robinia pseudoacacia |
6 |
6 |
t |
|
|
Needs hot
weather to yield nectar. |
|
| 2 |
agrimony |
|
|
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|
p |
|
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|
| 2 |
Bee Balm |
Monarda didyma |
|
|
|
|
|
Tall
perennial from North America, with spires of flowers usually in
shades of red and pink. Related and equally useful are Horsemint
(M. fistulosa) and Yellow Horsemint (M. punctata) |
| 2 |
Catmints |
Nepeta spp |
|
|
|
|
|
Perennials;
the true catmint beloved of cats is N. cataria. Bees also love
the Blue Catmint (N. mussinii) and the tall, shrubby, lemony N.
govananii |
| 2 |
Comfrey |
Symphytum
officinale |
|
|
|
Invasive
perennial, with attractive, edible foliage and bell-like pink or
cream flowers, a must for bumblebees |
| 2 |
Cone Flower |
Echinacea |
|
|
|
|
|
Splendid
prairie perennial, with showy, daisy-like purple flowers on tall
stems, also medicinal |
| 2 |
Globe Thistle |
Echinops ritro |
|
|
|
|
|
The
round metallic thistle-like flowers of this tall perennial are a
magnet for all species of bees |
| 2 |
Hemp Agrimony |
Eupatorium
cannabinum |
|
|
Fluffy
mauve flowerheads; a tall perennial. Even taller and equally
attractive to bees is Jo-pye weed (E. purpureum) |
| 2 |
Holly |
Ilex aquifolium |
|
|
|
t |
|
Good bee
plant - and the dried leaves burn with a very fragrant smell in
the smoker. |
| 2 |
Horsechestnut (only for those with plenty of
space) |
Aesculus
hippocastanum |
|
t |
|
Grow the
white variety - the red will poison bumblebees. |
| 2 |
Hyssop |
Hyssopus
officinalis |
|
|
|
|
A
small shrub, bearing spikes of intense blue flowers, also
available in pink or white - bees seem to really like the blue |
| 2 |
Jacob’s Ladder |
Polemonium
caeruleum |
|
|
|
Early
perennial l, blue and white flowered varieties |
| 2 |
Lavender |
Lavandula |
|
|
|
|
|
All
varieties of this popular shrub bring bees murmering contentedly
into the garden |
| 2 |
Lemon Balm |
Melissa
officinalis |
|
|
|
|
Perennial.
Melissa is Latin for honey, and it is said that lemon balm
rubbed on the hive will keep bees together and content, reducing
the swarming impulse. |
| 2 |
Lungwort |
Pulmonaria
officinalis |
|
|
|
Very
early flowering, with tubular blue and pink flowers, perfect for
early hive foragers or queen bumbles waking after hibernation.
Perennial |
| 2 |
Marjoram |
Oreganum vulgare |
|
|
|
|
|
Perennial
aromatic with pink or white flowers, bearing nectar over a long
period in summer and autumn |
| 2 |
Meadowsweet |
Filipendula
ulmaria |
|
|
|
|
Perennial,
bearing white flowers in early summer. A useful honey plant for
that sometimes difficult season |
| 2 |
Mints |
Mentha spp. |
|
|
|
|
|
Gloriously
invasive perennials, all of which are the best news a beekeeper,
or a bee, can have. |
| 2 |
Orpine |
Sedum telephiem |
|
|
|
|
|
This
rarely grown native perennial is closely related to the
ice-plant. Shaggy pink flowerheads |
| 2 |
Rosemary |
Rosmarinus
officinalis |
|
|
|
Shrub,
eventually becoming covered with purple-blue flowers immensely
useful for bees of all species |
| 2 |
Sage |
Salvia officinalis |
|
|
|
|
|
Shrubby
perennial, with showy spires of flowers. All perennial Salvias
are good for bees, inc. S. apiana (obviously) and S. sclarea (clary
Sage), but not the red bedding sorts |
| 2 |
Thyme |
Thymus spp. |
|
|
|
|
|
Thymes
are small, usually spreading, sometimes bushy shrubs. Bees love
all of them, but especially the highly floriferous T. serpyllum
cultivars such as Bressingham Pink or Russettings. |
| 2 |
Willow |
Salix spp. |
|
|
t |
|
|
All good,
but the golden pussy willow is one of our most important early
sources (of pollen). |
| 3 |
Achillea |
|
7 |
8 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 3 |
Alder |
|
|
|
t |
|
early
pollen |
|
|
|
|
| 3 |
Hazel |
Corylus avellana |
|
|
t |
|
|
Source of
early pollen. |
|
|
|
Also
recommended: Agastache, Allium schoenopraesum, Buddleia weheriana
(and less good, globosa), Centranthus ruber,
Dipsacus, Geranium pratense, Lythrum salicaria, Perovskia,
Stachys officinalis, Verbena, Valeriana.
|
