We should all be aware that our native bumblebees have been rapidly declining in recent years. These trusty pollinators play a vital roll in our wildlife so wouldn’t it would bee nice to give something back and turn around the trend?
The good news is we can all help the cause by introducing bee friendly plants into our gardens. We’ve listed some of our favourite nectar and pollen rich plants that bees just can’t resist. Luckily for us having a bee-friendly garden doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice on beauty, quite the contrary, bees are especially attracted to colourful (they love purple) and strongly scented flowers and shrubs as well as lots of delicious herbs.
Try some of these bee friendly flowering plants:
Allium ‘Globemaster’ – Ornamental onion
Agastache foeniculum – Anise Hyssop
Aquilegia caerulea – Granny’s bonnet
Buddleja davidii – Butterfly bush
Cercis siliquastrum – Judas Tree
Digitalis purpurea – Common foxglove
Echinacea purpurea – Coneflower
Jasminum officinale – Common jasmine
Knautia macedonica – Macedonian scabious
Lathyrus odoratus – Sweet pea
Lavandula angustifolia – English lavender
Lonicera fragrantissima – Winter honeysuckle
Mentha spicata – Spearmint
Papaver orientale – Oriental poppy
Perovskia atriplicifolia – Russian Sage
Philadelphus ‘Belle Etoile’ – Mock orange
Rosmarinus officinalis – Rosemary
Sarcococca confusa – Sweet box
Scabiosa causcasica – Pincushion flower
Thymus vulgaris – Common thyme
Verbena bonariensis – Purple top
Viburnum opulus – Guelder rose
For more tips on how to save our bees, go to:
www.bumblebeeconservation.org
www.saveourbees.org.uk
