Buzzing bees underneath the sky, flitting butterflies, and a fully blooming garden is one beautiful scene every gardener wants. Do you have such scenery in your garden?
There is a big decline in bees around gardens. Bees are wild pollinators and are highly needed in every garden. This is one of the main reasons you need to attract bees to your garden.
For most people, bees are for making honey and wax. But for gardeners, there are more important reasons to have bees in your garden.
Let’s dig deep and see why bees are important to your garden.
Importance of Attracting Bees To Your Garden
Bees are important to the ecosystem. Bees pollinate flowers and other plants in the garden. Bees are adapted to pollinate. They help plants breed, grow, and produce food.
They ensure the cycle of life keeps running by transferring pollen from one flower to another. The vast majority of plants in the gardens rely on pollination to produce food.
Take, for example, squash, almonds, apples, and vanilla. These are plants that heavily rely on pollination to produce. While there are other insects like butterflies that help with pollination, bees pollinate up to 80% of wildflowers worldwide.
Our world will be less flowery without bees. Simply put, bees are vital to a healthy economy and healthy environment.
Long story short: If you want more flowers and fruits in your garden, you need a reliable pollinator. Bees are your best bet to ensure maximum pollination in your garden.
But how do you attract bees to your garden?
Top Tips to Attract Bees to Your Garden
Attracting bees to gardens has been practiced ever since. There are proven techniques one can use to attract bees to your garden. Let’s see some of the tips to attract bees to your garden.
Plant flowers that bees love
The first and most important step to attracting bees to your garden is planting flowers they love. Bees love a tempting flower bed. In any colony of bees out there searching for a place to set a hive, flowers play a crucial role.
Bees will always settle in places with a lot of flowers. In addition, bees will choose flowers with a lot of nectar and pollen. Attract bees by giving them their favorite snack.
There are a few flowers that are considered tempting for bees. Below are some of the plants and flowers that bees love.
- Butterfly Weed
- Coneflower
- Clover
- Black-eyed Susan
- Marigolds
- Goldenrod
- Wild Bergamot
- Milkweed
- Columbine
- Lavender
- Poppies
- Geraniums
- Zinnias
- Asters
- Bee Balm
- Cranesbill
Most of the plants are flowers on the list and are known to produce a lot of nectar and pollen. The plants are bee-friendly and will hugely attract bees to your garden.
You can plant bee-friendly wildflowers around your garden. This is a great way to attract bees native to your area. What’s more, you’ll be attracting bees without planting so many plants in your garden. It’s also a great way to support the ecosystem.
Make your garden diverse
You also need to make your garden diverse by having as many different plants and flowers as possible.
Consider plants and flowers that bloom in different seasons of the year. This way, you’ll attract bees throughout the year. Grow trees and herbs that vary in height.
Single flowers with a ring of petals are also a great choice. Such flowers tend to provide more nutrients and food to bees. They also make it easier for the bees to reach the pollen.
Set a place for the bees to drink
Bees, like other insects and animals, require a fresh supply of water. Create an easy-to-reach source of clean and fresh water. Fresh water is a big attraction for bees.
Before landing on the flowers, bees will get into the water for a quick drink. If you live near a source of natural water, then the job is done for you.
But if you live in dry areas, consider creating a birdbath with clean and fresh water. It helps bees settle, knowing they are not getting a thirst for long periods.
Avoid the use of pesticides
Pesticides have played a big role in the decline of bee colonies over the years. You want to make sure you avoid the use of pesticides in your gardens. Instead, consider biological methods of controlling pests.
Pesticides are harmful to bees and can keep bees away. If you’re afraid of bees living too close to your home, seek professional help. Don’t use pesticides to kill or chase them away.
Bees are a critical part of the ecosystem and should be treated properly.
Protect and maintain shelter & nesting grounds
You also want to make sure there are sheltered areas around where bees can set their colonies. Bees avoid breezy areas, so make sure you reserve tall trees to help act as windbreakers.
Make sure you preserve ground nesting grounds, as some bee species nest in the ground.