Author Topic: not sure if ive asked this? (Read 2321 times)

waterbuffalofarmer · « **on:** November 08, 2015, 10:49:00 am »

I have a list of plants, herbs and flowers for bees for next year which I will plant in the garden. Could you guys suggest anything I may have missed? Which plants do you recommend? What plants do you use? They must be fragrant and pretty.

Bionic · « **Reply #1 on:** November 08, 2015, 11:17:06 am »

If you give us your list we might have more chance of knowing if you have missed anything

waterbuffalofarmer · « **Reply #2 on:** November 08, 2015, 12:30:31 pm »

My list so far is.....

Wild Thyme
Echinaecia
Lemon balm ( I already have a few of these)
Comfrey ( again I have lots of this, need to plant more though)
Lavendar ( again lots of this, more needed)
Rocket ( I grow it every year the bees love it)
Borage
Chamomile
Marigold
Calendular
Cornflower
( I have plenty of gorse, flowers all year round, well almost anyway)
A few I have found which are good for bees are these.....
Myosotis arvensis '' Field forget me nots'' so I will be trying them next year, they're good source of nectar for bees in spring
Garden annuals,
Cosmos
Lantana
Sunflower
Borage. Could anyone give me any more ideas? I would like flowers and herbs for all year round.
Another one is snowdrops.

cloddopper · « **Reply #3 on:** November 08, 2015, 01:37:35 pm »

Hardy perennial Fuchsia are not only very pretty and nicely scented , they also bloom from the end of May ( some times earlier) till well past the first light frosts.
You do need to prune each shrub back to about two or three inches tall once the leaves had gone .

If our hardy Fuchsia are anything to go by , they are also prolific nectar & pollen producers throughout the whole season . We live at 350 foot ( 117 mtrs ) above sea level and get some strong slightly salt laden winds occasionally, as well as a few biting northerly and north easterlies as we are 11 miles inland from the Bury Port inlet on the Bristol Channel . I do dead head the plants almost every week to keep them flowering .

Our six hardy plants have survived several sessions of minus 6 oC for a week or more , so if you are having those sort of conditions I'm happy to take a few cuttings for you in spring .

Ivy is a special plant... If you can get a lot of it growing . As it provides a tremendous amount of late pollen and nectar from late august to mid Nov or some times later . Just don't make your honey sales with it as it gives humans the runs. I and a lot of bee keepers find the scent quite welcome , others say it is cloying and gives them a sickening head ache if they are exposed to ti for long.

Laburnum , Willow & Hazel are an early source of nectars & pollens .
Obviously you'll need to take into account of any stock/ animals you have

Rhea · « **Reply #4 on:** November 09, 2015, 08:24:09 pm »

I would add some late flowering asters to help their winter stores, and crocus for the spring. If you have some wilder areas, phacelia seems to be a favourite.

Caroline1 · « **Reply #5 on:** November 09, 2015, 11:01:37 pm »

For me it is about getting a long flowering period with lots of open flowers so they have easy access to the necter and pollen. Borage has always been a favourite for mine although have noticed lots on buddelia plants as well.

cloddopper · « **Reply #6 on:** November 09, 2015, 11:34:06 pm »

I forgot to mention that we also have no end of hardy perennial pansy's that flower right though winter ... when they get leggy I put the electric strimmer across them , give them a liquid feed on to the soil not he plant and within a fortnight or so they are back to producing flowers .
We also have a fair few Russel Lupin's ......currently they are well in flower & when it's sunny or not but is over 10 oC & in between rain showers the honey & bumble bees are still working them hard .
Once the first stalk stops flowering at the top we cut it out low down and await new ones to arrive. come winter when they die back we cut them to a few inches long , the next year they come back with a vengeance.