Sunday, May 5, 2013

Good plants to have for bees...

I am going to be doing a bit of research on the diet of bees. I know they like nectar and help pollinate, but I want to try and figure out exactly what they like to eat, and what is the healthiest for them. Currently I have a GIANT vegetable garden that has recently been planted. Nothing is flowering out of that yet, but other plants in my yard have already started flowering.

I have the following plants, trees bushes in my yard:
2 cherry trees (Ranier and Black)
4 apple trees (Jonathan, Golden Delicious and some kind of red)
2 fig trees (Green and Black)
Oregano
Marjoram
Parsley
Borage
Chives
Lovage
Hissop
Lemon Balm
Comfrey *
Lavender *
Rosemary *
Strawberries
24 rose bushes
Centaurea Montana
Full butterfly garden bushes
Tulips
Irises
Lilac Bush
Dandy Lions
White Little Daisy Plant?
Grass
In my vegetable garden I will have peas, beans, cucumbers, tomatoes, artichokes, asparagus, lettuce, spinach, potatoes, carrots, basil, squash, zucchini, sunflowers and more...

Here they mention bees like Borage http://www.rosybee.com/?p=165

Herb plants for bees http://www.buzzaboutbees.net/herb-planting-for-bees.html
"Lemon Balm In the past, beekeepers would rub a handful of lemon balm (Melissa officinalis) inside the hive after hiving a new swarm, in order to help the swarm settle and to encourage them not to leave the hive. Rubbing hands with the leaves is also claimed to help prevent bee stings!"

"Buying Flower Bulbs For Bees
These days, pesticides may be used in the cultivation of bulbs and plants by the horticulture industry. Neonicotinoids are systemic pesticides, and are a subject of much controversy – read more about this on the page honey bee deaths and pesticides. These pesticides persist in soil, and are not easily degraded.

In order to make doubly sure I avoid any possibility or risk that I will unwittingly poison the bees or pollute my garden soil with any pesticide contaminating my flower bulbs, (or indeed other plants), I take the following precautions:

I either -

    1. Buy organic, or
    2. Swap with friends and relatives with similar views, or
    3. Buy them from a local farmers' market, where we are fortunate to have a plant stall owned by a hobby gardener I trust, or
    4. Purchase from a local nursery I trust."
     
     
     
     

 * Excellent for Bees!


I just planted a Rosemary plant this morning. It looks like I need to boost my lavender and rosemary garden...

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