Please Be Nice to the Bees

Bees are beneficial insects that we want in our garden.

Do you actually know why you NEED them?

We talk a lot about beneficial insects, but mostly we've been referring to those
beneficial predatory insects that patrol our gardens for insect pests.

There is another type of 'beneficial' insect.....the pollinators.
Bees aren't the only pollinators, flowers are also pollinated by butterflies,
hummingbirds, moths, and wasps.

By planting flowering annuals and perennials, you are

welcoming bees and pollinators into your yard.....

....creating a safe haven for them to feed and rest.
And nest and procreate.

In order to provide an oasis for pollinators,  be sure to plant so that you have a
season's worth of blooming, with overlapping flowering periods.


For example, in early spring tulips, daffodils, pansies,
chives, borage, and fruiting trees and shrubs will bloom.

 If you don't have a garden, you can still provide food and shelter for the pollinators
with container plantings on your front step or deck, plus you'll get fresh herbs all season.
Flowers on your deck also attract hummingbirds.

 Mid- to late-spring and summer bloomers include strawberries, petunias,
shrimp plants, iris, phlox, and diascia. 

Once the heat starts, the garden vegetables will be

loaded with blossoms.

It's also nice to leave a few native 'weeds', such as hawkweed to flower,
as the bees and butterflies love them. 

Come fall, the asters and the marigolds will bloom along with the calendula and many herbs.

Let's all provide our pollinators with a safe haven in our yards and gardens this year.
Let's all plan ahead for a continuous bloom from spring til frost,
and vow to not use neonicitinoids.

The birds and the bees and the butterflies will thank you by doing you the huge favor

of pollinating your flowers and your veg crops, too.

 Bees pollinate over one third of all fruits and vegetables on the planet.

The goal of all plants is to produce seed to ensure the survival of the species.
Seeds, once produced, can be eaten by humans, birds, and animals.  These seeds are
then dispersed either by wind or by birds or animals in their droppings.

 Without pollination, vegetables don't produce fruit, and without fruit, there are no seeds.
Flowers must be pollinated to produce fruit and seeds, and in all cases, more than one flower
is necessary for pollination.  Enter the busy little bees.  They fly from flower to flower pollinating
all day long.   If you're nice to the bees, you'll be rewarded with more uniform fruit.

The simple truth is that the bees need you, and you need them.