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Planting a bee borderWe've all heard about the decline of the bee population due to loss of habitat and food sources, as well as increased use of pesticides.This growing season why not do something to help our bees? There are some very easy ways to make your yard, garden or patio pollinator friendly.
1. Grow non-hybridized flowers and vegetables. Hybridization often removes the pollen from a flower making it unusable to pollinators. Good examples of plants to grow are often labeled as Heirloom varieties, are native to Minnesota or are considered wildflowers.
2. If you purchase plants from a greenhouse or big box store look for plants labeled as grown without neonicotinoids. This is a type of pesticide especially harmful to bees as studies have shown the pesticide, "may impact some bees’ ability to forage for nectar, learn and remember where flowers are located, and possibly impair their ability to find their way home to the nest or hive." (Texas A&M Agralife Extension).
3. Encourage others to plant pollinator friendly gardens and containers.
4. Keep deadheading (or removing) the dead flowers. This will encourage more flowers to grow. If your plants are setting seed that means the pollinators have been there and done their job! Which is a good thing, but removing the spent flowers/seed heads will encourage the plant to produce more flowers, providing a continued food source for the pollinators.
Now is the perfect time to be thinking of and planning your bee border. The idea is to provide a variety of nectar rich flowers from early spring well into fall.
A couple of seasons ago I planted my first garden specifically for bees. It is one of my favorite borders in my garden with all of it's vibrant flowers and the buzzing of the bees, and the butterflies love it too. The photos in this post show my bee border through the growing season. |
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 | Bird's Eyes
This is a California native grown as an annual in MN. Yes, that's blue pollen! |
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 | | Scabiosa and Yellow wallflowers |
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 | | Zinnias, Verbena bonariensis, Agastache |
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 | | Nicotiana, Zinnias, Mina lobata |
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List of suggested nectar rich plants
Here's a short list- there are many others. Most of these are annuals -meaning they complete their growing cycle in one season and need to be planted each spring. While this might mean a little more effort in planting during the spring, you will be rewarded with masses of flowers all season long in addition to helping the bees. Choose a sunny location with 4 or more hours of sunlight. Perennials and bulbs where noted.
Pansies and Johnny Jump Ups
Wallflowers
Bachelor's Buttons
Ammi majus
Poppies - my favorites are Lady Bird, Icelandic and California
Zinnia - heirloom varieties, especially Beanary's Giant Mix (in a range of colors)
Nicotiana - heirloom varieties, such as Jasmine Alata
Mina lobata this is a vine that needs support
Morning Glory - also a vine
Verbena bonarensis
Bird's Eye's
Verbascum 'Southern Charm' (Perennial)
Agastache (Perennial)
Scabiosa (Perennial)
Veronica (Perennial)
Sedum 'Autumn Joy' (Perennial)
Daffodils, Scilia, Crocus, and Snowdrops - all bulbs planted in the fall.
I focused on flowers in this post, but vegetables and herbs like dill and chives are also an important source of nectar for pollinators- so don't limit yourself to just flowers! |
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| Don't have much space? Every little bit helps- even a couple of pots of non- hybridized flowering plants in your yard or on a deck or porch. Bees can't distinguish property lines, so encourage your neighbors to plant flowers too. A few plants in your garden and a few here and there across several yards makes for a larger ecosystem as a whole. The important thing is to provide nectar rich flowers for the bees. |
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