If you’re a gardener, beekeeper, or just someone who likes to help nature, you probably have an interest in gardening for bees. In fact, bees are an important part of life as we know it. They’re responsible for pollinating so many plants and flowers that they play a key role in the production of fruits and vegetables. If you’ve ever noticed your favorite plants growing especially well after planting them next to your bee hives or bee boxes, then you already know that bees love nectar-rich flowers! So if you want to attract more bees into your garden or yard while also encouraging other critters like birds and butterflies—or if there are some flora that annoys them—here are some of the best flowers.
What is Pollinator
A pollinator is an animal that moves pollen from the anther of one flower to the stigma of another. Pollinators are essential for the reproductive process, and many plants rely on animals to obtain their own genetic material.
The most common pollinators include bees, butterflies, moths, beetles, flies, birds and bats. Some animals such as hummingbirds are nectarivores and will eat from flowers instead of pollinating them.
Sunflower
Sunflowers are a good source of nectar and pollen for bees. Bees will also find food in sunflowers, as many insects can be found on this flora. Sunflowers are also useful for bees because they offer water to thirsty bees when it is hot outside or during dry times. Sunflowers are aesthetically pleasing and make your garden or yard look beautiful.
Borage
Borage is a fabulous bee plant. It attracts honeybees and other beneficial insects to your garden, which will in turn pollinate your fruits and veggies.
Borage is also easy to grow, so if you’re new to gardening, it’s a good place to start. Its flowers are big and bright blue, which makes them easy for bees to spot from afar. The leaves are edible too—they taste kind of like cucumbers (which makes sense since they’re related). You can use them fresh or dried as an herb in cooking! Borage is a great companion flora because it repels aphids and cabbage moth caterpillars while attracting bees at the same time.
Catmint
Catmint is a perennial herb that’s not only great for bees, but also attracts butterflies and hummingbirds. It’s a member of the mint family and produces an abundance of nectar and pollen. This means it can be used as an alternative to bee-friendly plants like lavender or bee balm (monarda).
Catmint is also pollinator friendly and fairly easy to grow. It prefers well-drained soil but will tolerate partial shade. You’ll need to divide your catmint every few years so that each flora has adequate space to grow without crowding its neighbors—although if you have plenty of space in your yard, you could keep one plant without dividing it.
Calendula
Calendula is another bee plant with bright yellow flowers that are known for its healing properties. It is a perennial flora that blooms in the summer and can be grown in your garden or in containers. Planting calendula will attract bees and other pollinators to your garden, as well as provide lovely color and an herbal scent.
Lavender
Lavender is a perennial herb that is native to the Mediterranean and has been used for both culinary and medicinal purposes for centuries. It belongs to the mint family, and it’s easy to see why: it smells like fresh mint!
Lavender is an excellent bee friendly flora because not only do bees love lavender flowers, but they also help pollinate them as well. In addition to this, lavender provides many benefits to humans as well. For example, it can be used in cooking with meats or poultry (it gives them an aromatic flavor) and helps create fragrant vinegar when combined with other herbs such as rosemary or thyme.
Furthermore, lavender oil can be applied directly to the skin for its healing properties (it contains chemicals known as terpenes). These terpenes are thought by some people today that may even help prevent cancerous tumors from forming if applied regularly over time.
Foxglove
Foxglove is a perennial flora that grows in the spring and summer months. It has many medicinal uses, including as an aid to heart conditions and rheumatic pain. It’s also a great bee friendly plant.
Foxglove attracts pollinators and is also one of the only plants to produce its own nectar; meaning that if you are creating an edible garden full of flowering plants that provide nectar, foxgloves will be able to feed on their own without needing to rely on any other plants around them.
Aster
The Aster family is a very large, diverse group of plants. The genus includes at least 1,500 species and is represented by herbaceous and shrubby floras, trees, subshrubs, and lianas.
They are found throughout the world except for Antarctica. Some species are important as food sources for humans. Asters also offer habitat to pollinators like bumblebees and butterflies. Planting them in your garden will help support biodiversity.
Aster flowers have five petals that can be small or large with many colors from white to yellow to purple and blue with more than 100 varieties available today! They attract bees and are pollinator friendly because they produce nectar that bees use for food which helps pollinate other plants nearby like apples trees or onions.
Crocus
If you’re a beginner gardener, the crocus is a great flora to start with. It’s one of the first things to bloom in early spring, which means bees can get started on their pollination work early. The crocus is also easy to grow and will grow back year after year. It is one of the good pollinator friendly shrubs.
Crocus is a good source of pollen and nectar for bees throughout their flowering period (which usually lasts two weeks). They’re easy to care for—you just need to make sure they get enough sun and water during dry spells—and can be planted in multiple locations around your garden so that they don’t compete with other plants for sunlight or soil nutrients.
Oregano
Oregano is a perennial herb, meaning it comes back year after year. It’s also considered a good companion flora and attractor plant because it helps to repel harmful pests away from your garden.
Oregano is an important nectar and pollen-producing flora for bees; it produces both in abundance. The flowers are large, white, and bluish purple with yellow throats that make them easy for bees to spot from far away. The leaves are also fragrant which gives off another sensory cue for bees to find them more easily.
Anise Hyssop
Anise hyssop (Agastache foeniculum) is a hardy perennial that produces velvety purple flowers in late summer. Native to Europe and Asia, this aromatic herb is highly drought tolerant and can grow up to 3 feet tall. It attracts various pollinators like butterflies, hummingbirds, and bees with its sweet anise scent.
Anise hyssop is an excellent companion flora for tomatoes because it helps repel pests such as hornworm caterpillars and aphids from your plants; however, it can be invasive if not controlled by pinching out its new shoots when they appear at the base of the flora or by division every other year.
Conclusion
The best plants for bees and pollinators are those that support the health of bees and their environment. Bees and pollinators need flowers and plants to gather pollen, nectar, and water for food as well as shelter from predators and weather extremes. In return for providing a safe haven for them, we benefit from their pollination activities which are crucial for our survival because they help plants produce fruit, vegetables, and seeds so we can eat them.
In conclusion, bees and pollinators are important to the food supply and the environment. With that in mind, it is important to make sure there are plants available for them to pollinate and that they have a place to live. A bee can give you many things.
Also Read:Â How to keep pollinators happy and healthy in a drought
