Feed Your Bees Naturally: Best Flowers For Honey Bees

In the lean months of the year, many bee keepers supplement their bees natural diet by supplying them with sugar water and pollen patties.  In this post, I cover some natural alternatives that I plan to try in 2011.

Over the Winter months, bees live on stored supplies of honey and pollen.  In very cold climates, or in cases where the bee keeper has harvested honey aggressively in the Fall, bees may not have enough food to survive the Winter or provide for new brood in the early Spring.  It is fairly common for bee keepers to supplement natural stores with a 2 to 1 mixture of sugar to water and protein supplements.

I was fairly conservative with harvesting this Fall and it looks like the bees have survived the Winter.  In a week or two, I'll open my hives for the first time this season and check to see if any supplements might be required for Spring.  My hope is that I can avoid supplements altogether.  This got me thinking about ways that I could provide bees with the Fall and Spring nectar and pollen sources that would reduce my need for any un-natural intervention.  

I've done some research and here are some plants you can add to your garden that will help your bees.  I've concentrated on those that produce in the Spring and Fall.  Where possible, I've also tried to select dual purpose crops that are useful for both your bees and your garden.

Borage - this is an annual plant that is used medicinally.  This plant can over-winter and provide nectar for bees in the Spring.  It requires full sun.

Echium - a very showy shrub that produces large "spikes" of blue, red, lavender or pink flowers.  There are about 60 species of this plant and they can be annual, biennials or perennials. Echium are mostly for temperate climates (zone 9-11) but you can find some varieties that can survive in zone 6 if you search the Internet.  Echium Candicans (Pride of Madeira) is a perennial that blooms from spring through summer.  Echium Wildpretii (Tower of Jewels) is a huge biennial that blooms in the late spring.  Ecium Vulgare is the most common of the species, but is very prickly and most would consider it a highly invasive weed. Echiums should be planted in full sun and provide bees with both nectar and pollen.

Goldenrod - I'm going to add this perennial plant but grow it in a large pot.  It's considered by many to be a weed and is very invasive.  I have less than fond memories of Goldenrod since I suffered from allergies as a child.  Growing it in a pot will leave me the option to remove this plant if I find my allergies kicking up again.  Goldenrod blooms form mid-Summer through the Fall so it will help bees stock pile nectar for the winter. 

Tansy - This annual plant has an extended blooming season of up to two months beginning in the early Spring.  It provides bees with both nectar and pollen.

White Clover (Melilotus alba) - If your a gardener, white clover packs a double punch; it's a green manure crop and it provides both nectar and pollen for your bees.  Clover is an annual that blooms in the early Spring.

Coltsfoot - A perennial plant that provides nectar and pollen in the early Spring.  Coltsfoot is a medicinal herb that has been traditionally used to make cough suppressants.  Apparently, it is also smoked in Amsterdam since the Dutch government placed additonal restrictions on tobacco in 2008. (Is it me, or are the Dutch crazy?)

Elderberry - A dual purpose perennial bush for your garden, Elderberries can be used to make jellies, desserts and wine.  They flower in Spring, producing nectar and pollen for your bees.

Hazelnut/Filbert - This perennial bush provides prolific quantities of protein rich nuts for you... and for the squirrels if you don't take precautions.  In California, hazelnuts flower in mid-Winter and early Spring and are a good source of pollen for bees.  Hazelnuts are not self-fertile, so you need to plant more than two varieties in your garden.

Comments

[Julianne Idleman]

Thanks for this post. So far I have Elderberry and Borage that I started from seed. After reading this I plan to add Goldenrod and Tansy, which should mix in well with what I already have growing. What kind of Echium are you going to use?

[H. Mark Delman]

Hi Julianne:

Summer Winds has Echium Candicans for sale, but I would like to get the larger Tower of Jewels variety. I think Ill need to order this online. Let me know if you want to buy the same and we can order two plants and split the shipping costs.

-Mark

[protein supplements]

I love the yellow flower so much. It's beautiful for me.

[Brenda Duchene]

Thank you for providing the information it was very helpful

[H. Mark Delman]

Thank you for the kind words and for visiting the PlanterTomato web site. Good luck with your garden this year.
-Mark

[LJ Vieaux]

These plant additions will make a great addition to our bee friendly acerage. Thanks again for the recommendations.

LjVx

[Megan]

I am currently teaching children that bees are not mean and scary but that they are extremely helpful. Our upcoming project is planting "bee friendly" flowers in the garden. Your website was very informative. Thank you so much!

~Meg

[H. Mark Delman]

Hi Megan:

Glad this helped. If you think the kids would be excite about it, send me some photos of the garden later this summer and Ill post them to my web site with a notation that your class created the garden and any other details you think would be interesting.

-PlanterTomato
Mark

[Jan Weaver]

Hi,

Goldenrod is not the source of your allergy problems. Its pollen is too heavy to be transported by wind, that's why the bees like it so much. It was probably ragweed, which is wind pollinated and which blooms at the same time as goldenrod, that caused your problems.

[H. Mark Delman]

Thanks very much. Ill look into this. Fortunately, my allergies have been declining over the years and I really only have a few days that are bad each year.

[Lucas Youngerberg]

Your allergies should go away, in time, as you continue to eat the honey your bees make, because of the pollen in it. Thanks for the info!

Lucas

[Mike]

Where online can I buy theses seeds?

[Trees]

Nice flower photography and also for the information youve provide.