plant a bee garden is a beautiful room to nurture our at - risk bee population , and it can profit humans in a multitude of ways too . These specific flowers for bee help them survive , thrive , and continue to pollinate the food for thought we turn . Many of these flowers have comestible and medicinal properties that are useful to have on hand as well !
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What Flowers Do Bees Like?
With the bee universe at risk due to the overutilization of pesticide and other factor , it ’s more authoritative than ever to constitute bloom for bees .
experience a bee garden is courteous , not only for the bees , butterflies , and other beneficial insects , but it ’s also crucial for us humans , too !
If you ’re question which flowers are best to plant in your bee garden , this leaning should help you on your journeying to making your yard a bee - friendly position .
These specific bee flowers also provide us with good intellectual nourishment and music , so they do double responsibility . Most importantly , these flowers provide food for bee in a fourth dimension that they need it most !
Related : Should you Save Dandelions for the Bees ? 6 Things to look at .
12 Best Flowers for a Bee Garden
Here are some of the good flower for bee ! Be certain to plant some of these in your garden this year to attract bees and other pollinators .
Bee Balm
What better blossom to start with than one that has “ bee ” in its name ! Bee balm ( Monardaspp . ) is an excellent flower for bees , butterflies , hummingbirds , and other pollinators .
There are many different mixture of bee balm , and it ’s a common flower in bee gardens for respectable reason !
Bee balm is also edible and medicinal and can be used in tea to help relieve cold symptoms .
Learn and using bee balm here .
A bee on a bee balm ( monarda ) flower
Borage
Borage is one of my favourite flowers to grow around the garden , and bee love it too ! It ’s excellent for companion planting as it keeps defective hemipteran away as well as pull in pollinators like bees .
Borage flowers are most often blue , but can also be pinkish or lily-white .
I love using comestible Borago officinalis flowers on top of salads or in desserts ! They are also used medicinally for the respiratory and cardiovascular organization .
Learn and using borage here .
A bee wing towards a Borago officinalis heyday
Calendula
Ahhh , calendula ! Probably my very pet efflorescence on this earth . Calendula officinalisflowers are usually brilliant orange , sometimes jaundiced , and bees love them !
Calendula is super soft to grow and will often readily ego - source . In mild climates , they will get right through the wintertime , and in colder climates , they will often be the first flowers up in the spring . These former - blooming prime are very crucial bee pasture !
Calendula flowers are also edible ( see my recipe forcalendula and thyme shortbread cookiesfor a yummy goody ) and are highly medicative . They are outstanding for the skin and can be used to make acalendula infused oilthat can then be made into asalve , lotion bars , soap , orcream .
Learn and using calendula here .
A bee on a calendula flower
Chives
I sleep with having chives in the garden because they are gentle to raise , get back yr after year , and have pretty pinkish blossoms that bees adore .
When the chives are in bloom in my garden the bees just ca n’t seem to get enough ! I make certain to engraft large patch of them throughout my K to serve the bee forage more efficiently .
cive and their blossoms are a great culinary herb to have around . I cut back them onto everything as a passably garnish all spring and summer long ! I also like to makechive blossom vegetable oil and vinegarto role as a salad grooming . They also have a few medicative benefit as well .
ascertain and using Allium schoenoprasum here .
A bee on a chive bloom
Lavender
I could live in a field of operations of lavender , and so could the bees ! If you have a lavender bush , then you know how full of busy bee it can get when it ’s in flush . The lavender in my garden seems to particularly draw in bumblebee , but I see all types .
Lavender has a long blooming time of year , all through the summer , so it is an important staple for bees and other pollinators .
Lavender is a tasty eatable flower ( see my formula forlemon lavender shortbread cookiesandlavender whip emollient ) and is also often used in skincare and natural beauty intersection , like myvanilla lavender lip balm . It is a extremely aromatic prime with a gentle chill out effect .
Learn and using lavender here .
A bee on a lavender flower
Mint
Poor mint gets a uncollectible hip-hop as being an invasive plant , but the truth is that it ’s great for bees , so I have it do what it wants !
Bees and other beneficial insects absolutely love quite a little flower , and it does n’t matter if it ’s peppermint , spearmint , chocolate muckle , Malus pumila muckle , or catmint ( also get it on as catnip ) , lemon mint , wild muckle , or evenlemon balm(which is also in the mint family ) .
Of course , mint is also an awing culinary herbaceous plant that is peachy for garnish dessert and makes a howling iced tea . ( you may eveninfuse it into wine ! ) . It also has a whole horde of medicinal purpose , namely for the digestive system of rules .
determine and using mint here .
A bee on a mint blossom
Oregano
When my oregano flora are in peak the bee are always all over them ! The same is true for pot marjoram , a close congeneric of oregano . hummingbird bonk oregano flowers as well .
This repeated herbaceous plant is one of my favorite to mature in my bee garden !
Oregano is an important culinary herbaceous plant that is also highly medicative . It has strong antibacterial and fungicidal properties and is a powerful immune system booster .
con and using oregano here .
A bee on an oregano bloom
Rosemary
My garden would n’t be perfect without several rosemary shrubs , and when they are in bloom the bee thank me for it !
There are many different varieties of rosemary , and they all have small bluish , violet , pinkish , or white flower that bees appreciate . The rosemary in my garden will unremarkably have a few blooms on it throughout the twilight and into winter , then will blow up with prime for bee in the leap .
Rosemary is one of my preferent herbs to expend in the kitchen . It ’s delicious in theselemon rosemary shortbread biscuit . It also has some middling awing wellness benefits as well . It ’s not bad for the hair and scalp , use it inrosemary mint shampoo barsorrosemary pine beard balm .
Learn and using rosemary here .
A bee on a rosemary blossom
Sage
I bonk sage and so do the bees ! Common garden salvia , as well as wild diverseness , have beautiful purple or blue flower spike that attract all sort of pollinators .
Sage is very promiscuous to farm and will subsist for years without requiring much from you .
salvia is a pop culinary herbaceous plant , particularly during the vacation season . It also has medicinal benefits such as being anti - seditious , antiviral , and anti - fungal , and is effective for serve to heal colds and sore throat . apply it in thisherbal oxymel with salvia and gingerwhen you find under the weather .
con and using sage here .
A bee on a salvia flower
Sunflower
I always make trusted to reserve some infinite in my bee garden each twelvemonth for sunflowers . Not only are they big and beautiful , but their shiny yellow flowers create a generous landing inkpad for bee . They are full of pollen and bees be intimate that about them !
Not only are sunflowers great for the bees , but they also give us tasty helianthus seed ! I raise them for my chickens . helianthus petals are also edible ( try on thissunflower jelly formula ) and have some medicinal uses as well .
Learn and using helianthus here .
A bee on a sunflower
Thyme
The bantam clean , pink , or purple bloom of thyme are highly reckon by bees . I could ride and watch the bee and other good insects all over my thyme flowers all day !
Thyme is very democratic with the pollinator crowd , and I do n’t blame them one bit . I have many different varieties of thyme grow around the garden because I love it so much !
Thyme is a kitchen herb that I use almost daily in my preparation . It is delicious in theselemon bar with love and unused thyme . It is also a powerful medicinal plant life and is smashing for the resistant scheme .
Learn and using thyme here .
Bees on thyme flowers
Yarrow
The broad and semi - insipid flower of yarrow make it easy for bees to take a rest while they are gathering pollen ! Yarrow comes in many different colors , white being the most rough-cut , but also pinkish , ruby-red , scandalmongering , and orange .
Yarrow will very pronto self - seminal fluid and has a turn of a spreading drug abuse , but because it is so useful that is n’t bothersome to me . It is a common wild flower and is normally gentle to forage for .
Yarrow is comestible , but is quite bitter so is most often used medicinally . It is a super medicinal flora with combat injury healing and blood clot abilities , as well as being good for reducing feverishness and healing urinary tract infections . I like to use it when making anherbal salve , cream , orsoap .
discover and using yarrow here .
A bee on a milfoil flower
There you have it , 12 blossom to set for bee !
The bees and other good insects will love it if you add together a few of these industrial plant to your bee garden , and you ’ll have the impart benefit of hold incredibly utile eatable and medicinal plant for you and your category !
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