Papaveraceae

“Summer gardening: The importance of bees

By 

Elisabeth Edvardsen

 on June 9, 2011

Summer is fastening its grip yet again, the flowers are in bloom and people appear to be much happier - amazing what some sunshine and warm weather can do!

With flowers also come bees and as you are preparing your garden for the summer season it could be worth keeping the humble bumble bee in mind. While you might want your garden to look fashionable with large and colourful plants, it's important to remember that bees, and other insects, live in your flowerbeds and these amazing looking plants can be "hostile" towards insects making it difficult for them to access the pollen and nectar. If you are an avid gardener check out The Royal Horticultural Society's (RHS) 'Perfect for Pollinators Plant List' to find out which plants and flowers are best for the insects that live on your plot of land.

Many of the UK's 24 bumble bee species are today endangered - two species even became extinct in the last 70 years! You can do your bit by choosing plants that have this new 'bee label' - it's shaped like a bee - that indicate which flowers and plants are best to help bees and butterflies.

All bees are vital to our food chain, in fact one third of the food we eat would not be available was it not for the keen workers. The economic value of honey and bumble bees as pollinators of commercially grown insect pollinated crops in the UK has been estimated at over £200 million per year! (www.bbka.org.uk)

Bees are in danger of disappearing, and while you can ensure their continued well-being by planting the right flowers you could also consider taking up beekeeping. Honey bees are under attack from the varroa mite and only treatment and care provided by beekeepers can keep their colonies alive.

However, to keep bees you need some equipment - some to keep you safe when handling the bees - and also a hive for the bees to live in. There is a wide choice of hives available on the market, but we particularly like this cute 'Bee Station' on Eco Age that is designed to support British bees!”