After reading an article on how to attract Honey Bees in a local magazine, I thought it might be interesting to share these ideas with our readers.
We're not talking about any ole bee. We're talking about Honey Bees! The cream of the crop as to speak!
These bees do more than just pollinate, they produce as well! Although you do want to attract other bees and butterflies, Honey Bees are so much more beneficial as they are some of the best of the best at pollinating!
Some folks raise these wonderful creatures and gather honey every year for their personal use while others raise them to resell the honey and queen bees to others who want the fresh local honey or need to start a hive of their own.
How To Attract Honey Bees and other Pollinators
- Choose native plants.Here in Kentucky we have lots of coneflowers and blackeyed susans! To attract these pollinators, choose the flowers that are local to your area! Backyard gardens work wonders for honey bees also. Tomatoes, and other flowering vegetables benefit from honey bees.
- Go for color.The more color you have the better. Pollinators love color and the brighter the better! Plant in clusters and clumps if possible to make large lots of color close together. This will attract the bees much better than just a single plant scattered around the yards.
- Attract more than one pollinator. When buying plants check the package to see what kind of pollinators they attract. Many plants attract bees, butterflies and hummingbirds. If you can purchase these plants, that is great. If not, you might want to shop around and find plants for all of these wonderful pollinators.
- Plan for blooms all year.When purchasing your flowers check to see when they bloom and for how long. If you can find flowers that bloom spring, summer and into the fall, so much the better. You bees, butterflies and hummingbirds will thank you.
Along with woodmint, milkweed, goldenrod, hyssop, lamb’s ear and mullein are native plants here where we live. Bees and butterflies love them!
If you are planning on helping preserve these pollinators, a flower garden just might be in order. Check out your local Kentucky Beekeepers HERE.
For more regional information on Apiary, check HERE.
Honey is used in many toddy recipes and we have one HERE
So, if you were wanting to know how to attract Honey Bees, we hope this has been a help to you!
