How do I create a bee friendly garden? Dramatic insect decline and worrying bee deaths give this question top priority in natural hobby gardens. This guide describes important components that transform the bed and balcony into a paradise for honey bees, wild bees, wasps and bumblebees.

Wildflowers are almost always a better choice

Table of Contents

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  1. the essentials in brief
  2. What goes in?
  3. Gluttony plants for bees
  4. Food plants for wild bees
  5. Planting tip for balcony gardeners
  6. frequently asked Questions

    7. the essentials in brief

    • A bee-friendly garden should feature nectar-rich flowers, dry sandy areas, insect hotels and a variety of wild flowering plants.
    • Wild bees do 90% of pollination by bees and love chamomile, wild carrots, viper's bugloss, deadnettles, field marigolds and the knotted bellflower.
    • Geraniums and petunias are worthless for bees and should be replaced with fan flowers, fragrant auricular, nasturtium or vanilla flowers, for example.

    What belongs in a bee-friendly garden?

    Things are getting hectic in the bee-friendly garden. The air is filled with buzzing and humming. Earthworms and microorganisms are tirelessly active in the soil to produce valuable humus. Where flora and fauna are bursting with life, busy honey bees, busy wild bees and busy bumblebees feel they are in good hands. By consistently avoiding the use of pesticides and artificial fertilizers, you are taking the first step towards becoming a bee paradise. These components transform your garden into an inviting oasis of well-being for insects:

    • native food plants with simple, nectar-rich flowers
    • mixed flowering hedges, planted dry stone walls, hollow tree trunks as retreats
    • Herb spiral with wild herbs and water source
    • blooming meadows and green strips instead of English lawns
    • Green manure plants as a pre-, intermediate and post-culture in the vegetable patch
    • dry sandy areas for sand bees and wild bees
    • Nest boxes, insect hotels and water points

    A bee-friendly garden provides insects with everything they need to build their nests. On open, damp clay surfaces, for example, mason bees, carpenter wasps or willow sand bees find the necessary building material for this year's kindergarten.

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    Gluttony plants for bees

    A varied planting plan guarantees that bees, wasps and bumblebees will find a richly laid buffet in the garden from January to October. This succeeds with native flowers, perennials and shrubs, which, as gourmet plants, overflow with nectar and pollen. The following table introduces you to valuable food plants for the bee-friendly garden:

    flowers and perennials heyday shrubs heyday herbs heyday
    Snowdrops (Galanthus) February to March Cornelian cherry (Cornus mas) February to April Sweet violet (Viola odorata) March to April
    Wild Tulip (Tulipa sylvestris) March to June Willow (Salix) March to April Thyme (Thymus vulgaris) May until October
    Musk Mallow (Malva moschata) June to October Privet (Ligustrum vulgare) May to June/July Arnica (Arnica montana) May to August
    Cornflower (Centaurea cyanus) June to October Dogwood (Cornus sanguinea) May to June Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) June to September
    Viper Bugloss (Echium vulgare) May until October Dog Rose (Rosa canina) June to October Marigold (Calendula officinalis) June to October

    Please always give preference to wild species. Plant varieties with double flowers are a bitter disappointment for honey bees, wild bees and colleagues. Usually there is no nectar inside the flower. Bees often have no chance of penetrating through dense petals to the food and waste a lot of energy on the deceptive deception.

    Shade-tolerant nectar and pollen donors

    Wood anemones are the ideal bee-friendly shade flower

    In the garden and on the balcony, it's not just the sunny side that counts. Where light is scarce, shade-tolerant nectar and pollen dispensers are required that offer bees a set table. The following plants fulfill this task with flying colours:

    • White wood anemone (Anemone nemorosa): flowering April and May
    • Wild strawberry (Fragaria vesca): flowering period May to July
    • Yellow Corydalis (Corydalis lutea): Flowering period May to September
    • Wall cymbal (Cimbalaria muralis): Flowering period June to October

    Ivy (Hedera helix) guarantees a nectar-rich end to the season. The climbing plant only blooms when most of the sources of nectar in the garden have dried up. Gardeners who are close to nature can be sure that everything with six legs will come here in autumn.

    tips

    Visit a lecture on the subject of bee-friendly gardening. In Germany and Austria, numerous organizations and initiatives offer exciting information from experienced experts. “deutschland-summt.de” and “Bodenbündnis Österreich” act as role models. Check the event calendar of the regional adult education center (VHS). The annual Federal Horticultural Show is accompanied by several lectures all about the bee-friendly garden.

    Wild bees in need - recommended food plants

    Wild carrots are very popular with bees

    Most wild bees are lone fighters. In contrast to honey bees, they do not form colonies and are hardly noticeable. In fact, wild bees do more than 90 percent of pollination. A good reason to include the special needs of wild bees when choosing plants for the bee-friendly garden. Many species specialize in a single plant species, which is now causing them extreme distress. The following table lists important wild bee species and their preferred forage plants:

    plant name botanical name wild bee scientific name
    Real chamomile Matricaria recutita Humpback Silky Bee Collet es daviesanus
    Adderhead Echium vulgare Viper's Bugloss Mason Bee Osmia adunca
    wild carrot Daucus carota Hair Strand Sand Bee Andrena nitiduiscula
    Field Marigold Calendula arvensis Ordinary hole bee Osmia truncorum
    deadnettle Lamium maculatum fur bee Anthrophora spec.
    Bunch of Bellflowers Campanula glomerata Bluebell Sawhorn Bee Melitta haemorrhoidalis

    Forage plants alone do not ensure the survival of wild bees. The sensitive insects are also dependent on undisturbed breeding grounds. Most females nest in the ground. For this purpose, they dig a tunnel and place the brood cells in it. It is obvious that frequent tillage or the use of artificial fertilizers and pesticides are pure poison for wild bees. If you discover a nest in the ground, mark the spot and refrain from working with the rake until the underground family planning is complete. Please ban blue grain, glyphosate and co from your bee-friendly garden.

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    motivation boost competition

    Hard-working gardeners are rewarded for their bee-friendly garden with nationwide attention and a generous prize. The initiative "deutschland-summt" organizes an annual competition under the motto "We do something for bees". Private gardeners, balcony gardeners, kindergartens, schools and municipalities can take part. Winners and those placed will be awarded in the House of Representatives in Berlin. The jury publishes successful photo documentation on bee-friendly gardening in numerous media.

    Bee buffet on the balcony - planting tip for balcony gardeners

    Bees can also find nectar on the balcony

    Balcony gardeners make an important contribution to maintaining a livable world for bees, bumblebees and other insects. You can create a bee-friendly mini garden in a pot in the smallest of spaces and enjoy the hustle and bustle. The following planting tips for sunny or shady locations may fire your imagination for a tempting bee buffet on the balcony:

    List of plants, materials and tools

    • sunny: Meadow knapweed (Centaurea jacea), Bugloss (Echium vulgare), Speedwell (Veronica)
    • semi-shady: meadow sage (Salvia), carnation (Dianthus superbus), meadow bellflower (Campanula patula)
    • shady: Columbine (Aquilegia vulgaris), lungwort (Pulmonaria), cleavers (Galium slyvaticum)
    • plant pot: Pot or bowl, necessarily with at least one bottom opening
    • substrate: Peat-free potting soil and fertilized coconut fiber soil in equal parts
    • equipment: plant trowel, potsherds, watering can, water

    As decoration we recommend empty snail shells instead of stones or figures. Various solitary wild bee species first collect a supply of pollen in such a cavity. The female then lays her eggs and closes the opening with a mush of chewed leaves.

    Planting Guide

    1. Place plants and pots in water until no more air bubbles rise
    2. Cover the bottom opening with potsherds
    3. Fill in the substrate halfway up the pot
    4. Repot and plant plants 10 to 15 cm apart
    5. Arrange tall plants in the back and low ones in front
    6. fill up with substrate until the root balls are covered and can no longer be seen
    7. Press down the soil and water thoroughly (water runs out at the bottom)

    Please place a bee-friendly potted garden for the south-facing balcony in a partially shaded location for a week. Here the plants can get used to the blazing sunlight. An abrupt exposure to direct sun puts you at risk of leaf damage from sunburn.

    frequently asked Questions

    I don't have the time to attend a lecture. Can you recommend a book on the subject of "bee-friendly garden"?

    The book entitled "My Garden - A Bee Paradise" by Bruno P. Kremer is highly recommended. You will receive an informative and reader-friendly compact introduction to the bee-friendly garden. More than 500 pictures and 200 plant profiles make the book ideal reading for families. The book was published by Haupt-Verlag, Bern (ISBN 978-3-258-07844-1) at a price of 29.90 euros.

    What can we do for bees without our own garden and balcony?

    Adopt a flower sponsorship to bloom an empty patch of ground with gourmand plants for bees, bumblebees and butterflies. The Mellifera e.V. initiative is in charge with its UN-awarded project "Blossoming Landscapes". You determine how many square meters of landscape blossom. You can claim the financial contribution as a donation. In return, you will receive a 3D sign buzzing with flowers and you can visit your flowering area at any time.

    I've heard that geraniums and petunias are useless to bees and bumblebees. Which bee-friendly plants can I plant my balcony boxes with?

    With a lavish abundance of flowers, geraniums and petunias hide the fact that they have nothing to offer bees and bumblebees. Recommended alternatives with plenty of nectar in the luggage are fan flowers (Scaevola aemula), fragrant rock (Lobularia), nasturtium (Tropaeolum majus) and vanilla flower (Heliotrope).

    Which plants are suitable for a bee-friendly roof garden with full sun and dry soil?

    For full sun, dry locations, floral specialists are required that don't let up even in midsummer. The dainty spring Adonis (Adonis vernalis) opens the nectar buffet in March. Anthyllis vulneraria continues the blossom festival with yellow-orange colors in May and June. Germander (Teucrium chamaedrys) shines with blue, nectar-rich flowers from July to September. The Golden-crested Aster (Galatella linosyris) competes with the autumn sun from August to October.

    tips

    Where numerous beneficial insects cavort in the garden, pests and vermin have a bad hand. With a cat-proof hedgehog house, you invite the prickly pest-eaters to linger. In order to strengthen the insect population with ladybirds, parasitic wasps (€22.99) and lacewings, special farms offer larvae and eggs. If the ecological balance is in balance, bees, bumblebees and butterflies are not far away.

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Animals in the garden