I’ve found that herb gardeners are rarely solitary folks absorbed in pursuing perfect plants. When working in the garden, they often trail a friend or neighbor, sharing volumes of knowledge. They’ll pluck sprigs with abandon, encouraging visitors to “sniff this—taste that—please take this one home. My seeds came up so well this year, I’ve got […]

While many plants are known to be bee magnets, honeybees and bumblebees will pass them all by when germander blooms. An herb garden is traditionally a busy place, with bees buzzing from plant to plant, their fuzzy little bodies perfect for trapping pollen and transporting it to the next flower. But declining bee populations means […]

In addition to keeping a hive of bees in my backyard and a flock of chickens, I have quite the vegetable garden, mini orchard, and space devoted to native plants. When I began planting native plants, I specifically looked for natives that were useful not only to my backyard hive but also for the plethora […]

  If you tell your friends and neighbors that you are growing a “Bee Bee” tree for your bees, they will probably think you are kidding! A magnet for pollinators of all kinds, it is a a great small tree, also known as Korean evodia (Evodia daniellii or Tetradium daniellii). Unknown outside of horticultural circles […]

The snow has finally melted and we’ve been enjoying warmer temperatures here in Michigan. The days are around 50 degrees and the nights hover around freezing. We just finished our maple syrup boil for the year and got 9 and a half quarts from 55 gallons of sap. It’s such a small yield considering what […]

              When the bees start flying I can’t wait to get out there and dig in the hives and the dirt. There’s a huge variety of herbs that are not just great for cooking and medicinal purposes, they’re great for the bees. Planting herbs that attract honey bees is […]

Win this Sunflower Print and a Packet of Sunflower seeds to grow in your garden this spring! Also, learn how you can help honeybees by participating in the Great Sunflower Project!

Bees are in danger. Honey bees are responsible for about a third of the food we consume. Apples, sunflowers, cherries, melons, squash – you name it, they pollinate it.