Plant These For Bees Poster at TheGardenDairies
Here in the mid-Atlantic in Maryland, we have had a mild winter with at least a dozen days since early December above 50 degrees. That means flying bees looking for early spring/late winter nectar and pollen in the landscape… and they are coming up short. Unless you plan ahead and plant perennials and trees that will bloom very early and which bees are attracted to, you might end up with starving bees.When mild weather occurs in winter, bees are using up their stored honey at a faster rate than if they were in deep hibernation, so contrary to popular belief, bees are more likely to starve in mild winters than really cold ones.
Erica x darleyensis ‘Mediterranean Pink’ blooms all winter long
A bumble bee on heather
That is why your choice of winter blooming plants is so important for honeybee survival as well as other native bees. My top 5 early blooming plants for bees are Winter Aconite, Snowdrops, Heather, Witch Hazel, and Winter Jasmine.
My cheery yellow Winter Aconites (Eranthis) have been blooming off and on since January. When a mild day comes around, they open their flowers and the bees flock to them. If we get colder temps, they close up and wait for warmer weather.
Winter Aconites will bloom through snow
Flowering Winter Jasmine (Jasminum nudiflorum) covers a sunny slope in January
As snowdrops start blooming in the mid-Atlantic and elsewhere, honey bees are actively increasing their colony population to build up for spring foraging. Populations are low in the winter, but can increase rapidly as soon as temperatures rise and flowers continue to open.
Hanging heads of snowdrops full of golden orange pollen and nectar are usually the first harbinger of spring. Bees are looking for pollen to make into bee bread to feed their developing brood. This gives bees and native pollinators a fresh source of nectar and pollen in late winter before spring has officially sprung. In some locations, this may be the only food source available to them at this time of year.
Snowdrops
Dandelions, the scourge of lawn warriors is also a big player here. Encourage your dandelions to bloom and hold off on the weed killers! And once your pussy willows bloom, there should be enough forage for bees to be on their own until fall.
Dandelions are an excellent early spring foraging plant
Pussy Willows (Salix) are early shrub bloomers that bees flock to
A pussy willow catkin is blooming for a foraging pollinator fly
Honeybees bringing in orange pollen which is a necessary protein to growing brood
Witch Hazel (Hamamelis) is one of the first shrubs that bloom in the spring
2 Comments
Where to buy the winter flower seeds for feeding on your email
I came across a good website share for bees http://www.sunflowerproject.org please share