Bee-friendly Summer Flowers – a Buffet for Bees and Co.

When it buzzes and hums again in the summer, it’s high time to support the bees. In recent years, they’ve had an increasingly difficult time finding enough food. Yet, they are so important for nature.

Bees are undoubtedly the hardest-working insects around. And they’re not just busy for themselves but also for the garden. Luckily, there are the prettiest summer flowers that are also bee-friendly and support these little insects.

Even in kindergarten, we learn about the relationship between bees and flowers. Flowers can reproduce through bees, and bees feed on the flowers. Bees are not only important for agricultural yield and thus for many food sources but also for the ecosystem. Without bees, many plants would no longer exist. This includes crops, as more than 75% of the food and cultivated plants in Europe rely on bee pollination. With that, the bee ranks third among the most important livestock, right after pigs and cattle, making it essential for humans. Bee-friendly summer flowers in the garden provide these little bees with vital nourishment.

As a general rule: only what is unfilled is bee-friendly. Some flowers are naturally filled, while others are specifically bred with filled blooms. However, this means a diet for the bees, as the many petals make it difficult for them to reach the delicious nectar. The petals and sepals of the filled flowers block the bees’ way, and the stamens have been reduced. In addition to flowers with filled blooms, there are also deceptive plants that attract with a sweet fragrance but offer no nourishment. Plants that have no place in a bee-friendly garden include: geraniums, daisies, forsythias, dahlias, pelargoniums, and busy Lizzies.

The snack bar has quite a bit to offer for bees, and garden owners benefit as well. Because bee-friendly summer flowers not only provide food but also look beautiful and make a great impression in the garden. Essential flowers in a bee-friendly garden include forget-me-not, rock cress, speedwell, bellflower, and clover. The wildflower corner also has some favorites: cornflower, clematis, fireweed, and black-eyed Susan are very popular with the hardworking bees. Nowadays, many bee-friendly seed mixtures are available in specialty stores, and because bee-friendly flowers grow almost everywhere, every garden owner can quickly become a bee friend!