Plants for bees
Bees, butterflies and biodiversity are the buzzwords of the 21st century gardener and with good reason. Gardeners are perfectly equipped to provide more than their fair share of pollen and nectar rich plants to feed our native pollinators.
Biodiversity themes are interwoven into three show gardens at this year’s RHS Cardiff Flower Show. On The Verge, Sweet Retreat and Spring Time are all liberally seasoned with fabulous bug friendly flowers and the Floral Marquees and grounds of Bute Park are ablaze with blossom too.
Five Great Bee and Bug Plants
Tiarella ‘Mystic Mist’ from Plantagogo, is like all Tiarella in that it is a good bee plant, but this one’s a great garden plant too with lightly lemon scented, creamy, foamy flowers that burst from pale pink buds in pretty spires above a carpet of tapestry like foliage. A soft green leaf, overlaid with creamy speckles and a rich burgundy central bar that turns even pinker in cooler months makes the perfect foil.
Erysimum E. ‘Rufus’: For a plant that supports all nectar supping insects look no further than Erysimum. E. ‘Rufus’ is an excellent hardy garden plant with a compact habit, evergreen foliage and an interesting and distinctive colour break; rich, earthy terracotta flowers with a hint of purple. Ideal for beds, borders, tubs and containers. Autumn plants will be available mail order from Botanic Nursery, or see them at the RHS Shows this summer.
Tree fruit: Harvest your own crops and feed the bees at the same time. Planting tree fruit such as apples and pears, or fruiting vegetables results in many edibles and helps to support native pollinators. You don’t need an orchard to grow fruit, choose self fertile varieties that will benefit from proactive pollinators in spring, or grow a two or three of the same type that flower at the same time. Pennard Plants has a range of trained apples and pears including the delicious pear ‘Williams’.
Euphorbia pasteurii ‘John Phillips’: When a plant simply smells of honey it’s bound to attract bees and other pollinators. Euphorbia pasteurii ‘John Phillips’ is a cross from E. mellifera that gives it its sweet honey scent, but its hardier than its warmth-loving parent and more compact, so it’s a great garden plant. Mail order from Desert To Jungle or from other RHS Shows.
Ribes sanguineum: Insect pollinators aren’t plant snobs and sometimes it’s the reliable, tough, old favourites that keep on growing even in neglected gardens that see them through the tricky months of early spring. A bush of Ribes Sanguineum can help feed a spring bee colony when other flowers have finished and the promise of summer is still on its way. Widely available from garden centres, nurseries and flower shows and great for all types of nectar drinkers.
Words: Jean Vernon
Images: Martin Mulchinock