Helping Bees without Becoming a Beekeeper.

There are many reasons why you might not want to be a beekeeper (time commitments, expense, allergies or space available in your area or garden). We have several members of our associations who aren’t beekeepers themselves. However there are lots of ways you can help bees without the commitment of being a beekeeper. The most effective way to help honeybees and all of our other native pollinators is to plant pollinator friendly plants in any available garden that you have. You’ll be amazed at how many pollinator friendly plants you can squeeze into a small domestic garden and if you have no gardening space a few small pots can hold plenty of pollinator friendly plants. Have no fear too, if you plant for pollinators they will find those plants very quickly!

Please check out the document below which details some excellent plants which pollinators will utilise throughout the year. The best way to plant for pollinators is to do successive planting, so the bees have something to forage on throughout the year, from snowdrops and crocus to flowering currants and honeysuckle then on to poppies and cornflower, lavender and heather and finally flowering ivy.

Let your garden ‘go’, leave dandelions to flower, leave clover in your lawns and plant simple flowering herbs such as borage and chives in your garden space.

Bumblebee on Aster
Honey bee on crocus
Bumblebee on allium