Making friends with our bees ...

[ginger ninger]

More of a sugar syrup, not as runny, works really well, attracts the bees to the flowers, and gives them a little bit of a treat, i have a bee house in the garden, so if they have a bit too much they haven't got far to go to sleep it off

[catbasket]

Hehe, I was just going to point you to this post by Plot17B in the 'It really works...' thread. Luckily I noticed you started that thread. Carry on, folks, nothing [embarrasing] to see here

so if they have a bit too much they haven't got far to go to sleep it off

I like the way you think

[Alice]

Thanks Seasprout, yes I think they are carder bees.
And thanks everyone for the absolutely cracking pics. Just great.

[catbasket]

That was fun! I very carefully made a fake flower from sunflower leaves and sugar syrup (finest fairtrade demerara) and what do the bees do? Turn up their noses at it. Fussy bees, fresh sunflower and cat mint nectar only for them.

[catbasket]

Update -

Our first summer of trying to be bee friendly has been pretty successful, I've never seen so many bees in the garden The sunflowers were a definite favourite, and we've now got loads of seeds for next year. I was surprised at how popular the catmint flowers were considering how small the flowers are - and of course the cats love the plants too.

We haven't made any bee nests yet, but found a few different designs to try and we'll have them in place ready for next spring. Fingers crossed we'll have bee friendly flowers in place from early spring through to late October next year. Looking forward to it!

[seasprout]

Have you seen the Bee nester plans on the Bumblebee conservation website..?

I'm going to make some next spring.

[BFG]

Great thread.

I'm in the process of making a bee friendly garden. Luckily, they like fruit blossom and herbs, so everyone's a winner.

This year seems to have been fairly bad for bees around here. Not a huge amount about.

I felt bad earlier. I was growing nasturtiums up my fruit trees and one had got completely out of hand and was drowning the tree, so I cut it down and then a bumble came along and visited the flowers of the now chopped plant on the floor. Sorry bee!

[catbasket]

Have you seen the Bee nester plans on the Bumblebee conservation website..?

I have, thanks ... one of the sites bookmarked in my 'Bees' folder

[catbasket]

I've been having so much fun with our new bird feeders I've just not got around to updating this thread. Bad catbasket!

So a quick catch-up.

The little pear and apple trees have proved popular with 'our' bees - the pear tree started flowering around the middle of April, with the apple tree flowering about a week or ten days later.

OH decided she wanted primroses in the hanging baskets this spring and although I've seen a few bees on them (and some butterflies) the bees seem to prefer the heather (another new plant for us) and the pansies which somehow survived their pots being frozen solid for around a fortnight back in January.

I put some lupin seeds to germinate in January then grew them on on the lounge windowsill ... one has not only already flowered but is currently covered in seed pods. This plus the other lupins currently in flower have been very popular with the bees.

Sadly our upright fuchsia didn't survive the winter - the weight of the snow snapped it's stem - so we bought three trays of tiny little fuchsia plants, twelve in total, which are coming along nicely at about ten inches to a foot high and two or three look as if they are about to flower.

We've got quite a few young sunflower plants on the go from seed from last year's plants, plus some Russian Giants also from seed. In fact we have so many young sunflowers we're going to have to give some away to friends.

I've probably forgotten something ... it'll come back to me. Eventually.


ETA - Ok, now I can have a coffee and watch the birdies

[catbasket]

Some pics from this weekend.



The pak choi (sp?) flowers in the last pic seemed very popular with a few species of flying critters.

[catbasket]

The big old bumble bees seem very interested in the corner of the garden where we thought we had a nest last year, fingers crossed we'll have another this year. But even better is the fact we have some interest in the bee nest we put up this spring -



Don't think I've ever noticed the spikes on a bee's back foot before -



And finally, I am a lucky bunny to get this shot -



Hope you enjoyed them!

[chris]

I was given some "bee friendly seeds" from an innocent smoothie bottle.. no idea what they are - going to sow later on today - innocent drinks : Buy One Get One Bee

[Madasafish]

Just discovered we have a bumble nest under the house: through an air vent. And several in a garden wall. And honey beees in a hive.

Bees hit hard when they hit you!

[Madasafish]

bees love our poppies: see the fulll pollen sacs: black pollen
http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gra...1&d=1277300722

[greasyfire]

I have sowed some sunflowers, not just for the ornamental side and the seeds, but becaus ei know bees love them.