Plants For Bee Forage
Bees do more than just make honey. About a third of our diet comes from insect-pollinated plants and honeybees are responsible for more than 80 per cent of the pollination. So without the bee, natural pollination would be greatly limited, our food production and supply in crisis.
Bees have very good eyesight, a good sense of smell and short proboscises. Flowers aiming to attract bee pollinators usually have bright colours red, yellow, purple), are scented, accessible to bees and have nectar as a reward.
Here are some suggestions for plants and shrubs providing nectar and/or pollen for bees. Many of the listed plants have a long flowering period; for those with a short flowering period, try to plant for "overlapping" flowering times to provide bee forage all year. Please note that this is a generic list - some plants may not do well in your area or may tend to weediness.
Alfalfa syn. lucerne
Apple
Avocado
Borage
Buckwheat
Catnip
Chicory
Comfrey
Cosmos
Cucumber
Daisy
English marigold syn. Calendula
Fennel
Grevillea
Lavender
Lemon Balm
Loquat
Mustard
Nasturtium
Olive
Passionfruit
Pear
Plum
Pomegranate
Pumpkin / squash
Red clover
Rosemary
Sage
Sunflower
Sweet Alice
Vetch
Wattle
White clover
