Wildlife in my Garden by Daisy Meadows

BEE FACT: on average in its lifetime, a single bee will produce just half a teaspoon of honey.

BEE AWARE

The bees have been busy buzzing on my lavender and borage all summer but now that I have cut the lavender back, they are  feeding on the cosmos and catmint which are still in flower and will hopefully provide food for them until they settle down for winter. The two main species of bee that everyone tends to recognise are the bumble bees and honey bees which are social and live in hives or nests.  However, there are many species of solitary bees which are more difficult to identify and find. If you look carefully however you may be able to spot their nests.

Carpenter Bees so called because they like to nest in wood, can often be detected by little piles of sawdust at the base of something wooden. Placing old logs around the garden will hopefully encourage them not to nest in any of your timber structures. They are similar to bumble bees but are larger, fatter and generally have much more hair, although none on their abdomen. Widely regarded as harmless as the male carpenter bees do not have a stinger and the females, although they do, rarely sting as they are not aggressive.

Digger Bees create burrows in the ground and then industriously line them with a mucous from special glands on their body which makes it waterproof and fungus resistant. They are somewhat smaller than carpenter bees and quite hairy. You will generally spot these bees coming out of holes in the ground or your lawn. Again, you are extremely unlikely to get stung by a digger bee.

Mining Bees There are over 1,200 different species of mining bees who behave in a similar manner to digger bees but create much more complex nests underground consisting of a large web of tunnels, preferably in loose soil.

Leaf cutting/Mason/Masonry Bees Leaf cutting and mason bees are not the same but are from the same family. Leaf cutting bees prefer to live in tunnels in old logs and trees and cut small pieces of leaves to line their burrows, hence their name. Mason or Masonry bees are known to burrow into the mortar of buildings, although not far enough to pose a structural risk to them or go deep enough to breach the interior walls.

Sweat Bees also known as Alkali bees are tiny, as small as 3mm long and can sometimes be found flying around your head when you are out on a hot day and sweating. They are generally solitary and live underground and are non-aggressive.

Plasterer Bees are between 10 – 18mm long and will nest in the ground, crevices in brick or stonework. They get their name by using a secretion from their bodies to line their nests which dries to a translucent, glossy finish like plaster.

Yellow Faced Bees are from the same family as plasterer bees but are smaller at 6mm and they have yellow or occasionally white faces. They build their nests inside plant stems or in crevices in brick or stonework.

BEE FACT: To make one pound of honey, bees fly 90,000miles …equivalent to flying three times around the world.

BEE FRIENDLY

Bees are foraging for two things when they visit our plants, nectar (which is loaded with sugars, the main source of energy for a bee) and pollen (which provides the fats and proteins to ensure bees have a balanced diet). 

To attract bees, it is important when planting flowers to plant native species that would grow naturally in your area because F1hybrids and exotic species are usually sterile and sometimes harmful to bees. Also try to avoid using any pesticides in the garden which will make it a healthier place for bees as opposed to areas with commercial crops. It is important to provide plants that flower at different times throughout the year so that there is an available source of nectar for overwintering queens and workers who may emerge on warmer days in winter to forage. While there are many flowers to choose from, here is a list of some pollinators which have gained recognition from the RHS and look lovely in the garden.

Jan/Feb – hellebores, snowdrops, winter aconites

Feb/March /April – crocuses particularly purple varieties, lungwort, perennial wallflower

March/May – apples/fruit trees, euphorbias, hawthorn

June / July /August – salvias, rudbeckia, echinacea, lavender, verbena bonariensis

Sept/Oct – sedum 

Nov/Dec – ivy/mahonia

Bees especially love all flowering herbs such as borage, chives, marjoram, rosemary, sage and thyme.

BEE FACT: bees have been pollinating plants and producing honey for at least 150 million years.

So why not plant a bee friendly garden and help ensure they stay around to keep up the good work!

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