Spring is a time of renewal and growth, and it’s also a crucial season for bees.
As they emerge from hibernation and begin their search for food, it’s essential to provide them with the best flowers for bees in spring.
In this article, we’ll explore some of the top options for providing sustenance to these hardworking insects, including bee balm, anise hyssop, sage and more.
Best Flowers for Bees in Spring
The best flowers for bees in spring provide a reliable source of nectar and pollen early in the growing season.
While there are many different types of flowers that bees are attracted to, certain species are especially beneficial.
Let’s take a closer look at some of the most popular options for providing food for bees during the spring months.
Bee Balm
Bee balm, also known as Monarda, is a vibrant purple flower that is an excellent food source for bees.
This plant thrives in full sun or partial shade, and it blooms in late spring and early summer. It’s a great option for attracting native bees and other pollinators, as well as hummingbirds and butterflies.
Bee balm is also easy to grow and doesn’t require a lot of maintenance.
It prefers moist soil but can tolerate a wide range of soil types. Additionally, it’s a spring perennial, meaning that it will come back year after year, providing a consistent source of food for bees.
Anise Hyssop
Another great option for spring plants is Anise Hyssop. This plant produces purple flowers that bloom from late spring through summer, making it an ideal food source for bees throughout the growing season.
Anise hyssop prefers full sun to light shade and can grow up to four feet tall.
It’s a hardy plant that can tolerate a range of soil types, as long as they’re well-draining.
Anise hyssop is particularly attractive to mason bees, which are important pollinators for many types of plants.
Sage
Sage is a herb that produces beautiful spikes of purple flowers in the late spring and early summer.
While it’s often grown for its culinary uses, it’s also a fantastic food source for pollinating bees. Sage is easy to grow and prefers full sun and well-draining soil.
This plant is attractive to bumblebees, honeybees, and solitary bees which makes for a myriad of bee species in your garden, better yet it smells amazing!
Pro tip – It’s also a great option for gardens or vegetable gardens beacuse it can repel certain insect species, such as cabbage moths.
Hellebores
These gorgeous flowers not only add a pop of colour to your landscape but also provide a vital source of food for bees during the early spring months.
These are one of the first plants to flower in the spring offering a much-needed source of nectar and pollen for bees emerging from hibernation.
Hellebores typically bloom for several weeks or even months, providing a consistent food source for bees during a time when resources are in short supply.
They prefer partial shade to full shade, and they do best in moist, well-drained soil and benefit from a light application of compost or a balanced, slow-release fertilizer in the spring.
*Important tip – Hellebores are beautiful and beneficial for bees but they are also toxic if ingested. Be sure to wear gloves when handling Hellebores and keep them away from small children and pets.
Borage
Borage is a beautiful blue flower that produces a large amount of sugary nectar, making it a perfect food source for all sorts of bees.
It blooms in the late spring and early summer and prefers full sun and well-draining soil.
This plant is also incredibly easy to grow, making it an excellent option for novice gardeners.
It’s a self-seeding annual, meaning that it will drop seeds and come back year after year, providing a consistent food source for bees and other pollinators.
White Wild Indigo
Another great option for providing food for bees in the spring is the white wild indigo (Baptisia alba). This hardy perennial produces tall spikes of white, pea-like flowers that are a favourite of many pollinating insects, including bees.
White wild indigo is a native plant that thrives in full sun to partial shade and moist, well-drained soil. It’s a relatively low-maintenance plant that can tolerate a wide range of soil types, making it a great option for many gardens.
One of the benefits of white wild indigo is its long blooming period. The plant typically blooms from late spring through early summer, providing a steady source of nectar and pollen for bees during this critical time.
In addition to its value as a food source for bees, white wild indigo is also an attractive plant that can add a striking vertical element to a garden. Its tall spikes of flowers can be a beautiful backdrop for other spring plants, and its deep roots make it an excellent option for stabilizing soil and preventing erosion.
While white wild indigo may not be as well-known as some of the other plants on this list, it’s definitely worth considering for its value as a food source for bees and its ornamental value in the garden.
By including this plant in your garden, you’ll be doing your part to support the health of pollinating bees and other insects.
Additional Considerations
While these are some of the best flowers for bees in spring, it’s important to note that providing a wide range of plants is key to supporting a healthy bee population.
Bees are attracted to a variety of colours, shapes, and sizes of flowers, so including a diverse mix of species plants in your garden will yield the best results.
Try planting flowers in clusters rather than single plants, this will make it easier for bees to find and access the nectar and pollen and reduce the time required to forage making for healthier less exhausted worker bees.
Aim for flowers that are easy to access, this is especially important for species of bees with shorter tongues, which may have difficulty reaching the nectar in composite flowers like daisies or sunflowers.
Conclusion
Providing the best flowers for bees in spring is an important way to support these crucial insects as they emerge from hibernation and begin their search for food.
Bee balm, anise hyssop, sage, joe pye weed, and borage are just a few of the top options for providing sustenance to bees during the growing season.
When selecting plants for your garden, consider the needs of native pollinators and choose a wide range of species to ensure that bees have access to a consistent food source throughout the year.
By planting just one of the options on this list you’ll be doing your part to support a healthy and thriving bee population.
