Honeybee
The most recognised pollinator, essential for orchard crops, berries, and flowering vegetables. A single colony may contain 50,000 workers, each visiting hundreds of flowers per day.
Why you want them
Honeybees pollinate a remarkable proportion of the food crops humans depend on. Their systematic foraging behaviour - returning to the same flower types repeatedly - makes them exceptionally efficient pollinators. Supporting a diverse garden of flowering herbs and plants throughout the season helps sustain local colonies and the wider pollinator network they belong to.
How to attract them
- Lavender
- Borage
- Phacelia
- Sunflower
- Clover
- Thyme
- Oregano
- Sweet alyssum
Preferred habitat
Hollow trees, bee boxes, and dry wall cavities. They forage up to 3 miles from the colony and prefer sheltered, sunny sites. A water source nearby helps in hot weather.
What harms them
Neonicotinoid insecticides, broad-spectrum sprays applied during bloom, varroa mite infestations, loss of diverse flowering habitat, and monoculture agriculture.
Garden, by Willowbottom works with nature, not against it. Support your garden allies and they will do most of the hard work for you.