Super Eco

Photo credit: mimbrava, flickr

Bees are easy to please. And we need to please bees! Creating a pollinator habitat helps not only your own garden but also helps take the sting out of a troubled bee population, assuring us worldwide that there will (hopefully) be enough for us all to eat. Without bees, we could be in trouble, so it's important to support them even in our own backyard efforts.

1. Make a bee house. No kidding, you can easily make a home for bees! Reuse an empty waxed paper milk container and fill with purchased brown paper nest tubes (or make your own) and hang in a place safe from rain. Build homes for different kinds of bees (over 20,000 different species exist worldwide); knowing what bees live in your area helps you know what to attract and welcome to your garden.

2. Make a bee bath. Bees need water, too, but their ungainly flight habits require a safe landing spot. Fill a shallow bowl with water and add several rocks as dry landing pads. A well-placed bee bath (on the ground near plants that attract insects like aphids) also helps other beneficial insects in your garden like ladybugs, butterflies, and predatory wasps.

3. Plant things bees like. Bees need nectar and pollen. Native bees like native plants in a wide variety that blooms over three seasons. Bees go for color, especially blues, purples, and yellow. Stay away from horticultural "double" varieties that have little pollen, and be sure to plant lots of daisies, zinnia, hollyhocks, and sunflowers. Many bees also like mint and herbs like sage, oregano, and lavender. Allowing clover to grow in your lawn also attracts many species of bees. Look for bee-attracting plant lists like this one and this list of resources.

4. Be kind to bees. Don't use pesticides in your garden. Be patient; if bees don't come this year, next year they will. Don't be afraid of them. Love the bees and they'll love you back.