Providing continuous bloom for bees -Joe S.

In the spring, Joe S. and I chatted about providing continuous bloom for bees in his garden.  When one type of flower has finished blooming there should be other flowers just beginning to open and bloom.  Continuous bloom is an important part of managing a continuous food supply for wild bees.

When I photographed his spring blooming flowers, he mentioned that the following bloom would provide food for his summer bees including summer mason bees.

Sedum
Budlea
Italian herbs
Catony aster

More bee attractive flowers, Quadra Island, BC Canada

Aquilegia/columbine

I will ask the gardener the name of this plant.

Strawberries

Lupine

?

Crane's bill- perrenial geranium

Campanula

Batchelor button

Crane's bill

Fenced vegetable garden.  Deer, will eat anything,
so plants have to be fenced in securely.

Pyracantha

Pyracantha

Campanula

An amazing old fashioned rose, Quadra Island,BC

This beautiful and wonderfully scented rose is a mega-attractant to bees.

 A old variety that has a great capacity for nectar production.  It was quite amazing to see so many bumble bees in  one flower. It was like they were standing in line for some nectar.  Bumble bees were so busy getting into the flower they took no notice of the photographer.

This rose bush stands about 4 feet tall.

This rose is so attractive to bumble bees that at one
point there were 6 bees inside this one flower.

More bees in this rose.

More bee attractive plants - Quadra Island

This orange flower's name escapes me.  I will add it in later.
the bumble bees loved this plant

The changing vista of an island

The view.

This bumble bee is a male- indicated by the yellow face.
Once you see males foraging in the garden,
the bumble bee colony is near its end.  The queens mate,
and hibernate
by themselves in the ground.

Bee attractive flowers in Joe's garden

Drumstick Onions with a bumble bee
embedded within the florets

Joe has a great garden for bees.  He tries to have continuous bloom so that bees always have food available to them.

Another onion drumstick with a bumble bee.

Beautiful red columbine with drumstick onions in the background.

Joe S. and three of his gorgeous rhododendrons in bloom.  He tries to attain continuous bloom so that
bees always have food available.

Paris gardens,France

Paris, Parc de Bercy.
A quiet space, away from the hustle and bustle

Paris:  The hustle and bustle of a thorougfare

Just around the corner from the hustle and bustle!

We have arrived in Paris!  

River Seine

Bluebell

A vegetable garden within the park

Bee attractive flowers in a Dutch Garden

During my visit to Holland, I was lucky to see a number of gardens that belonged to friends and relatives    Here are some of the bee attractive plants I saw in these gardens.

A close up of the tiny pink flower.

Unfortunately I do not know the name of this 5 foot
high bush.  The tiny pink flowers were very
attractive to bees.

Pink Delphinium

Foxglove

Holland: bicycle stall at a railway station.

Bluebell

Old city of Dordrecht, Holland

Bee attractive sage ground-cover- Quadra island

Right in front of the medical clinic on Quadra Island,  a raised bed had some surprises in store for me.  I was certainly not expecting numerous bumble bees foraging on 4 patches of sage ground cover.  We were meandering along the store fronts, and there they were- too busy to take any notice of the photographer.

Very little of the ground covers' green leaves were visible amongst the dense layers of flowers.

There were numerous bumble bees present on these patches of sage.

The bees' tongue is visible probing the flowers

Joe's bumble bee nest

Two bumble bees ready for flight.

This is a large new queen that will be
hibernating over the winter.

Joe S. from Burnaby showed me his 'bumble bee house'.  He told me he always has swallows and chickadee nests up and often they are used by the birds.  And ever so often the chickadee nests are used as a bumble bee nest.  So this year, he asked around if anyone had an old chickadee nest, to please pass it on to him.  He received one placed it in an old chickadee nest, and bingo, the bees arrived.  Chickadee nests have quite a lot of hair in them, and he believes this might be the attractant, like a mouse nest.  I am going to try this, but first I need a chickadee nest.

One guard, checks out the photographer. The splatter pattern
 on the outside of the box is the feces of the bumble bee.

To make the box more to their liking, the bees even
plugged up the large crack at the front of the box.