Planting a Bee Friendly Garden

For a long time when I was a child, I thought I might want to be a naturalist. Or forest ranger. Or maybe an ecologist or zoologist or marine biologist. Whatever it was I ended up doing with my life, I knew I wanted to do something to help save the world and save all those creatures who were in danger of extinction.

If you’re like me though, sometimes you think, okay I want to help but what can I do? I’m just one person. Well, here’s the thing when it comes to bringing back the bees. It’s really really easy to help! And you can start right in your own backyard by planting a bee friendly garden:

Interested in more? Subscribe to our email list.

Planting a Bee Friendly Garden

We get commissions for purchases made through links in this post. Learn more about what this means.

Hundreds of different bee species call Canada home.

I was so surprised to learn that the smallest is the size of a pin head! We have bees that live above ground and some that live below ground. All species of bees are vital to our ecosystem. Out of all the pollinators we have, the bees are the most important ones. They pollinate about 1/3 of the food we eat! And guess what? They actually love backyards in urban settings. For them, it often means a shorter flight path and much more variety when it comes to the flowers and plants they love. So, they actually are more likely to thrive in your backyard and other similar settings than anywhere else. YOU are crucial component in bringing back the bees!

Bees are attracted to colour.

They especially like blue, purple, violet, white and yellow. Consider this when choosing the plants you’re adding to your garden.

It’s best to plant flowers in clumps of single species.

By creating large clumps of plants, instead of interspersing little patches of different plants throughout your garden, you can make it easier for the bees to find the plants.

Bees can have different preferences in the colours and types of plants they like.

They also have different sizes of tongues so it’s really important to include a variety of colours, types, and shapes of flowers. In this way, you can benefit the most bees possible!

Try to stagger the flowering times of your plants.

In this way, the bees will always have food available to them!

Some breeds of flowers are sterile.

Did you know that? (I didn’t!) This makes them useless to the bees. Typically, native or heirloom plants are the best for the bees. Also, it’s good to note that as a general rule, native plants attract native bees and exotic plants attract honeybees.