Another spring, another chance to make improvements in the garden. The thing I am trying to be a lot more conscious of is choosing plants which bring nectar for bees and pollinating insects.
This isn’t a tricky thing but I think it is one of the most obvious positive choices we can make for the environment. So what works? The RHS has a very helpful page which gives a full list of the best plants for the job.
– here’s what they say:
‘We have compiled three downloadable plant lists to help gardeners identify plants that will provide nectar and pollen for bees and the many other types of pollinating insects:
- RHS Perfect for Pollinators – Garden Plants (566kB pdf)
- RHS Perfect for Pollinators – Wildflowers (759kB pdf)
- RHS Perfect for Pollinators – Plants of the World (722kB pdf)
The plants were chosen using the extensive experience, archives and records of RHS entomologists, gardeners and beekeepers in addition to published lists and scientific evidence. The lists are maintained by a team of RHS staff, including horticultural advisors, entomologists and botanists and is reviewed annually. While these lists will continue to evolve and be improved on, they represent some of the best cultivated and wild plants for gardeners to attract a wide range of pollinating insects.’
And here is a list of their top 10 recommended garden plants – I will be dipping into this little lot.
• Dianthus barbatus (sweet william)
• Hesperis matronalis (dame’s violet)
• Hyssopus officinalis (hyssop)
• Jasminum officinale (common jasmine)
• Lavandula angustifolia (English lavender)
• Lychnis coronaria (rose campion)
• Monarda didyma (bergamot or bee balm)
• Verbena bonariensis (purple top)
• Weigela florida (weigelia)
