A bee and bumblebee friendly balcony or garden is important for many reasons. Insects are not only important for sustaining people's food production, but also an important food source for wildlife, keep the environment healthy, and help preserve biodiversity. Choosing native plants that serve as a food source for insects can help create a balanced ecosystem in your garden or balcony. We show you here which are the right plants for the garden and balcony that attract bees and offer them a living space in which they feel comfortable.
What exactly is a pollinating insect?
Pollinators are animals that greatly benefit plants by transferring their pollen, also known as pollen. This is necessary for some plants so that they can reproduce. The largest groups include bees, wild bees, butterflies, bumblebees and hoverflies.
What are nectar and pollen?
Pollination also has an advantage for wildlife, namely that nectar and pollen are a food source for a large number of insects.
Nectar consists of sugars, water and minerals and is excreted by plants as glandular secretion from the nectaries, also called nectar glands, to attract animals. The nectar is produced during photosynthesis and is mostly released through the flower. Nectaries can also be found outside the flowers on petioles.
Most important for the plant is the pollen grain: supplier of the male part of the genome of a flowering plant. It has to be transported from one plant to the next in order for the plant species to survive in the long term. This is the sexual reproduction of plants. Pollen is an important supplier of proteins and amino acids for bees.
heyday explained
The flower is a leaf organ that serves the sexual reproduction of the plant. They develop into seeds and fruits after pollination and fertilization. New plants grow from seeds. The flowering phase of a plant follows the growth phase. It heralds the end of life of annual plants. There are plants in which the flower develops early. The so-called early bloomers thrive from January to April. Mid-flowering bulbs bloom from May to August and late bloomers bloom from September to December. Note, however, that the same plant may flower at a different time depending on geographic location!
These insect friendly plants love bees and butterflies
Because pollinators are needed for about 70% of food crops, their maintenance is very important for humans. Around 88% of flowering plants are also pollinated by insects. We need bees, bumblebees, butterflies and the like to maintain the genetic diversity of flowering plants. Insect die-offs are partly due to industrial agriculture with intensive use of pesticides. Fewer and fewer habitats in the form of uncultivated areas, such as meadows, are available to insects - there is a lack of suitable nesting sites and food sources. The use of pesticides makes insects more susceptible to pathogens. For this reason, it is important to choose plants for the garden and balcony that are insect-friendly.
plants for balcony
plants for bees
Many flowers attract pollinating insects: sunflowers, daisies, and bluebells are good choices! Phacelia and dandelions are also popular. Onion flowers are also popular. The sedum plant is a succulent plant that attracts butterflies with its white flowers. The Viper Bugloss is ideal for wild bees and other insects.
Insect-friendly plants: Perennials, shrubs and hedges
Bee-friendly gardening
For an insect-friendly garden, it is important that only harmless organic fertilizer is used. With the FARBIO® NPK organic liquid fertilizer for vegetable plants, you support your plants efficiently with all the important nutrients. Fertilizing is important for rapid growth and intensive fruit and flower formation. Perennial and hardy plants are popular with bees, and it can be helpful to leave a corner of the garden untouched so that bumblebees and the like can nest in the ground. More tips: When creating a bed in the vegetable garden, you can use a wide range of food plants. Diversity is always best, for animals and for the soil. You can start preparing your garden as early as February. The main harvest time is from July to October. Bee magnets are the blossoms of artichokes, asparagus, broccoli, leeks or onions.
Flower strips: wild flowers, summer flowers and co.
Flower strips offer a wide range of flowers and are often laid out along agricultural land, but are also popular in many private households. Ready-made seed mixes are available. These areas are not only good for pollinating insects, but they are also food and refuge for other animals. Sowing is usually between April and June.
We are also involved: With every purchase from FARBIO®, there is more flowering space for bees and other equally important insects in the Lüneburg Heath!
