Bzzz…Is Your Garden Buzzing?
Bumblebees are major pollinators of crops, soft fruits and wild flowers.
Firwood House near Wooler and The Strand near Bardon Mill were both buzzing with the ‘big six' bumblebee species on two inspection days last spring and summer, and more besides.
The Strand B&B, run by Angela and Mike Frayne, had seven species in good numbers on the spring inspection, with Cotoneaster and Star of Bethlehem proving irresistible to the insects. The garden benefits from a lot of stone retaining walls which are good places for bumblebees to nest in. The second visit later in the summer had most of the bee activity focussed around an annual flower border sown with a Butterfly and Bee seed mix. Loosestrife, Globe Thistle and Monkshood attracted numbers of bees too.
Gardens cover more than 1 million hectares of Britain, so making them attractive to bees is of massive value to everyone
The garden also benefits from some mature Lime Trees that are a magnet for all bees and literally hum with the sound of them feeding. Good numbers of bumblebees were also recorded on Hypericum, Weigela, Penstemon and Hosta. while Doronicums are irresistible to many species. Beth records her nature notes on Twitter under ‘FirwoodB&B’.
Mike and Beth Mills from Firewood with their award.
Bumblebees are major pollinators of crops, soft fruits and wild flowers, and without them there would be poorer yields of food and seed setting for continuity. Right now, the Bumblebee is more important than ever as Honeybees continue to suffer loss through disease. Habitat management that benefits Bumblebees also supports other plants and animal life nearby. Gardens cover more than 1 million hectares of Britain, so making them attractive to bees is of massive value to everyone.
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