The 10 most bee-friendly herbs

Herbs are not only popular with people, they also enrich the bees' diet. Here you will find 10 bee-friendly herbs for the garden and balcony.

Beneficial insects how Bees and Bumblebees are extremely important for our ecosystem and biodiversity. Unfortunately, many bees cannot find enough food to make ends meet due to one-sided garden design and bee-unfriendly plants. Those who want to support the hard-working beneficial insects often do so bee-friendly flowers. These are beautiful at first, but often have no other use than their attractive appearance. In addition, the blooming time of many flowers is concentrated in late spring and summer - for bees it is However, it is important that they also provide enough food in early spring or late summer will. This is where bee-friendly herbs come into play: If you want to do something good not only for the bees but also for yourself, you can also use well-known kitchen plants. These not only taste good to us humans, but also offer a good source of food for bees with their flowers, as the flowering time of various herbs is often spread over the whole year. Find out below which herbs are particularly good for bees.

1. sage

sage (Salvia) is most certainly considered to be Medicinal plant or kitchen spice known. But the plant can not only be used as a strong spice or home-made tea: with its purple flowers, the plant is a little paradise for bees, especially wild bees and bumblebees attracts. In addition to the real sage (Salvia officinalis) the clotted sage (Salvia viridis) and clary sage (Salvia sclarea). While the true sage blooms from May to June, the clary sage blooms from June to August and the crested sage from July to September - so can Simply by planting different types of sage you can provide a stable food base for bees from spring to late summer create.

2. thyme

thyme (Thymus) is an absolute must for Mediterranean dishes, but as a tea it can also have a cough-relieving effect. But not only its aroma, but also its extraordinarily beautiful flowers make the herb so popular: Purple, pink and white carpets of flowers adorn the plant from June to October, depending on the species into it. Thyme reliably attracts bees because the flowering herb has a particularly high nectar value and thus offers a good basis for foraging in summer.

3. Borage

Borage (Borago officinalis), also called savory, is one of the particularly bee-friendly herbs that can be grown in the garden. The decorative, star-shaped flowers of borage offer bees a good yield of nectar and are also pretty to look at for humans. Borage is particularly popular with bees because of its long flowering period, which begins in May and can last until September. In addition to their good looks and long bloom, the blooming herbs also score with their undemanding nature and their pleasant taste.

4. hyssop

hyssop (Hyssopus officinalis) is probably one of the lesser known aromatic plants. Nevertheless, it is worth growing the perennial plant, because the perennial herb is not only considered particularly tasty, but also attracts bees like magic. In fact, the blue-violet and pink-colored hyssops flowers are so popular with bees that the plant is also known colloquially as bee herb. The long and persistent flowering of the plant, which lasts from July to October, is one of the main reasons why hyssop is one of the bee-friendly herbs.

5. Lemon balm

The fresh aroma of the Lemon balm (Melissa officinalis) is very popular with people and is often used for food and drinks. In addition to its use in teas and desserts, bees also like to use lemon balm as a source of food. The small, almost inconspicuous flowers of the plant appear from June and attract not only bees but also bumblebees.

6. rosemary

With its bloom between March and April belongs to the rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) to the first bee-friendly herbs to flower. The herb thus fulfills a particularly important task, because while nectar is often in abundance in summer, food sources for bees in early spring are often few and far between. But the flowering herb is not only a pleasure for bees: People also enjoy the colorful flowers and the characteristic aroma of the Mediterranean spice.

Tip: Our Plantura bee pasture contains a variety of bee-friendly types of flowers and herbs. In this way you can optimally supply bees and bumblebees with food and turn your garden into a true bee paradise.

7. Mountain savory

Mountain savory (Satureja montana) is a great addition to hearty dishes with its strong aroma and is particularly often used to season beans. In addition, the plant is considered to be particularly easy to care for, undemanding and quickly forms a small lawn carpet. From July to October the plant shows its small flowers and thus reliably attracts bees and other beneficial insects that cannot resist the bee-friendly herb.

8. oregano

oregano (Origanum) is one of those herbs that should not be missing in any garden. Almost every dish is seasoned with the aromatic plants, especially in Mediterranean cuisine. But did you know that the herb is also good for bees? Wild bees and bumblebees in particular love the white-pink flowers of the bee-friendly herb, which appear on the plant between July and August.

9. Lovage

With its intense taste it is Lovage (Levisticum officinale) is a great enrichment, especially for soups and stews, which is why the plant is also known as Maggi herb. But lovage is also attractive for bees: from June to August, the lovage's flower is available for insects. Although its yellow-green flowers are rather inconspicuous, the herb is ideal as a food source for wild bees and bumblebees.

10. mint

mint (Mentha) is currently one of the most popular spices in many gardens. It is particularly popular with drinks or sweet treats. Especially the numerous Mint types and the associated aromatic diversity make the plant so popular. But mint is also very popular with beneficial insects: It is one of the plants that are suitable as herbs for bees and butterflies. The peppermint (Mentha × piperita) blooms from June to August. However, other types of mint also bloom at other times - such as spearmint (Mentha spicata), which blooms from July to September. Smaller wild bee species in particular benefit from the bee-friendly plant. By the way: Even if they do Catnip (Nepeta cataria) is only distantly related to mint despite its name, it also reliably attracts small beneficial insects such as wild bees with its bloom, which lasts from July to September.

In addition to herbs, there are many other plants that bees are fond of. For example, in this article you will find a selection of bee-friendly flowers.