The bee friendly garden
Keeping bees happy in your garden relies on the pollen and nectar sources available to them year round. This means flowers, but not just any flowers. Bees identify pollen and nectar sources by colour, shape and smell. And they can only really perceive four colours – yellow, blue, blue-green and ultraviolet. So look for yellow flowers to grow – rudbeckia, calendula, solidago and sunflowers all grow well in Gisborne district. Scented herbs like borage, chives, lavender, oreganum, sage and thyme are real favourites of bees, as are old-fashioned roses, cottage plants and spring bulbs. Many modern plants have had their scent bred out of them . Native trees such as pittosporum and coprosma, and hebes, are good food sources: so are Australians like wattles, eucalypts and bottlebrushes. Of course, the apples, peaches, plums and berries you want to pollinate in spring, and the citrus and feijoas in summer, are all loved by bees.
Look after your bees
The most serious danger to backyard bees and other beneficial insects in the home garden is the indiscriminate use of pesticides. As an alternative these, a fast jet of water from a garden hose can get rid of most insect pests like aphids and vegetable bugs. Caterpillars can be picked off and squashed.
If you cannot avoid using pesticides, keep to those that are non-toxic to bees. Yates Conqueror Spraying Oil is probably the safest. Pyrethrum is organic, but very dangerous to bees if they come into contact with it before it is dry. If you choose to use sprays based on pyrethrum, make sure you apply them in the evening after the bees are safely tucked up back home in their hive.
Keep away from systemic pesticides that stay in the plant for long periods. Bees taking nectar from flowers are in just as much danger as the caterpillar chewing the leaves.
When in doubt, check the label, and as a general rule, do not spray pesticides onto a plant in flower. This includes the weeds around fruit trees.
Give your bees a drink. Provide a shallow dish of water, with small twigs that they can safely land on.