Kids Go Gardening - make a buzz
Bees are a garden’s best friends. When a bee buzzes from flower to flower to gather food for its family, pollen dust catches a ride on the bee from one flower to another. When a bit of pollen lands on a flower’s stigma and moves down its pollen tube the flower gets ‘pollinated’, which means fruit and seeds can grow inside it. Without pollination there would be no fruit or seeds. Bees are some of the world’s best pollinators of fruit and vegetable plants. And bees need our help to survive.
Plant a Bee Friendly Flower Garden
You can grow flowers from seed, or get flowering plants from the garden centre.
- Choose a sunny spot in the garden.
- Dig your soil until it is loose and crumbly OR Fill a planter box with container mix.
This is a great way to get plants to grow faster in spring when the ground is still a bit cold. You could also plant a garden in a stack of tires, old sacks, recycling bins or even an old wheelbarrow. Just make sure it has holes in the bottom for drainage. - Plant your seedlings or seeds.
- Water to keep the soil moist.
- Feed your flowers every few weeks with liquid fertiliser or worm tea from your worm farm.
Helping the bees
Gardeners are a huge help to bees when we grow bee- friendly flowers. Plant your own bee garden at home or at school this spring see how many bees come to visit. PLUS you will be rewarded with beautiful colourful flowers. Flowers make everyone happy. It’s a win win situation!
Here are a few bee favourites to plant in your garden:
Cosmos, Calendula, Delphinium, Poppies, Lavender, Thyme, Rosemary, Echinacea, Roses, Apple blossom, Orange blossom, Manuka, Pohutukawa
Did you know?
- Bees have 5 eyes! There are 3 simple eyes on top of the head, and 2 compound eyes.
- Not all bees sting. Male bees (called drones) have no sting. Most times, bees only sting if they feel threatened. Bees aren’t out to get us!
- Bees love bright colours. Their favourite colours are yellow, blue and purple.
2-Sep-2019
Honey bee on apple flower
Cosmos
In the Garden
