Gardening for bees and other pollinators
There are lots of ways that you can make your garden friendly for wildlife.
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Roselle Chapman from Wild Oxfordshire shares some of her top tips
Bee facts
- 250 species of bees in the UK
- 224 wild solitary bees
- 25 wild bumble bees
- One domesticated honey bee
Trees you can plant this winter to help pollinators
- Male grey willow (sallow) Salix cinerea
- Goat willow Salix caprea
- Small-leaved lime Tilia cordata
- Service trees: Sorbus torminalis, Sorbus domestica
- Apple Malus sp – any, fruit bearing, or ornamental
- Cherry Plum – Prunus cerasifera
- Wild Hawthorn – Crataegus monogyna/laevigata
Gardening tips
- Leave the dead plant stems over winter. Hollow stems may be used by bees for over wintering.
- Provide flowers throughout the year – some bees emerge as early as February.
- Buy organic to ensure bulbs and plants haven’t been treated with neonicotinoids.
- Have a flowering lawn.
- Provide a source of water for bees.
- Leave a patch of bare earth – mason bees gather mud to build egg cells.
- Include a variety of flower shapes – different species have different tongue lengths..
More Information on Wildlife Gardening from Wild Oxfordshire https://www.wildoxfordshire.org.uk/communities/resources/