What to plant in your garden to support busy bees

While honey and native bees are essential to functioning ecosystems and food security in Australia, their populations are under threat from habitat destruction, intensive farming practices and pests and diseases.

A keystone species, bees play an essential role in preserving biodiversity and the health of ecosystems while nearly two thirds of Australia's agricultural production benefits from both European honey and native bee pollination.

Despite being an introduced species in Australia, European honey bees are crucial in pollinating many of the introduced foods we all enjoy.

The more than 1700 species of Australian native bees are also important pollinators and will be celebrated this week during the annual Australian Pollinator Week.

Amanda Collins, from Backyard Beekeeping Ballarat, said the week was an ideal time to spread awareness about the important roles bees played.

"In Australia and Europe there has been talk about an insect Armageddon scenario, where a lot of insects have slowly declined as a result of man's intervention," she said.

"This is an opportunity for Australia to embrace and celebrate the value of insects in our environment, and particularly pollinators."

One of the best ways to support bees is to increase their habitat, and planting a diversity of both exotic and native species to support both European honeybees and Australian native bees is something to keep in mind.

European honeybees are generalist pollinators and pollinate most horticulture and crop plants. Living in colonies, their hives are often transported by beekeepers to support crop pollination.

As European honeybees see in a blue and green spectrum, plants with blue or purple flowers are particularly attractive to them.

This includes lavender, rosemary, sage and salvias, all of which are also good sources of nectar and pollen.

Meanwhile, Australian native bees can provide essential pollination services for native fauna and wildflowers.

Generally solitary, native bees live in nests on the ground or in hollows, cracks or crevices.

The native bees which live in the Ballarat region - blue-banded bees, cuckoo bees and leaf-cutter bees - are generally ground-dwelling.

Thus Ms Collins said bee hotels were not a useful device, though they would be more likely to attract Australian native wasps.

"We need to think about our ground dwelling bees and what we can do to create habitat for them," she said.

Australian native bees forage on nectar and pollen from native plants such as banksias, correas and westringias so planting these is beneficial for them.

Making water available for bees and other pollinators is another important initiative to support them.

This can be achieved by placing shallow bowls of water - filled with pebbles, rocks or sand for pollinators to sit on - throughout the garden.

Meanwhile, another critical piece of advice is to avoid using pesticides and insecticides wherever possible.

Rather than using these chemicals, permaculture principles can be embraced instead.

Ms Collins said removing weeds by hand or using sheet mulching to reduce weeds could be tried first but if a pesticide absolutely must be used it should be once the weed has finished flowering, in times when bees are unlikely to forage, so early in the morning or after dark, and on days with little or no wind.

Another alternative to introducing toxic chemicals into the environment is mail ordering beneficial insects to introduce into the garden.

This year the Wheen Bee Foundation is supporting Australian Pollinator Week by launching the

Bee Friendly Farming Garden registration program, partnering with Flow.

Wheen Bee Foundation chief executive, Fiona Chambers, said Bee Friendly Farming was launched in May this year and the non-profit was thrilled with how quickly the program had expanded across Australia.

"In just five months we have certified more than 12,000 ha of farmland spanning five states of Australia across a variety of industries including almond, avocado, apple, grazing, (sheep, beef, and dairy), vines, agroforestry, macadamia, and nurseries," she said.

Ms Chambers encouraged people to plant flowers, create pollinator habitats and display the BFF Garden sign to demonstrate a commitment to protecting pollinators.

Flow chief executive, Cedar Anderson, said the week was a great opportunity to celebrate all pollinators.

"There is more to bees than the fact that some of them produce delicious honey. Bees, like all pollinators, matter because they feed the world. Pollinators are integral to the production of most human foods, including fruits and vegetables," he said.

A guide about which plants to introduce to your garden is available on the Wheen Bee Foundation's website: www.wheenbeefoundation.org.au/our-work/powerful-pollinators/

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