If you are interested in learning more about how to provide habitat on your property, TLC offers their Landscape Visionaries sessions. A TLC staff member will discuss your vision on a visit to your property, and then write a report with suggested recommendations. In honor of National Pollinator Week, check out this brief glimpse of a report for a local landowner who had beehives, and was also interested in native pollinators:
"We had discussed planting
a patch of sunflowers near your bees for easy pollen access. I would recommend using Helianthus helianthoides (False sunflower).
This plant flowers for approximately eight weeks with the peak blooms
occurring in mid-July. It is
self-sowing, attracts butterflies, bees, and if you leave it standing into the
fall, the birds will flock to it to eat the seeds that have not already dropped
into the ground. This plant can tolerate
moist to dry soils, and prefers full sun to partial shade, so the best option
would be to plant this in the sunniest area near the bee hives.
We also discussed planting
either a vine or some other type of shrub that would work as a wind block for
the bee hives. Locerina sempervirens
(native honeysuckle) is a well behaved member of the honeysuckle
family that attracts hummingbirds with its reddish orange flower. This is a twining vine that needs some type
of support to get started climbing. It
can be trimmed to your specifications.
The amounts of flowers on the vine are directly proportional to the sun
that the plant receives. It can tolerate
drought but prefers a moist soil. I
would think that you should purchase four or five plants to act as a windblock
for the bee hives.
Ilex
glaubra (Inkberry) is a semi-evergreen shrub in the holly family
(though not prickly like the American Holly).
You must be sure to plant male and female plants so that you will get
berries and cross pollination. The shrub
produces a white flower in May, June, and July and is another plant that is
touted by the Xerces Society as being a great plant for both honeybees and our
native bees. "
Are you looking for advice on your property?? Learn more about Landscape Visionaries and Schedule your session today!
Interested in Apiaries and Beekeeping?? Attend one of TLC's Open Hive Days at the New Leaf Eco Center.
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