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Bee spotting in July

Three new solitary bee species to spot this month are tiny – less than half the size of a 14mm honey bee – so get your glasses on! They are the small scissor bee, the diminutive common-yellow faced bee and the slightly bigger green-eyed flower bee. Luckily, the larger Willughby’s leafcutter bee and the Blue mason bee are still flying, along with the chunky Wool carder bee. I’m also excited about seeing the males of two species of bumblebee this month. They look even cuter than the workers and the queens!

Tips for IDing July bumblebees:

  • Male Red-tailed bumblebees (Bombus lapidaries) and White-tailed bumblebees (Bombus lucorum) are flying now because it is the time of year when the bumblebee colony is getting ready for mating. If you remember in early spring the queens emerged, foraged and looked for a nest. The first eggs they laid were worker females who were able to take over foraging duties when they became adult bees allowing the queen to focus on laying more eggs to strengthen the colony. Some of the eggs she has laid are males, who are now flying. Their sole job will be to mate with new virgin queens who will soon be emerging from the colony. The male red-tailed bumblebee is actually multi-coloured with fluffy yellow hairs on his face, two yellow bands on his black body and a red tail to boot making him surely one of our most attractive bees. The white-tailed bumblebee males also have endearingly bright yellow hairs on their face. Both are smaller than the queens.

You will also continue to see some of our commonest bumblebee flying this month: buff-tailed and white-tailed bumblebees, common carder bees, queen and worker red-tailed bumblebees, tree bumblebees and garden bumblebees. And the odd cuckoo bumblebee, like the Vestal cuckoo bee we began seeing in May, may still be around early this month. Here’s a full guide to cuckoos. ID tip: They have longer, more pointy tails than nest-making bumblebees and no pollen baskets.

How to ID July solitary bees:

  • The Wool carder bee (Anthidium manicatum) is easy to see with its yellow spots along the side of its chunky body. if you have a patch of Lamb’s Ear (Stachys byzantina), you may have seen the females visiting already to collect the soft downy material from the underside of the leaves to line their nests. They roll the hairs into a ball as big as themselves to carry home to her nest in a ready-made hole. You may also see the larger male bees aggressively defending their patch of purple flowers by attacking intruders in mid-air, armed with spikes under their abdomen. I’ve also seen the females using their long tongues to feed on foxgloves in my garden and Black horehound along the canal.
  • NOTE: Carder means to ‘tease out fibres’. Despite having a similar English name to the social bumblebee called a Common carder bee (Bombus pascuorum), a Wool Carder Bee is not a bumblebee, it is a solitary bee nesting alone.
  • Willughby’s leafcutter (Megachile willughbiella) is the most common of the leafcutter bees. They get their name, like many solitary bees, from how they construct their nests. The leafcutters cut pieces of leaf from plants, including roses and lilac, to line their nests. Similar in size to a honeybee, leafcutters are brownish grey and collect pollen on the underside of their tummy, which they have a habit of lifting up in the air while feeding on flowers. They will nest in bee hotels alongside red mason bees, plugging the entrance of the tubes with leaf. Look out for a female flying with a piece of leaf as big as herself clasped between her legs. Like this fantastic footage captured by Devon-based field naturalist, John Walter.
  • Common yellow-faced bee (Hylaeus communis) is one of a dozen small, (5mm) bees which are predominately black, but have yellow spots (the females), or triangles (the males) on their face. The common variety is the one you are most likely to see in your garden because it’s not fussy about where it nests – in a variety of small cavities including manmade bee hotels if the dimensions of the tube are small enough – and it feeds on many widespread flowers. Unusually for a bee, it carries pollen back to its nest in a special stomach, called a crop, rather than on its body. If you have an observation bee box, with removal panels – so you can see what is happening in the cells the bees are creating – you will see this bee creating a waterproof cellophane-like protective wrapping around each egg and filled with nectar and pollen.
  • Small scissor bee (Chelostoma campanularum) is one of the smallest bees in Britain. Measuring just 4.5mm, they can easily be mistaken for a tiny, black fly or ant by the lay person, or a black furrow bee by an entomologist. The clue to which bee you are looking at is in their Latin name – campanula is the Latin for bellflowers or harebells. They frequent these flowers, and males can be found sheltering in the middle during dull weather and/or at night. Another cavity nester, they use pre-existing holes in dead wood including fence posts and plug the holes the with small particles like sand grains and pebbles.  Like many solitary bees, they often nest next door to each other. ID tip: Another bee you may find sleeping in your bellflowers is the slightly bigger, browner and fluffier, Gold-tailed Melitta bee (Melitta haemorrhoidalis).
  • Blue mason bees (Osmia caerulescens) are black, but on close inspection females have a blue sheen. They are bigger and slightly hairier than scissor, yellow-faced and furrow bees. Similar in size to a red mason bee, they have the same round bottom, hairs on their tummy to collect pollen and they will also nest in bee hotels, but are less frequent guests. They plug their tubes with chewed up leaf, instead of mud. You’re most likely to see these bees on catmint, crane’s bill (hardy geraniums), knapweeds and flowering herbs.
  • The Green-eyed flower bee (Anthophora bimaculata) is a real beauty. Much smaller than the earlier flying Hairy-footed flower bee, she displays the same darting movement and high pitched buzz, and the males (which also have the big, green eyes) noisily patrol patches of flowers. They are polylectic – feeding on many flowers including catmints, lavender, Viper’s bugloss, Black Horehound, willowherbs, and the dandelion-looking Cat’s-ear.
  • Common furrow bee (Lasioglossum calceatum) – there are more than 1,700 furrow bees worldwide making them the largest bee genus, despite the fact they don’t conform to most people’s image of a bee – black, with a smooth elongated body, often with a metallic green or blue sheen. Measuring around 7mm, the common variety are widespread in gardens across Britain and males may roost overnight in thistles, knapweeds and ragworts at this time of year. They furrow in light soil to make their nests in large aggregations.

How to help bees in July:

  1. Plant different flowers for different bees Lots of bee-friendly flowers are blooming this month including salvias, knapweeds (Centaurea nigra)  and lavenders. However some lavenders are better than others for attracting bees. Lavadula x intermedia ‘Gros Bleu’ performed best in trials at Sussex University, whereas Lavendula angustifolia is less attractive. Lavenders are good for short-tongued bees, as are herbs including Marjoram (Origanum), Anise hyssop, thyme and borage. For long-tongued bees plant Bergamot, (bee balm), Viper’s bugloss, Lamb’s Ear, salvias and shrubs like buddleia, also loved by butterflies, hence it’s common name, the butterfly bush. Many of these plants grow well in pots and planters on a sheltered patio or roof terrace in well-drained soil and they are fairly drought-tolerant.
  2. If you only have a window box, try growing the flowers I suggested in June as they will still be flowering now: scabious japonica, dwarf harebells (campanula carpatica), dwarf lavenders, Mexican fleabane (Erigeron karvinskianus) and creeping thyme (Thymus serpyllum) and keep watering regularly. You could add some trailing nasturtium and bird’s-foot trefoil.
  3. Continue to let part of the the lawn grow long (after No Mow May) for dandelions and clovers.
  4. Ditch the weed killers and pesticides. That includes spraying your roses – remember the leafcutter bees collect pieces of leaf to make their nests.
  5. It’s your last chance to put up bee hotels for blue mason bees and leafcutter bees. You can make a bee hotel. We recommend buying ones that you can clean out in the winter and store the bee cocoons safely in a cold, dry, dark place. We have successfully installed these bee hotels under the south-facing eaves of our garden shed. If you want to see what is happening inside a bee hotel, I would recommend investing in an observation box with a Perspex viewing window such as this award-winning one from Nurturing Nature. A summer unit, allows smaller bees to nest including Common yellow-faced bees (Hylaeus communis).
  6. Drill holes in blocks of wood – 10mm, 8mm, 6mm and 4mm diameters and up to 30 cm deep – and screw them to a sturdy support. Drill holes in existing structures such as fence posts, or dead trees. See if small scissor bees or yellow-faced bees take up residence.
  7. Create a sand bank against a south facing wall for mining bees that like to burrow into sand. You may even attract the Green-eyed flower bee.
  8. Provide a source of water for thirsty honeybees. This can be a shallow bowl or saucer with stones or pebbles in that the bees can stand on while they are drinking. Bees can’t swim!
  9. Buy a Field Guide to the Bees of Great Britain and Ireland if you are serious about IDing lots more bees.
  10. Start growing seeds, such as forget-me-nots, that will flower next spring.

For information on IDing and helping bees earlier in the year see my Bees to See in June blog here,  Bees to See in May blog here and Bees to See in April blog here, Bees to See in March blog here.

Busy bees to spot and help in June

This month you’ll hopefully see the three bumblebees above and a cuckoo bumblebee, (There will also be plenty of buff-tailed and white-tailed bumblebee workers foraging, and smaller, brown common carder bees, but we haven’t included them in the June guide as we wanted to introduce you to some new faces) . While we say goodbye to the charming hairy-footed flower bees and the bee-hotel dwelling red mason bees in late June, we say hello to five new solitary bees: a new mason bee, a new mining bee, and we’ll see for the first time this year, leafcutter bees, furrow bees and one of my favourites, the wool carder bee.

Tips for IDing June bumblebees:

  • Garden bumblebee (Bombus hortorum) – sit by a patch of flowering foxgloves or honeysuckle to see this long-tongue bumblebee. Unfortunately they are becoming less widespread than many other bumblebees with white tails. The way to tell the garden bumblebee apart from buff-tailed and white-tailed bumblebees is by looking at the two golden bands at the front and back of the thorax which I think makes the bee look as if it’s wearing a black skull cap. It has a third band on the abdomen.
  • Red-tailed bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) – this year, I’ve been lucky enough to have already spotted the black bodies and fiery red tails of the queen and her workers. I have read that they favour yellow flowers, and I did see them on a sedum’s tiny yellow flowers and the yellow part of the pink-petaled seaside daisy (Erigeron glaucus). I’d also suggest looking up at Laburnum trees drooping under the weight of yellow, pea-like flowers.
  • Tree bumblebee (Bombus hypnorum) – their ginger thorax, black body and white tail may be visible on Cotoneaster, or bramble flowers. Better still, keep your eye on a blue tit box when the chicks have fledged as they may move in. Since the tree bumblebee arrived in southern England in 2001 from Europe it has become one of the most common species in the UK because it has exploited nesting sites not frequented by other bumblebees which usually prefer to live underground.
  • Vestal cuckoo bee (Bombus vestalis) – also called the Southern cuckoo bee because it is in this part of England where you are most likely to see the large female seeking the underground nest of the buff-tailed bumblebee to take over. At this time of year only small buff-tailed workers are foraging. So if you see a huge bee that looks like a big buff-tailed, it’s more likely to be its cuckoo. Other tips: she has a longer white tail with yellow hairs at the base, and there are NO pollen baskets on her hind legs. (She is a female and not a queen because she doesn’t have worker bees. Her eggs hatch into females and males that are fed by the buff-tailed worker bees who become her slaves after she takes over their mother’s nest.) Look closely and you’ll see she has only one single golden band on her thorax and another band on top of her white tail.

How to ID June solitary bees:

  • The Wool Carder Bee (Anthidium manicatum) is one of my favourite solitary bees, because they are so easy to spot with their yellow spots along the side of their chunky bodies. And if you plant Lamb’s Ear (Stachys byzantina), you are guaranteed to see them collecting the soft downy material from the underside of the leaves to line their nests. Carder means to ‘tease out fibres’, and the female rolls the hairs into a ball as big as herself to carry home to her nest which is in a ready-made hole. You may also see the larger male bees aggressively defending their patch of purple flowers by attacking intruders in mid air. They are armed with spikes under their abdomen that can kill their foes. NOTE: Despite having a similar English name to the Common carder bee (Bombus pascuorum), they are very different. The latter is a social bumblebee.
  • Willugby’s leafcutter (Megachile willughbiella) is the most common of the leafcutter bees. They get their name, like many solitary bees, from how they construct their nests. They cut pieces of leaf from rose and lilac bushes to line their nests, leaving the plant looking as if it has been attacked by a hole punch. Similar in size to a honeybee, leafcutters are brownish grey and collect pollen on the underside of their tummy, which they have a habit of lifting up in the air while feeding on flowers. They nest in bee hotels if red mason bees have left any tubes unoccupied. They plug the entrance with leaf later in the summer when they have laid all their eggs in a tube. If you’re very lucky, you may see a female flying with a piece of leaf as big as herself clasped between her legs.
  • Blue mason bees (Osmia caerulescens) are similar in size to a red mason bee and have the same round bottom and hairs on their tummy to collect pollen. The females are black with a blue sheen. The males, which appear a little earlier, have a gingery pile on their thorax. They can also check into bee hotels, but are less frequent guests than red mason bees. Their tubes will be plugged green, with chewed up leaf. You’re most likely to see these bees on catmint, crane’s bill (hardy geraniums), knapweeds and flowering herbs.
  • Orange-tailed mining bees (Andrena haemorrhoa) are one of the most common mining bees in urban areas and easy to spot if you look down in the grass. The size of a honeybee, females have a reddish pile on their thorax, a black body, and bright orange hairs right at the very tip of their pointy bottom. Although solitary, they like to nest next door to each other in underground burrows in south-facing grassy slopes.
  • Smeathman’s Furrow bee (Lasioglossum smeathmanellum ) – there are close on 40 different species of furrow bees recorded in the UK. They are not what you expect a bee to look like – black, with a smooth elongated body, often with a metallic green or blue sheen. Measuring less than 5mm (for comparison a honeybee is around 14mm), spotting this type of furrow bee is going to be a challenge even though they are common over most of southern England and Wales. They nest in old walls and bare slopes in large aggregations and visit open-faced flowers like dandelions and daisies. At first glance you may dismiss them for some kind of fly, but flies have spindly legs and larger eyes and tend to rest with their wings open, while bees tuck theirs back.

How to help bees in June:

  1. Planting different flowers for different bees is particularly important this month when there can often be what’s called a June gap In the UK – a lull in nectar and pollen supplies as the horse chestnut trees finish flowering and trees, such as the limes, have yet to begin and spring flowers fade before summer ones burst into bloom. Try catmint (Nepeta) and cotoneaster for short-tongued bees, and foxgloves, honeysuckle, comfrey and thistles for long-tongued bees. Research by bee-friendly plant supplier, Rosybee found that in June the yellow flowers of  Dyer’s chamomile (Anthemis tinctoria) were the best for all types of solitary bees, followed by purple Geranium rozanne ( a favourite in my small garden because it flowers until October). Viper’s bugloss (Echium vulgare) was best for bumblebees, as it produces nectar all day long, followed by catmint (Nepta racemosa – another long flowerer) and a white lavender (Lavandula x intermedia ‘Edelweiss’). Don’t forget Lamb’s Ear (Stachys byzantina) for the wool carder bees.
  2. If you only have a window box, try growing scabious japonica, dwarf harebells (campanula carpatica), dwarf lavenders, Mexican fleabane (Erigeron karvinskianus), seaside daisy (Erigeron glaucus), and creeping thyme (Thymus serpyllum) which flower from June onwards. Water regularly.
  3. Don’t pull up weeds like Alkanet, which feed many types of bees, and continue not to mow part of the lawn (after No Mow May) to let dandelions and clovers grow.
  4. It’s not too late to install blue tit boxes for tree bumblebees to nest in. They will vacate at the end of the summer, so you may get blue tits nesting next spring.
  5. Put up bee hotels for blue mason bees and leafcutter bees. You can make a bee hotel. We recommend buying ones that you can clean out in the winter and store the bee cocoons safely in a cold, dry, dark place. We have successfully installed these bee hotels under the south-facing eaves of our garden shed. If you want to see what is happening inside a bee hotel, you could invest in an observation box with a Perspex viewing window such as this award-winning one from Nurturing Nature. Even better at this time of year is a summer unit with a variety of different sized nest blocks for many different species of solitary bee.
  6. Create your own, by drilling holes in blocks of wood – 10mm, 8mm, 6mm and 4mm diameters and up to 30 cm deep – and screw them to a sturdy support. Drill holes in existing structures such as fence posts, or dead trees. See which bees take up residence over the summer.
  7. Continue to leave bare earth for mining bees to burrow into.
  8. Provide a source of water for thirsty bees. This can be a shallow bowl or saucer with stones or pebbles in that the bees can stand on while they are drinking. Bees can’t swim!
  9. Ditch the weed killers and pesticides, that includes sprays for your roses!
  10. Buy a Field Guide to the Bees of Great Britain and Ireland if you are serious about IDing lots more bees.

Where have the solitary spring bees gone? One of my favourite bees, the hairy-footed flower bee, disappears later this month, along with red mason bees. This is because solitary bees only live for a few weeks. In their short life cycle they mate and then the female makes, or finds and adapts a nest in which to lay her eggs. She forages for pollen to leave in the nest for the hungry larvae which will hatch from her eggs, after she has died. When she had laid all her eggs and provisioned them with pollen, she will plug up the entrance to the nest, and exhausted from all her activities she will die on the wing having achieved her aim: to successfully reproduce. In her short life, she pollinates many flowers, shrubs and trees whose fruits, seeds and nuts are food for birds and other species. After eating all the pollen, the bee larvae spin a cocoon and metamorphosed into adult bees. They over winter in the cocoon and will emerge next spring to start the life cycle again.

For information on IDing and helping spring bumblebees and solitary bees see my Bees to See in April blog here, Bees to See in May blog here and Bees to See in March blog here.

Not the Chelsea Flower Show

Less than two miles from the Chelsea Flower Show, I am cultivating a very different kind of ‘garden’. It’s a patch of land on a luxury housing development that was so densely planted with evergreen ornamental shrubs, and overrun with brambles and buddleia that no light could get in until the developers, St George, gave us the go ahead last July to turn it into a bee haven.

I know bees love brambles and buddleia, but to boost biodiversity we had to clear much of it to give other wild flowers a chance to flourish and to provide nesting sites for solitary bees.

I wrote a blog at the start of this project on Chelsea Creek.

So how is it looking 9 months on?

We had no idea what may grow, so I was pleased to find a pretty, yellow daisy has sprung up all over the sunny part of site. It turns out to be Oxford Ragwort, (Senecio squalidus), introduced from Sicily, which is known to colonise disturbed soil along railway lines. And our site backs onto the Overground. It is harmless, unlike Common Ragworth (Senecio jacobaea), which is thought to be harmful to livestock. (Not that they are any horses here!) I didn’t see any bees or other pollinators on it, but according to Buglife, it is a good nectar source for insects.

There are a few patches of dandelions –  excellent food for many small mining and furrow bees – lots of the delicate, pink Herb-robert (Geranium robertianum) – a foodplant and nectar-source for many invertebrates including bees, hoverflies and the barred carpet moth – and stinging nettles that caterpillars of the small tortoiseshell and peacock butterflies use as foodplants. I saw some ladybirds, which feast on aphids that shelter among the nettles.

Lots of grass has grown and unfortunately Goosegrass (Galium Aparine), also known as Sticky Grass or Sticky Willy is taking over.  My research found that although its tiny flowers have been observed being visited by a wide range of insects, including various flies, small wasps, Lepidoptera, ants, bees (both short- and long-tongued) and beetles, it has also been noted that insects visit flowers only “sparingly.” Additionally, self-pollination is common due to the minute structure of the flower—“when the stigmas mature… they always touch the anthers.”

One area I’ve manged to keep clear of it, is where I planted dwarf comfrey and balm-leaved deadnettle in July. And I’m delighted to report that these patches of flowers are doing well, flowering and attracting hairy-footed flower bees and common carder bees which I was very excited to observe.

The Lambs’ Ear (above right) is also thriving in a sunnier part, so I hope to see Wool carder bees in July when they collect the hairs on the underside of the velvety leaves.

Other plants, including Rosebay willowherb, Greater Knapweed and Big betony seem to have been swallowed up by the grasses, or strangled by the sticky willy, and neither Hollyhocks, nor Vipers bugloss have yet emerged from the seeds I sowed.

We left some of the Mexican orange blossom (Choisya) shrubs, the hawthorn and holly trees, which all adorned with white flowers. I hope to see a lovely little hawthorn mining bee (Andrena chrysosceles), on it, or the dandelions, one day.

As yet, no bees appear to have checked into the bee hotels, wooden logs with holes drilled different diameters, or the sand tower block that we’ve created for them, but it’s early days.

So what next?

I planted four Common Bugloss (Anchusa officinalis), which I bought from Bee Happy Plants. It’s website says “Research points to the concentration of sugars in its nectar (61%) as being considerably higher than another member of this family also popular with bees (Symphytum officinale). Similar, though much hardier, than its annual cousin Borage. This is an ideal subject to allow to self-seed in your wild garden (each plant producing many hundreds of seeds).” It adds: “Not to be confused with its cousin Green Alkanet (Pentaglottis sempervirens) which is a well-known weed, and has perhaps also given Anchusa officinalis a ‘weed’ label by some.”

But the bees adore Green Alkanet, so it gave me great pleasure to plant two seedlings transplanted from my garden.

The Guelder rose (Viburnum opulus) it about to flower and hopefully the Bastard Balm (Melittis melissophyllum). I will return in May to clear the Sticky Willy, to observe the bees and other pollinators visiting our rewilding project, see if any have taken up residence, and observe what else is emerging through the grass…

Disclaimer: I’ve used one of Penny Metal’s photos of a Male hairy-footed flower bee on Comfrey (above) as it is so much better than my blurry pics

Gardening for bees in March & April

From L-R clockwise: Hairy-footed flower bees on Comfrey; wallflowers in rooftop planters; primroses for short-tongued bees; lungworth (pulmonaria) for long-tongued bees

If, like me, you didn’t get round to March tasks because of the rain, don’t worry, do them at the beginning of April instead. At least the dandelions, alkanet and other ‘weeds’ for bees will have grown well with all that rain followed by early April sunshine. Here’s a recap of the tasks to do.

Gardening for bumblebees:

  1. Leave a patch of the garden wild for nesting sites and don’t disturb a nesting site if you find one in a compost bin, under a shed, or even in a watering can (it will only last until the end of the summer).
  2. Put up a box for blue tits. After the chicks have fledged, the box may be inhabited by tree bumblebees. The colony will vacant at the end of summer, so the blue tits can use it again next spring.
  3. Plant dead-nettles, primroses, forget- me-nots, and rosemary to provide food this month for short-tongued bumblebees.
  4. Leave ‘weeds’ like dandelions and alkanet to grow. They provide much-needed pollen and nectar in early spring. And you’ll see lots of different bees coming to feed on a clump of alkanet.
  5. Sow seeds inside now to create more flowers later in the summer. Sweet peas, sunflowers, cosmos and Anise hyssop are some of the easiest to grow in pots. Try growing on a heated mat until the seeds germinate. I’m also going to try chives, viper’s bugloss and cornflowers outside.
  6. Don’t mow the lawn to let clovers flower.
  7. Ditch the weed killers, like Round-up, and any pesticides and bug sprays you may be using on your roses, or any other plants.

Gardening for solitary bees:

  1. Plant lungwort, wallflowers, early-flowering comfrey and flowering currants (Ribes) for long-tongued hairy footed flower bees. Red mason bees and mining bees, with shorter tongues prefer flowering fruit trees, willows, spurges, alkanet and forget-me-nots, and mining bees.
  2. Leave old mortar untouched as hairy-footed flower bees may be nesting here.
  3. Make cob bricks with holes in that hairy-footed flower bees could nest in instead.
  4. Install bee-hotels in a warm location at least a metre off the ground, where red mason bees (Osmia bicornis) can check-in and lay their eggs. We like to use these type of bee hotels with the cardboard tubes. You can take the cocoons out of in the winter and clean them. Leafcutter bees may use the hotels during the summer.
  5. Install a bee observation box which many different solitary bees may nest in over the season, including large-headed resin bees (Heriades truncorum) , common yellow-faced bees (Hyleaus communis), and blue mason bee (Osmia caerulescens) . The box comes with a removal panel which allows you to observe the life cycle of the bees.
  6. Leave a patch of bare earth for mining bees to burrow and nest, and where red mason bees can collect soil to plug their nests.
  7. Leave a pile of tiny pieces of grit that resin bees may use to plug their nests.

Bees to See in March

Here are tips for identifying the different species bees you will hopefully see in March in your garden, patio pots or window boxes if they are planted and maintained for bees.

Interview with William Ball, Portfolio General Manager, BNP Paribas Real Estate on making Belgrave House bee-friendly

When William Ball, Portfolio General Manager at BNP Paribas Real Estate, was first approached by his client Grosvenor Group about installing a roof garden on its Belgrave House property in Victoria, six years ago he was concerned over the practicality of managing such a project with limited knowledge.

“The roof isn’t accessible and I thought the tenants would not be able to see the benefits to the property of investing in it,” he explains.

Benefits outweigh costs

Fast forward to today and William says the tenants and Grosvenor now fully support the biodiversity project on the Buckingham Palace Road office block.

 “The benefits outweigh the costs one hundred fold. And it’s the right thing to do for the environment. The roof garden and the bees are one element of promoting environmental best practice. It’s one of the reasons Belgrave House has retained its BREEAM excellence rating and its ISO14001 year after year.”

William has more than 35 years’ experience in the property and facilities management industry. In 2018, he was awarded the national BNP Paribas CSR Award and in 2019, his team won the Professional Facilities Management Award for CSR.

Introducing bee hives

The same year, he contacted Urban Bees Ltd to install and maintain bee hives on Belgrave House. Grosvenor, whose own staff Urban Bees had trained as beekeepers a few years earlier, paid the initial start-up costs.

He proudly hands me a jar of 2021 Belgrave House honey with a pretty label designed by the receptionists. The bees are a great way to bring together his 21-strong team of security staff, cleaners, receptionists and engineers, he says.

“We all take great pride in the bees”.

William believes the bees have contributed to a string of environmental awards, including five Green Apples, three of them gold. They adorn his basement office, along with trophies and photos of him and his team collecting them.

Honeybees will easily fly a mile or two in search of an abundant food source. And William, who is the property site representative for the hives, has tracked the Belgrave House bees to the Queen’s gardens at the end of the road. But he wanted to create a bee-friendly garden on the roof for wild bumblebees and solitary bees.

Steps to creating a bee-friendly garden

William called on the expertise and goodwill of colleagues to help achieve his vision. The building consultancy surveyor advised that the roof was strong enough to hold a few planters filled with wet soil and flowers and shrubs, his engineers agreed to make planters out of wooden planks that William sourced, and the Grosvenor gardeners ordered extra lavender and other bee-friendly plants recommended by Urban Bees from its Plants for Bees list.

There are now four planters, one full of lavender and others planted with a mixture of perennial summer-flowering alliums, foxgloves and harebells (pictured above), as well as early-flowering hellebores and late-flowering echinacea.

Observation nesting box for solitary bees

Wind can be a problem for bees eight storeys up. “You could see the honeybees were really struggling getting to and from the hives,” recalls William. So, his engineers put up trellis against which 2ft high Ceanothus ‘Skylark’ bushes (pictured below) act as a windbreak. And their electric blue flowers are buzzing with all types of bees in late spring. Urban Bees added an observation bee box (pictured below right) for solitary bees to nest in.

Bee visitors

William spends many a summer lunch hour inspecting the small, 12 square metre, bee oasis, breathing in the flowers’ perfume and spotting different bees. He’s photographed many wild bee visitors including bumblebees with white tails (below left) and red tails (below middle), as well as some honeybees (below right).

Education

Each June on World Ocean’s Day, his team has a stand in the reception of Belgrave House to raise awareness about environmental issues. They work with a school in the Philippines to tackle the huge problem of plastic ocean pollution.

“We have honey and leaflets about our rooftop bees on the stand as the bees can really engage people in the bigger picture.”

Staff who want to know more are given a copy of The Good Bee, by Urban Bees founders, Alison Benjamin and Brian McCallum, showcasing the world’s 20,000 solitary and social bees and how we can help them. 

“’We never knew there were so many bees’, is most people’s response.”

A webcam of the Belgrave House bee hives keeps staff up to date on the honeybees. In 2022, William plans to have a screen in reception live streaming the three hives. And he hopes to introduce a small water feature on the roof for bees to drink from and other wildlife to visit.

William’s advice to other facilities managers

For parts of London not able to sustain honeybee hives because there isn’t a plentiful supply of forage. (Afterall, not everyone has Buckingham Palace gardens on their doorstep), William’s advice for facilities managers is to look at their ESG strategy.

“Do a biodiversity plan for your property. Look at the bigger picture. Make sure you have a well thought our process and escalate it. Start small and grow as the tenants come on board. The cost is a miniscule part of their service charge. Start with plants and see what bees come without installing honeybees. Work with people like Urban Bees, who know which are the best bee plants in these windy, exposed conditions to ensure there’s food year-round for all different kinds of bees. Food is essential, along with creating places for wild bees to nest.”

“You do have greater output [jars of honey] with honeybees so there can be greater interest and support from tenants. But honeybees aren’t integral to having a roof garden on an office.”

All photos taken by William Ball.
  • For more information about how Urban Bees can work with your company, contact Alison Benjamin at Urban Bees alison@urbanbees.co.uk 0788 4054150

Catkins for bees

Hazel tree dripping in golden male catkins in January/February; Pussy willow catkins turning yellow when ripe with pollen in March. Photo credits: Yoksel Zok and Alexander Lowe, Unsplash

Hazel trees‘ (Corylus avellana) dangling male catkins bear pollen, which is transported to tiny, red, bud-like female flower on another hazel tree by the wind. But some of the pollen is collected by early flying bees in need of a rich source of protein to feed their developing brood. However, the pollen’s not easy for them to collect and they can only gather it in small loads. This is because the pollen of wind-pollinated hazel is not sticky and each grain repels against another.

The same is true for other wind pollinated trees that produce pendulous male catkins early in the year, including Alder (Alnus glutinosa) , Aspen (Populus tremula)Black Poplar (Poplus nigra), White Poplar (Poplus alba) and later in the spring, Silver Birch and White Willow (Salix alba). Most of these trees are too big for an average garden and better for parks, streets and along river banks.

Goat Willow (Salix caprea) has silver, furry male catkins the look like a cat’s paws, hence it’s commonly known as pussy willow. Goat willow is dioecious, meaning male and female flowers grow on separate trees. In March, the male grey catkins become yellow when ripe with pollen and are immensely popular with bees. If you want to grow one in a small garden, try Salix caprea ‘Kilmarnock’, or ‘Kilmarnock willow’ a small, compact variety that reaches around 2m high and spreads up to 1.5m. It forms a weeping ‘umbrella’ of branches which are smothered in fuzzy silver catkins from late winter to early spring on bare twigs. Rounded mid-green leaves appear after the catkins.

Garrys elliptica (also known as the Silk tassel bush) is a small tree, or evergreen bush, native to north America, that from December to February is covered in a profusion of long attractive grey-green catkins, or tassels, which can be up to an incredible 35cm long. Again, it’s wind pollinated but will be visited by hungry winter-flying bees.

Shrubs for bees

Honey bee on Mahonia; Buff-tailed bumblebee queen on winter-flowering heather (Photos: Alison Benjamin unless credited)

Many of us don’t have space to plant a tree, but what about planting a few shrubs instead? Researchers at Bristol University has found that one flowering currant (Ribes sanguineum) with 3,000 flowers provides as much nectar as 16,000 primrose (Primula vulgaris) flowers or 69,000 snowdrops (Galanthus nivalis) and that shrubs like mahonia, berberis, pieris, ceanothus, and pyracantha can be similarly nectar-rich. 

I’ve been doing my own research to put together a list of easy-to-grow shrubs that if planted sequentially would provide year-round food for bees.

As it’s December, my bee-friendly shrub suggestions start from now. Even though many will grow well in shady spots, do remember that bees prefer to forage in warm, sunny areas. As always this is not a definitive list, but designed for people who want to maximise the limited space in their garden, or pots, to feed bees all year.

December

Oregon Grape ‘Charity’ (Mahonia x media ‘Charity’ and M. x media ‘Winter Sun’) – produces cheery, bright yellow, lemon-scented flowers rich in nectar and pollen from now until March. Tough, with prickly, holly-like leaves, it does well in dry, shady spots making it a favourite of municipal planting.

Laurustinus (Viburnum tinus) – lovely flat heads of small, white flowers until April can brighten up shady spots.

Clematis ‘Jingle Bells’ (Clematis cirrhosa ‘Jingle Bells’)  –   large, nodding, scented cream-coloured flowers  are ideal for over a doorway. It needs a sunny, sheltered spot and possibly protection from harsh winter frosts.

January

Sweet Box (Sarcococca confus or Sarcococca hookeriana) – works well as an evergreen hedge. Its tiny white flowers carry a heavenly scent until March.

Winter-flowering honeysuckle (Lonicera fragrantissima) is a bushy, deciduous shrub with highly fragrant, cream flowers on bare stems until March.

Winter jasmine (Jasminum nudiflora) doesn’t have the fragrance of other jasmines, but its bright yellow flowers on bare arching branches are a welcome sight in winter.

Viburnum tinus; Witch Hazel (photo credit: Laura Ockel, Unsplash); honey bee on Winter Snow heather

February

Heathers (Erica carnea) – perfect for a rockery or small flower bed with acidic, ericaceous soil. Winter flowering specimens, include white ‘Winter Snow’ (Erica carnea f. alba ), or ‘Winter rubin (Erica carnea ‘Winter Rubin’) for a splattering of pink.

Winter Daphne  (Daphne odora) or Daphne bholua ‘Jacqueline Postill’   – a slow-growing medium-sized, evergreen shrub with clusters of pinkish and white flowers and an intoxicating scent in winter and early spring.

Witch Hazel (Hamamelis) –fragrant, strange-looking ribbon-like flowers hang off bare twigs in early winter. There are many cultivars with slightly different coloured flowers ranging from sulphur yellow to coppery red.

Paperbush (Edgeworthia chrystantha) – pom-pom like clusters of tiny, yellow flowers on bare branches seduce bees with their heady scent from February – April.

March

Oregon Grape (Mahonia aquifolium) – an early spring-flowering Mahonia which is more compact and less prickly than the winter-flowering varieties but with similar bright yellow bee-friendly flowers.

Japanese quince (Chaenomeles japonica)  large, bold, often bright reddish-orange flowers cover its bare, thorny stems for weeks before the leaves appear in May. Non-thorny varieties are available. It likes ericaceous soil.

Bastard senna ‘Citrina’ or Scorpian Vetch (Coronilla valentina subsp. glauca ‘Citrina’) – pretty pea-like, yellow flowers appear in early spring and are often followed by a second flush in later summer. A native of Southern Europe and Northern Africa, it will benefit from the protection of a sunny, south-facing wall.

Camellias – but only those with single-headed flowers with well exposed pollen-laden stamens, unlike the many double-headed cultivars. They need acidic, ericaceous soil.

Japanese quince (Photo: Yoksel Zok, Unsplash); Camellia (Photo: Annie Spratt, Unsplash); Rhododendron (Photo :Padre Moovi, Unsplash)

April

Honey spurge, or Canary spurge (Euphorbia mellifera) – small, honey-scented, bonze tinted flowers are borne on an exotic looking, architectural dome-like structure.

Flowering currant (Ribes sanguineum) – clusters of pinkish/reddish tubular flowers are loved by long-tongued bumblebees and hairy-footed flower bees.

Burkwood viburnum (Viburnum × burkwoodii) – a later flowering evergreen viburnum with similar domed clusters of fragrant white flowers until May, that open from pink buds.

Darwin’s Barberry (Berberis darwinii) – an evergreen, with similar holly-like leaves to Mahonia,  but clusters of orange flowers which are a major source of nectar and pollen in early spring and again in the autumn.

Lilly of the Valley shrub (Pieris japonica) – its bell-shaped flowers are visited by long-tongued solitary bees, such as hairy-footed flower bees, and bumblebees. Requires acidic, ericaceous soil.

Rhododendron – its flowers contain low concentrations of poison for honeybees, but long and short-tongued bumblebees find the single-flowered varieties highly attractive for both nectar and pollen. Best in acidic soils. Compact varieties can be grown in pots filled with ericaceous compost.

May

Californian Lilac (Ceanothus) – a stunning evergreen small ‘tree’ smothered in clusters of electric blue flowers that buzz with bees all month in full sun.

Firethorn (Pyracantha) –the bunches of small white flowers on this spiny-branched shrub are visited by many solitary bee species, but it’s mostly grown for the profusion of showy, bright orange-red berries in autumn.

Japanese pittosporum (Pittosporum tobira) – profuse and intensely scented flowers open white and then turn yellow in April and May against the attractive large, glossy foliage of this drought-tolerant shrub.

Californian lilac (Photo: Charlotte Harrison, Unsplash); Fuchsia with bumblebee (Photo: David Clode, Unsplash); Beautyberry berries in autumn ( (Photo: Yamasa, Unsplash)

June

Cotoneasters are a great source of nectar and pollen during the ‘June gap’ – when there’s a dearth of bee food between spring flowers dying and summer perennials flowering.  Research at Cambridge Botanic Gardens found that the  clusters of small white or pink flowers of many Cotoneaster species can provide a succession of forage for short-tongued bumblebees and honeybees from May to August. Varieties include the low-growing red-berried C. horizontalis, which can be trained up walls, and  Franchet’s (C. Franchetii) which makes an evergreen pollution-tolerant hedge; and the graceful willow-leaved (C.  ‘Rothschildianus) which has yellow berries.

Senecio Sunshine (Brachyglottis ‘Sunshine’) – a compact, drought-tolerant, evergreen shrub from New Zealand that works well in coastal areas and has hairy, grey leaves and bright yellow, daisy-like flowers in June and July.

July

Beautyberry ‘Profusion (Callicarpa bodinieri var. giraldii ‘Profusion’) Prized for its clusters of violet, bead-like berries on bare branches in the autumn, which are much-loved by birds, and its striking foliage that changes colour during the seasons. This deciduous shrub also has small pink flowers in midsummer which attract the bees.

Daisy bush (Olearia × haastii) – an evergreen drought-tolerant shrub smothered in white, daisy-like flowers with big yellow centres in July and August. Its glaucous, glossy leaves make it suitable for coastal, windy gardens.

August

Hardy fuchsias – bushy, compact shrubs with a profusion of dainty two-tone pendent flowers that the RHS describe as dangling in pairs, “like mini ballerinas with tutus”, along the stems towards the tips.  They can last well into the autumn and bring a tropical touch to a garden if planted in a sheltered, sunny spot and watered.

Bluebeard or Blue Spiraea (Caryopteris × clandonensis) – clusters of slightly fluffy, blue flowers appear in August and September on long stems among pointed, aromatic, grey-green leaves. (Although I have to admit, I’ve not had much success with this drought-tolerant shrub.)

Bluebeard (Photo: Emily Simpson, Unsplash) Buddleia (Photo: Gavin Allanwood, Unsplash) Chaste Tree (Photo credit: Griffin Taylor, Unsplash)

September

Butterfly bush or buddleia (Buddleja davidii) – buy a small cultivar of this coloniser of railway sidings for bee and butterfly visitors from July to October. Dense spikes of honey-scented, brightly coloured flowers can be encouraged by regular deadheading.

Chaste Tree (Vitex agnus-castus) – cone-shaped clusters of violet-blue lavender-looking fragrant flowers appear from July to October – if planted in a sunny, sheltered garden – on this attractive, slender drought-resistant plant with finger-like leaves .

October

Japanese Aralia (Fatsia japonica) – an autumn-flowering tropical-looking, evergreen with huge, glossy, palmate leaves for shady corners. It produces showy panicles of spherical, creamy white flowers from September right through to November.

Oleaster or Silverberry (Elaeagnus × submacrophylla) – in autumn, very small, but well-scented, creamy-white flowers open until November on this shade, drought and wind-tolerant evergreen that can be grown as a hedge.

 Fastsia Japonica (Photo credit: The Blow Up, Unsplash); Strawberry tree with Buff-tailed bumblebee queen

November

Strawberry tree (Arbutus unedo) – an evergreen, Mediterranean shrubby tree, with bell-shaped white flowers late in the year which hang from its branches unusually at the same time as its jolly, round, red fruit dangle like baubles on a Christmas tree.

Sources: RHS, Graham Rice, Buzz About Bees.net, The Garden Buzz, Dave Goulson, Gardening for Bumblebees, Pollinating London Together, BBC Gardeners’ World magazine, Addicted to bees, Urban Bees plants for bees list, Crocus.co.uk

Thanks to Diana Weir for her suggestions and help compiling this list.

Rooftop Rewilding

Drought-resistant perennials planted in large, foot-high planters 8 storeys up on 1 Bread Street, EC4

This summer I’ve been rewilding office roofs in London to feed and house wild bumblebees, solitary bees and other pollinators. Two of the roofs overlook the City of London and aren’t accessible to people working in the offices.

Bee-friendly perennials replaced evergreen shrubs in planters on Carter Lane, EC4

One rooftop is in Soho and is frequently used by staff to hang out and have lunch.

Lush London studio rooftop 5 storeys high. Hexagonal planters with year-long bee-friendly flowers, W1

For a city law firm, we have worked with their gardener to improve the planting for bees and installed bee hotels where solitary red mason bees make their nests each spring.

Bee hotels installed on 8 storey roof terrace used for entertaining. Early-flowering rosemary and wallflowers, EC4

We’ve also rewilded window boxes and planted small trees for bees on rooftops.

Window box of Verbenas hung on roof terrace railings. Crab apple tree (Malus sylvestris ‘Evereste’) blossoming in a rooftop planter in the City

We judge the success by the bees and other pollinators visiting the flowers and nesting.

Top left clockwise: Common carder bee on Nepeta; Buff-tailed bumblebee on Nepeta; Red mason bees nesting in a bee hotel; Common furrow bee on Anthemis tinctoria; Hairy-footed flower bee on Nepeta.

Rooftop rewilding is part of a solution for companies wanting to mitigate climate change. We know the climate and nature are intertwined and we can’t solve one without improving the other. Rooftop rewilding is a local and tangible start by bringing more nature into cities and improving biodiversity. And it is a great way to engage employees and community groups through talks, workshops and ‘meet the bees’ sessions and to and enhance your company’s social value.

Bee spotting on roof terrace with Weil law firm; pupils from a local school supported by Weil take part in a bee hotel workshop.

Rewilded rooftops can provide nature-based solutions to flooding, heatwaves and pollution, as well as making cities more attractive to us as well as to pollinators. And corridors of rewilded rooftops would prevent pollinators being confined to small fragments of habitat and instead allow them to thrive by creating ‘bee-lines’ – a green super highway where each rooftop becomes a pit stop where they can refuel with nectar and pollen on the way to city parks and green spaces. (It has been estimated that up to 70% of wildlife species could go extinct if action is not taken to enable them to move through the landscape). 

If you would like Urban Bees to rewild your rooftop, or to work with your existing gardeners to improve planting for pollinators, we will happily pay a visit and provide a free consultation. No space is too small, from patios, to window boxes. Rewilding every grey pocket could help.

Contact: Alison Benjamin alison@urbanbees.co.uk 0788 4054150

London Bee Tours 2022

Clockwise from top left: Common carder bee; buff-tailed bumblebee; leafcutter bee; honey bee; Regent’s Park apiary; Regents Park Honey (Bee Photo credits: Penny Metal)

Seeing bees in Regent’s Park

Last summer, we ran a bee tour for the Friends’ of Regent’s Park. On a warm August morning around 20 friends turned up to discover the bumblebees and solitary bees foraging in the flower beds. Equipped with our Bees to See guide, they were surprised at how many bees were buzzing in the bushes. They quickly learned how to identify common carder bees, furrow bees and buff-tailed bumblebees.

“I walk through this park practically every day, admiring the colours and scents of the flowers, but I have never before noticed the bees. Now, I will always look out for them.”

said one participant

The group also visited the bee hotels that we installed in the Regent’s Park allotment garden where red mason bees laid their eggs earlier in the summer. Here, they heard about the honeybees living in the park’s secret apiary, how these bees make honey and sampled the delicious, raw produce just harvested from the hives.

The 3-hour tour was such as success, that we have decided to run a similar tour once a month during spring and summer for anyone interested in bees.

For dates and prices of our London Bee Tours and how to book for yourself, or as a gift for friends and family, please click here

Winter reading recommendations

Useful Bee ID guides

Field Guide to the Bees of Great Britain and Ireland, by Stephen Falk & Richard Lewington, (Bloomsbury) – this is the go to reference book that any bee spotter should have on their book shelf. It has more information than you’ll ever need to know about all our 250+ bee species, but it’s easy to dip in and out of and to find the photo, description and map for one bee and the family it belongs. And there is always something new to learn.

Insectinside: life in the bushes of a small Peckham Park, by Penny Metal – I know I’m biased because Penny is a friend and provides all the fabulous Bees to See photos, but her fantastic huge, close up photos show a variety of wild bees you’ll most likely to come across in all their splendour. The narrative is fun too. And as well as helping my bee ID skills, her book has awakened my curiosity in other invertebrates that share the garden. Check out Penny’s Flickr page too.

Bumblebees An Introduction, by Bumblebee Conservation Trust – is a simple guide to identifying and helping bumblebees with good photos, diagrams and tips. I also like their Pocket Guide to 8 Common Bumblebees, which I stick in my back pocket when doing a Bee Walk. They have ones for rare bumblebees and cuckoo bumblebees too.

Gardening for bees

There are so many glossy, coffee table, lifestyle bee-friendly gardening books. The one I like best because it’s about bees and their relationship with plants is:

Gardening for Bumblebees: A practical guide to creating a paradise for pollinators by Dave Goulson (Penguin) – He covers the more common solitary bees, as well as bumblebees. I have found the section on long-tongued and short-tongued bees particularly useful.

Introduction to bees

Most layman’s bees books are about honeybees and beekeeping. It’s only recently that bumblebees and solitary bees have got a look in. For a simple overview, I’d suggest our gift book:

The Good Bee; A Celebration of Bees and How to Save Them Alison Benjamin & Brian McCallum (Michael O’Mara) – It’s beautifully illustrated, a handy size, and an easy to read introduction for someone who doesn’t know there are so many different types of bees.

or equally

Plant Trees Sow Seeds Save the Bees Simple Ways to be Bee-Friendly, by Nicola Bradbear (Penguin) – a delightful, easy to read informative little paperback with useful tips for getting to know ‘stripeys’ and how to help them.

Nature books

Bees have been my gateway to a better understanding and appreciation of nature and biodiversity. As a result, many of my favourites reads are about more than bees:

The Stubborn Light of Things: A Nature Diary by Melissa Harrison (Faber) – a beautifully written collection of her Times nature diaries that closely observe the natural world around her over a six year period living in London and moving to Suffolk. You can dip in and dip out and always find a gem such as this from 21 October 2017: “If you live in a city and miss nature, the answer doesn’t have to be to move out: it’s to tune in.”

Wilding: The Return of Nature to a British Farm by Isabella Tree (Picador) – an amazing 20 year account of what can be achieved if we work with nature, rather than against it. The return of nightingales, storks, bees, butterflies and dung beetles.

English Pastoral An Inheritance by James Rebanks (Allen Lane) – if there is one book you read this year, make it this one. Why? Because he takes you on his journey of discovery that the farming practices he and his father’s generation adopted are destroying the land. And the embrace of nature-friendly farming by this self-declared green sceptic shows what can, and must, be done and the role we can all play.

John Clare Selected Poems edited by Jonathan Bate (Faber) – I most admit I find most poetry difficult, but earlier this year, thanks to Professor Jeff Ollerton, I discovered John Clare’s Wild Bee poem and adored his descriptions of the different bees. So when I came across this collection of poetry I thought I’d give it a go. I’ve not read many yet, but if like me you’re a fan of russet hues you’ll love his ode To Autum:

…More sweet than summer in her loveliest hours, /Who in her blooming uniform of green/Delights with samely and continued joy/But give me autumn, where thy hand hath been/For there is wilderness, that can never cloy – /The russet hue of fields left bare and all/The tints of leaves and blossoms ere they fall…

Blossom-sequencing trees for bees

February: Pussy willow (credit: Roberto Sorin, Unsplash)

Thinking about planting a tree this winter for bees, or speaking to your council tree officer about planting more trees to feed bees? These are the best trees because they produce pollen, or nectar, or both, when little else is flowering.

Early-flowering trees

February: Hazel catkins (Credit: Yoksel, Unsplash); March: Cherry ‘Okame’; April: Crab Apple

  1. Pussy/goat willow (Salix caprea) – although its catkins are wind pollinated, the protein-rich pollen they contain are collected by buff-tailed bumblebees and honeybees on mild February days to feed new larvae.
  2. Hazel (Corylus avellana) – showy, yellow dangling male catkins brighten up any garden in February/March and, though wind pollinated, provide much-needed pollen for early flying bees.
  3. Cherry ‘Okame’ (Prunus incam Okame) – a profusion of pretty pink blossom earlier than any other cherry makes this a magnet for bees that are out in March.
  4. Crab apple (Malus sylvestris) – a reliable, small bee-friendly tree that I have successfully grown in pots and planters on rooftops. It has beautiful white blossom in April for bees, and small red apples in autumn for birds, or for us to make jelly or jam.
  5. Bees are well served by trees in May and June from the huge Horse Chestnut trees with their thousands of white flowers borne on candelabras, to smaller Hawthorns, Rowans and Judas trees. They are followed by a variety of Lime trees (also known as Linden trees or Tilia), Acacia and Tulip trees. So try to plant a tree that flowers from mid July onwards instead.

Late-flowering trees

July: Dwarf chestnut tree (Credit: Wendy Cutler, WikiCommons); September: Seven son flower tree; October: Strawberry tree.

  1. The Indian horse chestnut tree (Aesculus indica) is a beauty and doesn’t suffer from the leaf miner or fungus that turns our conker trees’ leaves brown by mid summer. And it flowers after the Lime trees when the choice of blossoming trees greatly diminishes. But it does grow to 50ft so is only suitable for large gardens. A smaller option is the equally stunning Dwarf horse chestnut (Aesculus parviflora) which I’ve seen growing in large planters up to 8ft.
  2. If you already have a Common privet tree (Ligustrum vulgare), shrub or hedge, let it flower in July. Although it doesn’t smell pleasant to us, the scent attracts the bees to its nectar and pollen. The same goes for Oleaster (Elaeagnus × submacrophylla) which is often used for hedging. It you let it flower in October/November it can provide welcome food for bumblebees fattening up for winter.
  3. By August, there’s a real dearth of flowers on our trees and many popular garden flowers like lavenders and alliums have bloomed, so bees are getting hungry. Chinese privet (Ligustrum lucidum) is a handsome, small evergreen tree that has large panicles of white flowers providing much-needed food for late summer foraging bees.
  4. Seven son flower tree (Heptacodium miconioides) was the star of RHS Chelsea 2021 because it was the only tree in flower in September. It is a member of the honeysuckle family, with its clusters of heavenly scented white flowers, and can be grown as a multi-stemmed shrub or small tree. I predict that it will become widely planted throughout the UK, which will be a blessing for bees. I am going to try to find space for one.
  5. Strawberry tree (Arbutus unedo) If you plant this spreading , shrubby evergreen that grows in the wild all over the Mediterranean, you will be able to bee spot into November.

Not only will these trees feed bees, they will also bear fruits that birds can eat later in the year, and provide places for insects, including some bees to live, even when the tree has died. So they greatly promote biodiversity . And of course like all trees, they store carbon, mitigate flooding and pollution and reduce the temperature in towns and cities.

See our full Trees for Bees guide here. A remember, right tree, right place. Don’t plant a huge tree in a small garden.

Bee hotel winter management

If you have a bee hotel containing cardboard tubes or a wooden bee box with separate units and trays, then October is the perfect time to move out any occupants into a drier and safer place to spend the winter.

You can tell in there are occupants by the number of sealed tubes or entrance holes. Red mason bees, by far the most common bee hotel guests, plug the tubes/entrances with mud, blue mason bees and orange-vented mason bees use finely chewed leaf and leafcutter bees make their front door from pieces of leaves. As you can see from the photos above, we only have red mason bees nesting in our bee hotels.

Behind each plugged entrance there could be seven or eight cocoons from which adult bees should emerge next spring.

The cocoons started life as an egg laid by the female mason or leafcutter bee. When the egg hatched into a larvae a few months ago it gorged itself on all the pollen its mother had provisioned in the cell and then began to spin a silk cocoon and pupate into an adult bee.

We can help the bees on this journey. Gently tear the cardboard tubes and tease out the cocoons, or prise them out of the detachable wooden bee boxes. The cocoons look like small kidney beans covered in fuzz. This fuzzy stuff is specks of bee poo and could also be parasitic grubs. Dust it off with a soft brush and wipe with a damp cloth until the black cocoons are smooth and shiny (like the photo above)*. Then place the cocoons on some kitchen roll to absorb any excess water before storing them in a cardboard or plastic box with a lid. Put the box in a cold place like a garage or shed. Label the box just in case you forget what’s in it!

Red mason bee cocoons can also be popped into the fridge as they can be safely stored at around 3-4 C.

The next step is to thoroughly clean the bee hotel or nest box with a brush and hot, soapy water and bring it inside for winter. The bee boxes will have instructions for how to take them apart and clean.

Then order new cardboard tubes to put in your cleaned bee hotels ready for next spring.

At the beginning of March, I will explain how to take the cocoons out of storage, but for the next few months you can have peace of mind knowing that they will be safe and sound in their winter home…

* Thanks to Rosybee for the cocoon photo, I couldn’t find any of ours

Is it a bee or a hoverfly?




From top left clockwise (if you are looking at the images in landscape – 3 pics over 3 pics) : Batman hoverfly (Myathropa florea); Marmalade fly (Episyrphus balteatus) ; the footballer (Helophilus pendulus); Hornet mimic hoverfly (Volucella zonaria); common drone fly (Eristalis tenax); common-banded hoverfly (Syrphus ribesii). Photo Credit: Penny Metal

All these insects are harmless hoverflies mimicing a stinging insect to protect themselves. This characteristic is called Batesian mimicry after the British naturalist, Henry Bates, who wrote about this concept in 1861 while exploring the Amazon rainforest. Unfortunately this can make it difficult to tell bees and hoverflies apart.

Here are some simple rules to help us sort the hoverflies from the bees:

  1. Hoverflies hover near to flowers, unlike most bees which fly between the flowers (although in spring, the Hairy-footed flower bee displays a darting, hovering motion).
  2. Hoverflies have one pair of wings, and bees have two. However, it can be quite tricky to see the bees two pairs. When it comes to wings, I find that hoverflies usually rest on a flower or leaf with their wings out at 45 degrees, (like the Marmalade fly above), whereas bees have their wings tucked in nearer to their body.
  3. Hoverflies tend to stay still for much longer than a bee, so are easier to photograph.
  4. These common hoverflies range in size from the 9mm slim Marmalade fly to the more stocky 10-14mm Common-banded, Batman, Footballer and Common drone fly (which mimics a drone honeybee), and the large 20mm Volucella zonaria which, as its English name tells us, is a hornet mimic hoverfly.
  5. They are generally less fluffy and cute than bees. (Though there are some hairy hoverflies, called Narcissus flies, that fly from May to August and are excellent bumblebee mimics. They lay their eggs on narcissus plants (daffodils).
  6. They have much bigger eyes than bees.
  7. They are very common on ivy; so if it’s not an ivy bee, a honeybee, or a buff-tailed bumblebee, it will be one of these common hoverflies.
  8. These common hoverflies are still flying in November when most bee species aren’t.
  9. The hornet mimics fly between September and November.
  10. None of these hoverflies sting, even the hornet mimics.

The more you look, the easier it will become to distinguish hoverflies from bees. There are around 300 different species of hoverfly in the UK, but the ones above are those you may be confusing with bees because they are so widespread and easy to spot.

Their English names are derived from their markings:

  • The Batman hoverfly has a distinctive black Batman markings on its thorax.
  • The Marmalade fly has orange markings with thick and thin black bands across it.
  • The Footballer has vertical stripes on its thorax like some football club strips. But its Latin name Helophilus pendulus is much more interesting. It means ‘dangling marsh lover’ and it can be found in ponds, puddles and wet ditches as well as sunny areas of a garden.
  • The Hornet mimic hoverfly is a big, scary looking insect. As its name suggest its appearance is hornet-like. Although it’s harmless, if in doubt stay away.
  • The Common drone fly is stocky and brown like a male honeybee. However, it flies from March to November, whereas male honeybees are only around from May to September and are rarely seen on flowers. So if you think it’s a male honeybee, chances are it’s actually this hoverfly.
  • The Common banded hoverfly has a black body covered in yellow bands and is one of our most common species of hoverfly.

Are hoverflies important? Yes, they are important pollinators and their larvae eat lots and lots of aphids.

Large-headed resin bees

Large-headed resin bees (Heriades truncorum) make their nests in a pre-existing cavity in wood. You can create suitable nesting sites by drilling holes in blocks of wood like this one we saw at John Little’s house a few years ago. He runs the Grass Roof Company and has pioneered incorporating nest sites for solitary bees on roofs and walls. He uses his own home and gardens as a test bed.

After she has laid her eggs in the cavity, this robust. solitary bee plugs it with tiny bits of grit and stone she collects and then glues it all together with resin collected from nearby trees. Here’s the bee in action…it’s like fitting together pieces of a jigsaw, or making a mosaic – quite amazing!!! And the next generation of resin bees have to break through the ‘door’ when they emerge next year.

Transforming Chelsea Creek into a wild bee haven

In June we were contacted by St George’s, developers of the Chelsea Creek housing development in SW6. They wanted a bee hive located on a small site backing onto the Imperial Wharf Overground station.

We suggested that instead of a hive, we clear the site and turn it into a haven for wild bees and other pollinators and improve biodiversity.

We audited the 10m x 10m site to assess it’s current suitability. We used 7 measures:

  1. Shelter
  2. Thermoregulation (provide sunny spots where bees can warm up to fly) 
  3. Year-round nectar sources
  4. Year-round pollen sources
  5. Mating habitat
  6. Nest sites
  7. Nesting material for some bees.

The dense thicket of brambles, buddleia (over head height) and laurel bushes scored very low. We came up with a plan for how the site could meet all the above requirements.

St George’s gave us the go ahead and in July we began the clearance.

It was hard work, but after a couple of days we made headway and started piling up the green waste. I must admit I find it hard cutting down brambles and buddleia when they do provide such great bee food at certain times of the year, but there was plenty left on an adjacent site and it will soon grow back if we don’t keep it in check. And without letting more light into the site, other flowers that can provide forage in early spring and summer won’t stand a chance.

The next step was to introduce some overwintering sites for queen bumblebees and some nesting sites for solitary bees.

I piled up twigs for whatever insects may find them useful, while Brian started to construct log houses. The logs are drilled with different diameter holes from 3mm – 8mm for a variety of cavity-nesting bees. Resin bees, yellow-faced bees and scissor bees will use the smaller holes. We also installed seven bee hotels on a stand a metre off the ground placed in a sunny position. These are for mason bees and leafcutters to check into next spring and summer to lay their eggs. Brian made all the stands from recycled bits of wood, and the log house boxes are old recycled hives.

This is just the beginning. We will be creating nesting sites for bees that like to burrow into sand and those that prefer piles of bare earth. We’ll be providing aggregate that some solitary bees need to plug their nests and blue tit bird boxes that the Tree bumblebee may occupy after the chicks have fledged next year. And we’ll leave some upturned flower pots around for bumblebees that nest underground, like buff-tailed and white-tailed bumblebees, and some piles of grass and leaves undisturbed for carder bees.

And of course over the next few months we’ll be planting the best flowers for providing year-found forage and nesting materials.

It may not look much at the moment, but watch this space…

September

The client asked us to paint the bee hotel and log house structures in an eau de nil colour to go with the colour of the hordings around the development. They gave us the colour reference and we got a durable outside paint mixed up. In early September we painted…

We also also planted a few ‘wild flowers’ including:

  • Rosebay willowherb (Chamaenerion angustifolium) or Fireweed which can quickly colonise waste land, has nectar-rich purple spikes in summer and whose leaves leafcutter bees use as nesting material.
  • Dwarf comfrey (Symphystum ibericum), which provides early forage for the Hairy-footed flower bee, grows in shade and is a ‘weed’ surpresser.
  • Balm-leaved deadnettle (Lamium orvala ‘Album’), much loved by common carder bees and flowers much of the year in partial shade.

October

The only problem is that ‘nature’ has it’s own ideas and is running rampart across the site after all the rain and mild autumn. So when we returned to the site in October, the first thing we had to do was clear about 20 buddleia suckers and brambles. We want a site rich in biodiversity, in terms of plants and insects and birds, but because so much light is getting into the site since our clearance some of the ‘weeds’ are flourishing and threaten to take over and stop anything else growing.

We planted some more bee-friendly flowers and this time put stakes and string around them so when we return next time we can see if they have been swamped by other vegetation.

I’m loath to put landscaping material down to supress the so-called ‘weeds’ as some provide excellent bee food, such as dandelions. And nettles provide much-needed caterpillar food for butterflies in the spring.

We planted plug plants:

  • Big betony (Stachys hummelo) – a native perennial wildflowers with bright purple to red flowers that appear throughout the summer and into early autumn.
  • Lambs ear (Stachys byzantina) – the wool carder bees ‘carder’ the fluffy stuff from the underside of the leaves to line their nests. It likes drought. We don’t have a watering system, so a dry summer will be good for it, but winter may prove too cold and wet,
  • Winter savory (Satureja montana) – a dwarf shrubby herb that flowers in summer. Hope the soil doesn’t get too cold and wet for it to flourish.
  • Bastard balm (Melittis melissophyllum) – with a scientific name derived from the Greek for honeybees, I had to plant this to see which bees visit the pink carpet I hope it unfurls. The flower’s distinctive pink tongue acts as a landing guide to bees, directing them to the nectar deep inside. It prefers woodland, so I’ve tried to plant it in a shady spot. It’s not very common in the wild anymore.
  • Greater knapweed (Centaurea scabiosa) – a long-stalked hardy perennial, closely related to the thistle, attracts many species of butterfly, such as the Marbled White, Painted Lady and Green-veined White, as well as moths, bees and hoverflies when it flowers in summer. It prefers chalky grassland so may well struggle on London’s fertile clay soil.

And scattered Hollyhocks (Alcea rosea) seeds. An easy to grow tall late-flowering perennial that attracts bees in my garden so I hope some of the seeds take in the similar soil.

Pantaloon Bee – one to see on holiday

If you’re by sand dunes this summer on the south, or south west coast, or Wales look out for the Pantaloon bee (Dasypoda hirtipes). This fluffy solitary bee excavates her burrow using those oversized pollen brushes that make her look like she’s wearing pantaloons on her back legs.

How does she excavate her burrow? Well, here’s a fascinating video showing you.

She has also been spotted on sandy brownfield sites in towns and cities.

More information about the Pantaloon bee here.

Queen Bees podcast featuring Brian! Brian! Brian!

Last week Brian visited Esther Coles’ hives on her allotment in Crouch End to appear in the beekeeping podcast she started during lockdown with her best mate, fellow actor, Jane Horrocks.

Jane clearly enjoyed it.

Esther was one of Brian’s first students. Twelve years ago Urban Bees taught 20 budding beekeepers over the course of a year how to become responsible urban beekeepers and they got bees and hive at the end of the training, courtesy of the Co-op’s Plan Bee campaign. Since then, Esther and Brian have become good friends. He last came to see her hives when he was the north London bee inspector for the government’s National Bee Unit a few years ago.

Esther has been hoping to get Brian down to the allotment to look at the 3 bee hives when rules permitted. When it finally happened last week, her and Jane were so excited they kept chanting Brian’s name!

If you listen to the podcast, you’ll know that Esther was worried that her bees may have a bacterial disease or a virus spread by the varroa mite. So, in this episode, Brian takes them through each of the hives explaining clearly and precisely what is going on.

There are a few surprises along the way….

Listen to the Queen Bees podcast, Series 3: episode 7 ‘Buzzing with the Drones’ here

WILD BEES, by John Clare (1820s)

Which bees can you identify from this poem?

These children of the sun which summer brings
As pastoral minstrels in her merry train
Pipe rustic ballads upon busy wings
And glad the cotters’ quiet toils again.
The white-nosed bee that bores its little hole
In mortared walls and pipes its symphonies,
And never absent couzen, black as coal,
That Indian-like bepaints its little thighs,
With white and red bedight for holiday,
Right earlily a-morn do pipe and play
And with their legs stroke slumber from their eyes.
And aye so fond they of their singing seem
That in their holes abed at close of day
They still keep piping in their honey dreams,

And larger ones that thrum on ruder pipe
Round the sweet smelling closen and rich woods
Where tawny white and red flush clover buds
Shine bonnily and bean fields blossom ripe,
Shed dainty perfumes and give honey food
To these sweet poets of the summer fields;
Me much delighting as I stroll along
The narrow path that hay laid meadow yields,
Catching the windings of their wandering song.
The black and yellow bumble first on wing
To buzz among the sallow’s early flowers,
Hiding its nest in holes from fickle spring
Who stints his rambles with her frequent showers;

And one that may for wiser piper pass,
In livery dress half sables and half red,
Who laps a moss ball in the meadow grass
And hoards her stores when April showers have fled;
And russet commoner who knows the face
Of every blossom that the meadow brings,

Starting the traveller to a quicker pace
By threatening round his head in many rings:
These sweeten summer in their happy glee
By giving for her honey melody.

Answers:

  1. Male Hairy-footed flower bee (Anthophora plumipes) – white nosed/make their nests in mortared walls/and make a high pitched buzzing noise
  2. Female Hairy-footed flower bee – black as coal/collects different coloured pollen on her thighs/and her darting flight looks as if she is playing.
  3. Buff-tailed bumblebee queen (Bombus terrestris) – first bee to fly in early spring/feeds on the willow catkins/nests in holes in the ground.
  4. Common carder bee (Bombus pascuorum) – russet coloured, very common because it’s not a fussy eater and will visit many flowers to collect nectar and pollen).

I have to thank professor Jeff Ollerton for introducing me to the poetry of John Clare. Jeff was writing in the April issue of British Wildlife and described the Common carder bee in Clare’s words as the “russet commoner” which I loved. I found the poem and was pleasantly surprised to find that I recognised two other bee species from Clare’s poetic descriptions.

Another bee he describes as “in livery dress half sables and half red,
Who laps a moss ball in the meadow grass”, I learned from Jeff’s blog must be the much rarer Red-shanked Carder bee (Bombus ruderarius) because it is the only the only red and black bumblebee in the UK that makes a mossy nest above ground.

You won’t find the Red-shanked Carder bee on our Bees to See guide because unfortunately they are scare and in decline so you are unlikely to spot them.

Bee-spotting and helping wild bees in May

This month, hopefully you will see at least four bumblebee species, two types of mining bee, red mason bees and the now familiar hairy-footed flower bee. Her not so familiar cuckoo, the mourning bee, is also around.

You will continue to see some of the bumblebees you first spotted in March and April, but instead of queens you will now be seeing the smaller worker bees. Worker honeybees will also be busy foraging on flowering trees and plants. (Honeybees are managed, so not included on this list.)

Urban Bees teamed up with amazing insect photographer, Penny Metal, in 2021 to create month-by-month visual guides to help you spot the most common wild bees in our parks and gardens.

How to ID May bumblebees:

  • The garden bumblebee (Bombus hortorum) is distinguishable from other large white tailed bumblebees by the black skull cap she appears to be wearing trimmed with bands of yellow. The best way to see her is flying into foxglove flowers.   As one of our long-tongued bumblebees she is able to get to the nectar at the base of the tubular bell. She usually emerges unrecognisably cloaked in pollen grains. (Other bees cheat by making a hole in the base of the flower so their shorter tongues can reach the nectar.)
  • The red-tailed bumblebee, female, (Bombus lapidaries) has to be the easiest bumblebee to spot with her big black fluffy body and striking red tail. You may have seen her already this year on dandelions. She likes yellow flowers so I’m going to keep an eye out on the laburnum trees which this month will be drooping heavy with pea-like yellow flowers.
  • The common carder bee (Bombus pascuorum) is one of my favourites. Despite the common name, which derives from the old word “to tease out fibres” – which she does from plants for nesting materials – she is a bumblebee (Bombus in Latin). I like her, partly because she is ubiquitous from spring to autumn on many garden flowers so you will definitely get to know her, and she is less flashy than other bumblebees with her small, round body and gingery brown colouring.
  • Tree bumblebees (Bombus hypnorum) with their ginger thorax, black body and white tail could be the new occupants of your blue tit box if the chicks have fledged. Be prepared for noisy buzzing outside their new home as gangs of males compete to mate with virgin queens. Tree bumblebee colonies vacant at the end of the summer, so the bird box will be empty for the blue tit family next spring.

How to help bumblebees in May:

  1. Leave a patch of the garden wild for nesting sites and don’t disturb a nesting site if you find one for example in a compost bin or under a garden shed (it will only last until the end of the summer).
  2. It’s not too late to put up a blue tit box for the tree bumblebee to nest in.
  3. Buy and plant alliums, catmint and cotoneaster from garden centres to provide food this month for the short-tongued bumblebees. Foxgloves, honeysuckles and thistles for the long tongued bumblebees.
  4. It’s not too late to grow from seed annuals that provide late summer bee forage such as sunflowers, cosmos and Anise hyssop.
  5. Don’t mow the lawn (let clovers flower). See the Plantlife No Mow May campaign.
  6. Ditch the weed killers and pesticides.

How to ID May solitary bees:

  • Hairy-footed flower bees (Anthophora plumipes) have been flying for a couple of months now so you are probably becoming accustomed to seeing them darting noisily around patches of comfrey and wallflowers with their tongues outstretched. Many of the black females will have mated and are now busy collecting pollen on their hairy hind legs for their young.
  • The Mourning bee (Melecta albifrons) is a fluffy grey/black colour edged with lateral white spots . Despite their cute appearance, they are the hairy-footed flower bees’ cuckoo. The female lays her eggs in the already made nest and when her larvae hatch they steal the pollen collected by the hairy-footed flower bee for her own babies.  A quarter of the 20,000 plus bee species on the planet are cuckoos. Their appearance means that the host bee is healthy.
  • Red mason bee (Osmia bicornis) males have already checked out of bee hotels, but now the females will be emerging too, so if you have a bee hotel there should be a frenzy of mating activity in the vicinity. These gingery, round-bottomed bees, are a little smaller (12mm) than a honey bee (14mm). After they are mated the females will find clean tubes in bee hotels, or holes in masonry, to nest and they will collect bare soil to carry home to divide each tube into 6 or 7 individual birthing chambers where they will lay an egg. They are also foraging on fruit tree blossom or garden flowers like Alkanet for pollen for their offspring to eat when the eggs hatch into larvae later in the summer.
  • Ashy mining bees (Andrena cineraria) are still around, so – if like me – you’ve not see one yet there is still time.  A smallish black and grey stripped bee (around 10mm), they nest in bare ground, footpaths and tracks. Although solitary, they nest next door to each other in dense aggregations, so hundreds can emerge at the same time. But don’t worry, solitary bees don’t sting and are short-lived (around 2 months)!
  • The short-fringed mining bee (Andrena dorsata) is widespread in southern England. Sporting a reddish-brown fluffy pile on her thorax, a smooth black body with thin stripes, and a hairy dorsal fringe on the top of her back leg, the female should hopefully be easier to identify on dandelions and daisies than some of the other small, brown mining bees which are also around at this time of year.

How to help solitary bees in May:

  1. Plant wallflowers and comfrey for long-tongued hairy footed flower bees. Flowering fruit trees, willows, spurges, alkanet and forget-me-nots for red mason bees, and mining bees.
  2. For more plants, shrubs and trees that are good for different types of bees, see our Plants for Bees and Trees for Bees guides and blog about Shrubs for Bees.
  3. Leave old mortar untouched as hairy-footed flower bees and red mason bees may be nesting here.
  4. It’s not too late to make cob bricks with holes in that hairy-footed flower bees may nest in. See how to make them with clay soil, builders’ sand, straw and water in this wonderful video by ecologist John Walters.
  5. It’s not too late to install bee-hotels in a warm location at least a metre off the ground, where red mason bees can check-in and lay their eggs. We like to use these type of bee hotels with the cardboard tubes. You can take the cocoons out of in the winter and clean them.
  6. Leave a patch of bare earth for mining bees to burrow and where red mason bees can collect soil to make partition walls between birthday chambers and to plug their nests.
  7. Don’t mow the lawn to let dandelions and clovers grow.
  8. Ditch the weed killers and pesticides.

For information on IDing the early bumblebee (Bombus pratorum), the large buff-tailed bumblebee (Bombus terrestris), the white-tailed bumblebee (Bombus lucorum), the foxy-coloured tawny mining bee (Andrena fulva ), and the wasp-like Gooden’s nomad bee (Nomada goodenianna), go to the Bees to See in April blog here.

Honey bee (Apis mellifera) and bee-fly (Bombylius major) info is in the Bees to See in March blog here.

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You can follow Urban Bees on Twitter @BeesintheCity and on Instagram alison_urbanbees or visit www.urbanbees.co.uk

How to ID and help bees in April

Urban Bees has teamed up with amazing insect photographer, Penny Metal, to create a month-by-month visual guide to help spot the most common wild bees in our parks and gardens. (Honeybees are managed, so not included on this list.)

In April you are likely to see at least four species of bumblebee: buff-tailed, white-tailed, early and tree bumblebees.

How to ID them:

  • The large buff-tailed (Bombus terrestris) and white-tailed bumblebee (Bombus lucorum) are our most common bumblebees. They look so similar (up to 16mm long) with their yellow stripes on black bodies. There is no easy way to tell them apart, but the buff-tailed stripes are a slightly more gold colour than the white-tailed and they have a narrow line of buff-coloured fur at the top of their tail.
  • The early bumblebee (Bombus pratorum) is smaller (up to 14mm) and prettier with her fluffy yellow collar and orangey bottom.
  • The tree bumblebee (Bombus hypnorum) has a conspicuous ginger thorax, black abdomen and a white tail. Unlike other bumblebees, they live high up, often colonising bird boxes when the chicks have fledged.

Queen bumblebees will have nested (most underground in old rodent holes, under paving slabs, garden sheds, or even in compost bins) laid their eggs, and may have produced worker bees who are out collecting nectar and pollen to take home to their queen and her developing colony.

How to help them:

  1. Leave a patch of the garden wild for nesting sites and don’t disturb a nesting site if you find one (it will only last until the end of the summer).
  2. Put up a blue tit box for the tree bumblebee to nest in
  3. Plant dead-nettles, clover, forget- me-nots, and rosemary from garden centres to provide food this month for the short-tongued bumblebees.
  4. Sow seeds inside now to create more flowers later in the summer. Sweet peas, sunflowers, cosmos and Anise hyssop are some of the easiest to grow. Try growing on a heated mat until the seeds germinate.
  5. Don’t mow the lawn (let clovers flower) and ditch the weed killers and pesticides.

These are the five most common solitary bee species this month: Hairy-footed flower bees, red mason bees, tawny mining bees, ashy mining bees and Gooden’s nomad.

How to ID them:

  • Hairy-footed flower bees (Anthophora plumipes) are often mistaken for bumblebees because of their round, fluffy appearance, but they live alone (not in colonies). At this time of year gangs of brown-coloured males are clearly visible chasing the more striking black females among the lungwort (pulmonaria) and wallflowers with their long, straw-like tongues (proboscis) outstretched. It is mating season.
  • Red mason bees will be checking out of bee hotels by chewing through the mud-plugged tubes. They are a little smaller (12mm) than a honey bee (14mm), more gingery and have a rounder bottom. The males appear a couple of weeks before the females and congregate around the bee hotels waiting to pounce when the females emerge.
  • The Tawny mining bee (Andrena fulva ) is easy to spot, her foxy-coloured coat against the green lawn she likes to burrow through leaving tiny volcano-looking mounds of soil in her wake.
  • Ashy mining bee (Andrena cineraria) is a smallish black and grey stripped bee (around 10mm) which nests in bare ground, footpaths and tracks. Although solitary, they nest next door to each other in dense aggregations, so hundreds can emerge at the same time. But don’t worry, solitary bees don’t sting and are short-lived (around 2 months)!
  • Gooden’s nomad bee (Nomada goodenianna). The wasp-like markings on this hairless bee give it away as a cleptoparasite, or cuckoo bee. There are 34 Nomada species in the UK (850 worldwide), and this is one of the most common. She is much easier to spot than the small, brown mining bees which are her host (the grey-patched, buffish and chocolate mining bees). But lots of Gooden’s nomad bees, means the host bees, whose home they break into and lay their eggs, are alive and healthy. (Worldwide, a quarter of the 20,000 recorded bee species are cuckoos).

TIP How do you to tell a Gooden’s and a wasp apart? Gooden’s are usually flying low looking for the nest of a mining bee or even walking around on the ground. And they won’t bother you. So if a wasp-looking insect is buzzing around your food or drink, chances are it’s a wasp.

How to help solitary bees:

  1. Plant lungwort, wallflowers, comfrey and flowering currants for long-tongued hairy footed flower bees. Flowering fruit trees, willows, spurges, alkanet and forget-me-nots for red mason bees, and mining bees. Don’t worry about the nomad bees. If their host is healthy, they will be too.
  2. Leave old mortar untouched as hairy-footed flower bees may be nesting here.
  3. Install bee-hotels in a warm location at least a metre off the ground, where red mason bees can check-in and lay their eggs. We like to use these type of bee hotels with the cardboard tubes. You can take the cocoons out of in the winter and clean them.
  4. Leave a patch of bare earth for mining bees to burrow and where red mason bees can collect soil to plug their nests.
  5. Let dandelions grow – they are important early bee food.

For information on the honey bee (Apis mellifera) and the bee-fly (Bombylius major) see Bees to See in March blog here.

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If you’d like more information on the life cycle of bees and how to help them, click here for bumblebees, here for solitary bees, and here for honey bees.

You can follow Urban Bees on Twitter @BeesintheCity and on Instagram alison_urbanbees