Helping Bees Survive, One Hive at a Time - Gardenista
One garden, two hives: Can you bees please get along? The more bees, the better for all of us; of 100 crops that supply 90 percent of the world’s food, bees pollinate more than 70 percent. With the collapse of honeybee colonies becoming a worldwide problem, a University of California at Berkeley study is underway, in a backyard in nearby Mill Valley, to determine if one garden can simultaneously support both honeybees and native California bees. Photography by Marla Aufmuth for Gardenista. Honeybees’ tastes run to African Blue Basil and lavender—Provence is their favorite, Ziccardi says. Prices range from $4.99 to $9.95 per plant, from Amazon, Greenwood Nursery and Annie’s Annuals. There are approximately four colonies of honeybees living in these hives. Native bees tend to be solitary and to love native plants, including California Poppies (Above, Yarrow, Ceanothus, Buckwheat and Monkey Flower. Prices range from $5.95 to $8.95 per plant from Annie’s Annuals. Honeybees were introduced from Europe. They are extremely important pollinators for our food supply, and have caused a scare in the last few years as many adults abandoned the hives. The causes of CCD are still not fully understood, but it impacted honeybees, not native bees. Asters are great for both types of bees. Native bees tend to nest in the ground or in wood, so leave some spots in your garden free of mulch.