Annual Flowers That Attract Honey Bees

Sunflowers attract honey bees

Bees are a big help to flower gardens because they help with pollination. When honey bees land on a flower to drink its nectar, pollen grains stick to its legs and bodies. Then, the pollen rubs off on other flowers and helps them reproduce. Honey bees are attracted to bright colors, large flowers and flowers with wide, open blooms. While honey bees will feed on many different flower species, some are better at attracting the insects than others.

Sunflower

Sunflowers attract all kinds of bees, as well as butterflies. These flowers are popular for their large, bright blooms that are often bright yellow, but can also be orange, red or pink. Sunflowers are also very tall flowers and can grow up to 15 feet tall. They have large, green leaves all down their long stalks. The flowers thrive in full sun and well-drained soil that is neutral to slightly alkaline.

Poppy

Poppies are also very attractive to honey bees. These flowers produce cup-shaped flowers with thin petals that are normally yellow, orange or red. They are 2 to 3 inches wide and have fern-like, lacy leaves. Poppy flowers grow about a foot tall and prefer full sun. These plants thrive in well-drained soil that is not very fertile. If the soil has too many nutrients the plants won't produce as much foliage or as many blooms.

Cosmos

Cosmos flowers are also known as Mexican aster. They produce large, showy blooms that are 2 to 3 inches wide and come in shades including red, white, pink or purple. Cosmos flowers grow on long stems and can be 7 feet tall, depending on the variety or growing conditions. These flowers prefer bright sun and well-drained, sandy soil.

Zinnia

Zinnias will not only attract honey bees to your garden, they are also easy to grow. Zinnias produce large, showy blooms that resemble daisies. The flowers can have one layer of petals or several. They come in many different shades, such as cream, pink, red, purple, lavender and apricot. Zinnias grow best in well-drained soil that is rich and loamy. They do best in full sun.

Warning

Flowers can attract not only honey bees, but many other kinds of bees. Some of these bees can have extremely painful stings. People who are allergic to bees should avoid the insects. Therefore, if you have a bee allergy, it might be a good idea to opt against flowers that attract them or to be extra careful when gardening near those flowers.

References

• Floridata: Helianthus Annuus
• Floridata: Eschscholzia Californica
• Floridata: Cosmos Bipinnatus
• Floridata: Zinnia Elegans
• The Daily Green: Buzzworthy Plants that Attract Bees