Bumblebees in your Garden

 

Bumblebee action starts in March when the first queen bees venture out from hibernation. They have spent months living on their fat stores so the first task must be to find some food. At this point if you have some bulbs in the garden or hellebores this will help no end. Her second aim is to find a nesting sit to lay her first eggs. If you spot her in early Spring, take a moment to watch her as when she is searching she will fly back and forth close to the ground, using her sense of smell to locate an old mouse nest. She will make her own but prefers to recycle a mouse home! She will then lay her eggs and feed the larvae with nectar and pollen. It will take another 4 weeks or so for the young bumblebees to emerge from the nest so this is most likely to happen in May - Look out for brand new bumblebees then!

 

There are 24 species of bumblebee in the UK and whilst there are a few that are fairly common several are on the verge of extinction.

To help bumblebees plant;

Scabious

Knapweed

Buddleia

Lavender

And leave a few nettles about.

 




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