Planting for the bees

[gardeningfireman]

I caught a very small swarm without a queen in early June. Funds were short, so I put some brood frames and queen cells into the hive rather than purchase a queen. Well, the new queen is finally doing her job! Quite well, actually. However, I was concerned about them having enough of a supply for winter so I planted about 400 square feet of buckwheat. I read that it provides a phenomenal amount of nectar for honey. It is normally planted in June and blooms in September. I heard that buckwheat honey is very dark and strong, but my goal for this hive is to build up its winter food supply in a hurry. I also have a lot of Liatris in my yard. This flower is a true bee and butterfly magnet!! I constantly have bumble, honey, sweat, miner, and mason bees visiting my flowerbeds, as well as several types of butterflies. I strongly recommend planting liatris if you want to attract a variety of bees to your yard. It is by far the best flower I have found. It is extremely easy to grow, and it self-seeds, too!
Alan

[luvin honey]

Liatris sounds great! Is this also known as blazing star, a thin, tall, purple, fuzzy flower? I used to have them everywhere at my old place. I'll have to get more started where I live now. Thanks for the tip!

[gardeningfireman]

Luvin Honey,
That's the one! If you plant it from seed, it won't start blooming until its second season. If you plant established plants; voila! Instant bees!  It is a NA native prairie plant that looks great with black-eyed susans and coneflowers.
Alan