Creating native bee habitat in the landscape

This collection houses advice from Master Melittologists on how to support bee populations on your property.

Winter blooms feed the bees

A great way to help native bees is to provide bee-friendly flowering plants in your yard, especially ones that bloom in the winter. In western Oregon, heather is one such reliable winter bloomer.

Martha Richards | Aug 2021 | Article

Less showy flower petals mean more pollinators

As beautiful as they are to us, some horticulturally “improved” varieties of flowers just aren’t as attractive to bees, butterflies and other insects. Doubled petals, in particular, may block access to nectar or pollen.

Ellen Silva | Aug 2021 | Article

Mowing after flowering

Mowing is an important part of maintaining pollinator habitat. As Master Melittologist Pat Hayes demonstrates, waiting until after flowering is finished can really increased seed production, helping flowers establish over time.

Pam Hayes | Nov 2020 | Video

Leave behind some stems for bee habitat

Home gardeners can provide natural habitat for native bees by leaving behind the dried, pithy stems of shrubs such as raspberries, elderberries and hydrangea. It's in those stems that carpenter bees build their nests.

Leana Dickerson | Nov 2020 | Article

Maintain a bee-friendly garden in fall and winter, too

Many home gardeners put much effort into attracting bees to their summer flower and vegetable gardens. But it's just as important to be bee-friendly in the fall and winter. Here's how to do it.

Candy Solovjovs | Oct 2020 | Article

Yard debris and bumble bee queens

Learn about the importance of yard debris for bumble bee queens from Master Melittologist Leana Dickerson.

Leana Dickerson | Aug 2020 | Video

Carpenter bees are right at home in dead blackberry canes

That tangle of dead blackberry canes just might be hiding new life! Look for hollow stems, signs that the small carpenter bee has built a safe nest for her eggs.

Ellen M. Silva | Jul 2020 | Article

Raspberry canes and carpenter bees

If you want to raise bees in your yard but aren't up to maintaining a hive, old raspberry canes might be the answer. Friendly carpenter bees like to burrow into spent berry canes to create their nests.

Jocelyn McAuley | Apr 2020 | Article

Aug 2022

Want to learn more about this topic? Explore more resources from OSU Extension: Bees and pollinators

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What are nectar robbers?

Not all bees collecting nectar from flowers enter through the flower. Some rob the nectar from the flower, and in the process, avoid contacting the reproductive parts. Master Melittologist Carol Yamada demonstrates this behavior.

Carol Yamada | Nov 2020 | Video

Leave behind some stems for bee habitat

Leana Dickerson | Nov 2020 | Article

Profile of showy townsendia — Townesendia florifer

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Resin bees

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Mowing after flowering

Pam Hayes | Nov 2020 | Video

Eriogonum umbellatum (sulphur-flower buckwheat)

Sulphur-flower buckwheat is a perennial forb or subshrub that grows in sandy and gravelly areas in sagebrush communities on dry slopes, ridges and rock outcrops at elevations up to 10,000 feet.

Jeannette Krampien, Greg Low | Sep 2020 | Article

Calochortus eurycarpus (white mariposa lily)

The white mariposa lily is a bulb-forming perennial that produces a flowering stem up to 20 inches tall. Flowers have three large white petals with purple blotches, and bloom occurs June to August.

Jeannette Krampien, Greg Low | Sep 2020 | Article

Chamaenerion angustifolium (fireweed)

Fireweed is a perennial forb with erect stems 1 to 6 feet tall. Pink flowers grow on long stems, and bloom occurs June to September. Grows in moist to dry disturbed areas such as clearings, roadsides and river bars.

Jeannette Krampien, Greg Low | Sep 2020 | Article

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