Food and harvests
Pollination helps many flowering crops set fruit and seed, improving the quantity or quality of familiar foods grown on farms, allotments and in gardens.
A guide from local beekeepers
Honey bees: small insects, enormous value
Honey bees move pollen between flowers as they gather nectar and pollen for their colony. That simple journey helps plants produce fruit and seed—and connects them to a much wider community of wild bees, hoverflies, butterflies and other pollinators.
Make your garden bee-friendly
A living colony busy, organised and cooperative
Pollinationsupports fruit, seed and healthy plant communities
Social coloniesworkers cooperate around one queen and their developing brood
Season-long forageflowers from early spring into autumn help bridge hungry gaps
Why they matter
Part of the living network around us
Honey bees are valuable pollinators of wildflowers, crops and home-grown produce. Protecting them also means caring for the flowering habitats shared by many other insects.
Wild plants and wildlife
Pollinated plants reproduce and provide seeds, berries and shelter. Those plants support birds and countless other creatures throughout the food web.
A healthier landscape
Flower-rich verges, hedges and gardens create connected feeding places. Together, even small patches can make towns and villages more welcoming to pollinators.
Honey bees are not the whole story. Britain also has bumblebees and many solitary bees, plus pollinating flies, beetles, moths and butterflies. A varied garden helps more species than one designed for honey bees alone.
Life inside a colony
One super-organism, thousands of jobs
A honey-bee colony works as a highly organised community. Its members have different roles, but the colony survives through cooperation.
The queen
The colony’s main egg-layer. Her pheromones help maintain the social order of the hive.
The workers
Female bees that clean cells, feed larvae, build comb, guard the entrance and forage for nectar, pollen, water and propolis.
The drones
Male bees whose role is to mate with queens from other colonies, helping genetic exchange between colonies.
Help at home
Six practical ways to welcome bees into your garden
You do not need a beehive or a large plot. Pots, window boxes, balconies and allotments can all provide useful food and water.
Keep something flowering
Choose a sequence of plants so nectar and pollen are available from early spring through autumn, rather than all at once.
Choose open flowers
Single, open blooms generally make pollen and nectar easier to reach than densely packed double flowers.
Plant generous patches
Groups of the same flower are easier for foraging bees to find and work efficiently. Sunny, sheltered positions are especially useful.
Provide safe water
Use a shallow saucer with pebbles or stones as landing places. Keep it topped up and change the water frequently.
Mow a little less
Allow patches of clover, dandelion and other lawn flowers to bloom. A small less-tidy corner can offer both food and shelter.
Avoid garden pesticides
Use non-chemical approaches where possible and never spray plants in flower. Encourage natural predators such as ladybirds.
A longer flowering season
Plant ideas for gardens around Malton
Conditions vary with soil, shelter and altitude, so choose plants that suit your space. These familiar examples can help create a useful succession of flowers.
Early spring
Snowdrops, crocus, hellebores, lungwort, mahonia and goat willow provide valuable early flowers when forage can be scarce.
Late spring
Fruit blossom, flowering currant, comfrey, chives, hardy geraniums and hawthorn help carry bees into warmer weather.
Summer
Lavender, borage, thyme, catmint, marjoram, foxgloves and single-flowered dahlias offer a rich mix of shapes and colours.
Autumn
Ivy, sedum, asters and late-flowering herbs extend the season as many other plants fade.
Think beyond flowers. A flowering tree or hedge can provide a large amount of forage in a small footprint. Avoid invasive plants and select species appropriate to your site.
Homes for different bees
Food for honey bees, habitat for wild bees
Honey bees naturally live as large colonies in cavities or in managed hives. Bee hotels and bare soil are mainly for solitary bee species—not honey-bee colonies.
Leave a little habitat
Sunny bare soil, hollow stems, dead wood and undisturbed corners can provide nesting or overwintering places for different wild pollinators.
Use bee hotels carefully
Keep small hotels dry, securely fixed and clean. Poorly maintained hotels can concentrate parasites and disease.
Learn before keeping bees
A beehive requires regular inspections, disease management, suitable forage and responsible swarm control. Training with a local association is the best first step.
Bee-friendly flowers will not normally attract a swarm into your home. They attract individual foragers visiting for food. If a clustered swarm appears, use our free swarm-reporting service.
Good to know
Questions about helping bees
Will bee-friendly flowers attract a honey-bee swarm?
No. Flowers attract bees that are foraging for nectar and pollen; they do not normally cause a swarm to settle or a colony to move into your home.
Do I need a large garden to help bees?
No. A window box, balcony pot, allotment or small patch can provide useful forage when it contains nectar- and pollen-rich flowers.
Should I install a beehive in my garden?
Keeping honey bees is a skilled, ongoing responsibility. Learn with an experienced local association before obtaining bees, and consider neighbours, livestock, forage and suitable access.
Are all bees honey bees?
No. Honey bees are social bees living in colonies, but gardens also support bumblebees and many solitary bee species. All have important but different lives and habitat needs.
What should I do if I find a cluster of honey bees?
Keep people and pets back, do not disturb or spray the bees, and report the swarm to MDBKA. Free volunteer collection is available for accessible honey-bee swarms within approximately 15 miles of Malton.
Continue with trusted guidance
Plant choice and wildlife gardening advice develops as new evidence becomes available. These UK organisations maintain useful, detailed resources.
Found a swarm near Malton?
Keep your distance and contact MDBKA. WhatsApp is usually the most reliable way to reach Mike.