We all talk a lot about flowers for bees in the garden. Which makes me think of plants and bushes. But there are many lovely trees for bees. There are a few just showing their stuff in my gardens now. Especially in the dawn before the bees are even awake. Bees are late risers. Lets look at a few trees for bees in The Kitchen’s Garden.
I have planted two young weeping cherries. 
The peach tree is blossoming well this year. 
Why is it that blossoms are all pink or white?
This is an old peach tree, I will plant another one this year, to help with its pollination.
The Flowering Pear is not quite out yet which is good as we need a succession of blossoms
and there are three of these, flowering pears grow fast. The sun is up Daisy is yelling we must hurry. We also have five pear trees that are budding but not quite ready for pollination. The bees have a feast ahead of them.
The old cherry had a terrible year last year, no pies for us. No jam. But this year it is looking promising. And the two young cherry trees are coming along fast. These are Bings. 
A ways to go yet.
The old apple trees are even further behind. The young apple trees are doing very well but you all know what they look like. Apple blossom is a huge favourite. 
And if we look carefully below, somewhere in there will be…
Waldo. 
The Hackberry trees are only two years old. They need bees for pollination. There is such a thing as hackberry honey you know. They grow tall and strong. As well as being ideal for bees, the butterflies like the nectar and in the winter the berries hang there being eaten by the birds. So a good tree for all. Plus it is a North American native. 
Just because Mama in nearing her confinement (how is that for delicate) she still has time for a wee chat with Queenie, who she still thinks of as one of her girls. She is not above giving him a good box around the ears every now and then either.
The Maple and Pussy Willow is almost finished with, the Forsythia is in full swing, the Lilacs are budding and the Dogwood will be out in a while, so the bees will have a reasonable spring run with trees this year. And that is only in my garden I am sure you have seen bees about a few of your trees too.
So of you have a corner somewhere in the world plant a tree for the bees.
I have a theory that wild and domestic bees are starving and vanishing from lack of fertile organic flowers more than anything else. I know that there are many studies to find a scientific explanation for their decline, the new mites, moths and diseases. But if a hive is healthy and strong it can repel most things. As is true of a human body. Remember growing organically means getting ahead of the problem. So we strive for health first. To be healthy we need to eat good clean food, it is so obvious. And it is the same for the bees. Too many roadsides are mown, too much land is in industrial horticulture, so much wild flower land has gone under. Not enough vegetable gardens in back yards.
Also Genetically Modified crops have been reconfigured to be pest and round up resistant. So a farmer can spray less. This is good right? But they do not produce fertile nutritious pollen. The seed in a Genetically Modified crop is designed to terminate, so a farmer cannot collect and grow his seed, he has to reorder seed from the Big Lobby M company. So what of the pollen? The dramatic rise in these GM pollens on a graph, directly dogs the decline in bee numbers. As GM crops rise so do bee numbers decline. None of these crops need bees as a pollinator. Of course as usual no-one really wants to know this. Round-Up ready crops are big business and they don’t need bees anyway. But bees do need the good stuff. So if you have a spot to plant a tree that has flowers for bees then you are directly helping the bees gain back some ground lost to industrial farming, sprays and dandelion free lawns.
Also I might add that the GM corn is causing a dismaying decline in the fertility of cattle too. So it is in your beef, pork and corn syrup and soy milk, etc. Now what is that doing to OUR health? This is something that has never been researched. And this is why I do not eat or drink processed foods and I grow my own grass fed beef and milk.
Oops I wandered into a rant.
The GOOD NEWS is that the postcards have finally arrived. The printers did a great job even though they lost the order twice. The cards are gorgeous and I shall now stamp the postcard stamp on the back of each one, collate them and make up the bundles for our lucky winners, Anna, Spree and Chris.
And yes you can buy a set. They are US$14.50 for a set of 16. If you are interested email me and I shall send you your cards. Now that is exciting.
Another glorious morning is here and also my carpenter is arriving shortly. He is making a big Cave store room in my basement. A cool dark room to store all the preserves, vinegars, cheeses, honey, Wine. All that good stuff. Now that IS exciting. It is being made from recycled chemical free barn timber and I shall take some shots for you today. It is going to be wonderful.
How sad that my visitors will have to put up with hammering and bashing and building and the carpenter’s commercial radio all day.
Good morning.
celi
The Kitchen's Garden 
114 responses to “Trees for Bees, Thee and Me”
OK, I spy TonTon. I love the picture of the cow and the sheep almost touching heads. I love how animals communicate.
They are so cool how they exchange breath like that.. morning greg.. c
GM. Bad.
Morning Rosemary, it must be wonderful to live in a small village where these dangers are not lurking in your flour or pepsi! c
I think you might be right about the bees and other insects – I’m quite sure GM is bad.
I suspect that all your animals think they are the same species 😉
John calls it the biggest experiment ever using an entire country as the guinea pig..c
I too have been on a “M” rant. Scary business. How exciting for you too have a proper storage room! Enjoy your day.
Jess
The cave is going to be magnificent, big enough and perfect for a gardener who is trying to grow and store enough food for a winter.. c
All those buds, it’s so encouraging! I’m with you on the whole GM thing and you’re entitled to a rant! Messing with genes, dangerous territory. Mind you, we’re in a pretty GM-free zone as far as I’m aware but our bee numbers have plummeted since we arrived nine years ago.
christine
It is a contributing factor but not the only one, I do think that around here the bees have a hard time finding good flowers, but that is changing too as people start to plant areas back into native prairie with all its wildflowers.. c
Actually, numerous studies have shown that GM foods reduce human male fertility but those studies are very difficult to obtain in the US. Most of the research has been done in Europe and South America.
Hmm, morning mary, that is not good, we could leap to a population control conspiracy if we were completely paranoid couldn’t we? but I am sure that was not intentional.. c
The rant is important Ceci, so that the message is there and is repeated again and again, for as you said, often folks don’t want to know. And the more folks are in the know, then the easier it is for change to occur.
Can’t wait to get started with our busy bees!!! When are you getting your pigs, and what kind will they be? Also will they be females, males or both? So exciting!!!
I will get the one female pig who will be called Sheila the Babe and i am going to train her like a dog. If she turns out OK she can come riding in the car and see the old people. She will also be the mother of future piggies. Then another two who I will only grow for the summer. I am looking for berkshires or herefords. Still looking.. c
I would love to have my own peach tree again – lucky you! I have fond memories of the first house I can recall living in where we had a peach and a cherry tree in the back yard. Never did a child eat so much fruit without having to be told! t
fruit straight from the tree is like a whole new food group! Fruit sitting in the tree is even better! morning Miss T.. c
Rant away, C – we don’t want GM here or in UK. Our garden has lots of bee-friendly plants and trees. How do you keep birds off your cherry trees? I netted ours last year but the little featherd friends still managed to scoff the lot. I like the sound of your cave (French word for cellar).
Give Tonton, Mia and Daisy a hug from me.
ViV
Yes i have called it the Cave because either Mad or Roger or maybe even you told me that that was the french name for the cellar where all good things are stored. Mia is being very huggable at the moment. I guess we have just been lucky with the cherries, John picks every day and does do a lot of swearing at the birds, but we get enough.. c
Yes, our peach tree was knocked down by a roaming tornado. And I planted it with my own lily whites! (hands).
I would love to buy a set of postcards, Celi; please tell me what I have to do.
Best,
Ronnie
Just email me ( celima.g.7@gmail.com) with your address (so I can work out the postage) and I will send you my address and the cost and you mail a check and I send you the postcards. I shall make up a package and get my postmaster to do the weighing so you can add exactly what the postage will be to your check. We will just keep it very simple. Maybe I should do an etsy shop at some point. I would like to turn the bomber bees into a postcard too, i will work on that today.. morning ronnie!.. c
I have plans to plant two apple trees this year in the front yard – so happy and delicious! Perhaps the construction zone will send your houseguests packing a tad sooner…
Love the photo of Queenie and Mama!
Good morning, c!
Apples are ALL good for the bees! c
Cherries and peaches. I am envious.
You have the makings of a children’s book here: Where’s TonTon? Serious? You bet I am.
Oh yeah, that could be a book, that is the best idea! c
The bees have begun to stir up here – I had to stop my spring clean-out for a few minutes yesterday when I disturbed a drowsy bumble in the soil…
Pickings are slim for them right now – too early for the fruit trees. The yard weeds like henbit are blooming – and buzzing!
Good morning!
Oh those bumble bees are so sweet, they are starting to come out here too.. morning marie.. c
Good morning. 🙂 Wonderful rant. I love the bees, and we’ve planted quite a few trees for them here at Breezy Acres. We also let some of the meadows grow wild which is not only nice for the bees, but we get to admire the beautiful wildflowers as well.
Plus it is good to give your fields time to rest and reseed! I cannot wait until that is in my rotation, we are still struggling to GET fields ..What trees have you planted, i am always looking for more.. c
After discussions with our local soil & conservation people, we ended up with walnut and cherry to go with the oaks and sugar maples we had already planted. We also have plum, apricot, and quite a few old apple trees. The meadow where we planted most of the trees is still producing a lot of red clover (along with a variety of other wildflowers that have been seeded there by the birds) as the trees slowly grow. I love walking through there during the late fall because it buzzes and hums with honey bees, a lovely sound. A few our neighbors have hives. My husband wants to get his own hives eventually. He’s been hanging out with other beekeepers, learning about bees and how to care for them.
I would love to do that walk with you, why are these cyber walls so thick!! c
Some interestings thoughts on our bees disappearing. It seems logical that bees need good clean food like we do. Yes, the corn modifying is a HUGE problem. It scares me. I just try to buy local and organic since I live in the city and have no intentions of farming, but maybe I can plant a bee tree…
If we all bought local and certified organic the whole problem would go away, but it won’t, we just have to do the best we can.. the organic people have OKed GM alfalfa for organic beef so what do we do now! My alfalfa will only stay organic for a short time too.. ironically the bees will help it cross with the Round Up ready seed that has just been planted 2 miles away.. however, chin up and do what we can.. morning geni