Kitchen Garden Forum

Just a thought really. Catalogues advertise pollen free flowers such as sunflowers for cutting. This is so when you bring them into the house they don't drop pollen over everything but how does the move to grow pollen free flowers affect wildlife - for instance bees who are already struggling. Any also no pollen means no sunflower seeds so no seeds for the birds to browse in autumn/winter.

Double varieties have been bred from flowers that are naturally single such as daffodils and primroses. Double flowers are of little use to butterflies and bees.

If we want the bees to be around in order to pollinate our fruit then shouldn't we be boycotting plants that produce bee unfriendly flowers?

By the way there is a petition to save the honey bee here.
http://www.soilassociation.org/Takeacti ... fault.aspx

Good to see someone else showing coincern for the bees, yes, without our bees to pollinate things we would starve. Like you I plant to attract bees
paying particular attention to early and late pollen supply. I also have a few wild areas, foxgloves keep the bees busy for about 6 weeks!

Hi Glallotments,
I have just read a report about an experiment with Red Masonry Bees in some Apple Orchards in Kent. From what I gather these Red Masonry Bees could in effect make Honey Bees redundant in orchards.
The pollination was so much more complete with these bees and the set of fruit was damn near doubled.
There have been so many difficulties with Honey Bees over the last decade and just at present fresh research money has been allocated to look into these failures. It will probably take a considerable time for the results of the research to be known and to vote for something at this moment in time would I feel be a mistake. It is a matter of being patient because nobody can do anything until the research is completed.
JB.