The Role of Bees in Lavender Growth
The Role of Bees in Lavender Growth
As you walk through the Fragrant Isle lavender field this spring, it’s easy to see how many bees are working the plants. Even in late afternoon, one flowering lavender plant can be swarming with more than a dozen bees at a time. But be careful! Stinging bees abound here and at other working lavender farms. So be sure to keep a close eye on where you are stepping and never step on a bees’ landing strip (the point on the plant where they alight).
The The Role of Bees in Lavender Growth in your landscape depends on the area’s climate and your needs. The most widely grown variety is English lavender (Lavandula angustifolia), which is hardy in USDA zones 5 to 8. It’s also known as Provence and is the lavender used for culinary purposes. It has narrow, tubular flowers that bees love. The flowers are often larger than those of other varieties and more fragrant.
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Another popular type of lavender is Spanish lavender (Lavandula stoechas). It’s hardy in zones 8 to 11. It has shorter, more tufted flower spikes that look like little pineapples or pine cones and bloom a bit earlier in the season.
In the study of bees visiting lavender, three of the 12 species were not native to North America (Apis mellifera, Anthidiotus agnilineus, and Megachile rotundata). But even in the presence of those non-native bees, native bees still made up 88.3% of the visitors.
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