The best shrubs for bees

Shrubs in the catalogue

• RosemarySalvia rosmarinusFebruary to May. Nectar very high, pollen moderate.Major honey crop
• MahoniaMahonia × mediaNovember to February. Nectar high, pollen high.Feeds the colony but rarely yields a surplus
• MānukaLeptospermum scopariumNovember to January. Nectar high, pollen moderate.Major honey crop
• BlueberryVaccinium corymbosumApril to June. Nectar high, pollen moderate.Minor honey crop
• Winter honeysuckleLonicera fragrantissimaDecember to March. Nectar moderate, pollen moderate.Not a honey source
• BuddleiaBuddleja davidiiJuly to September. Nectar high, pollen low.Not a honey source
• RaspberryRubus idaeusMay to August. Nectar very high, pollen high.Major honey crop
• BlackthornPrunus spinosaMarch to April. Nectar high, pollen high.Feeds the colony but rarely yields a surplus
• CotoneasterCotoneasterMay to June. Nectar very high, pollen high.Minor honey crop
• PyracanthaPyracantha coccineaMay to June. Nectar high, pollen high.Feeds the colony but rarely yields a surplus
• RockroseCistus ladaniferApril to June. Nectar high, pollen very high.Major honey crop
• BilberryVaccinium myrtillusApril to June. Nectar high, pollen moderate.Minor honey crop
• VitexVitex negundoJune to July. Nectar very high, pollen moderate.Major honey crop
• BanksiaBanksiaMarch to August. Nectar very high, pollen high.Major honey crop
• Flowering currantRibes sanguineumMarch to April. Nectar high, pollen moderate.Feeds the colony but rarely yields a surplus
• HazelCorylus avellanaJanuary to March. Nectar none, pollen very high.Not a honey source
• ElderSambucus nigraMay to July. Nectar low, pollen high.Not a honey source
• GorseUlex europaeusJanuary to December. Nectar none, pollen very high.Not a honey source
• Christmas boxSarcococca confusaDecember to March. Nectar moderate, pollen moderate.Not a honey source
• Winter viburnumViburnum × bodnantenseNovember to March. Nectar moderate, pollen low.Not a honey source
• Guelder roseViburnum opulusMay to July. Nectar high, pollen moderate.Feeds the colony but rarely yields a surplus
• BroomCytisus scopariusApril to June. Nectar none, pollen very high.Not a honey source
• Witch hazelHamamelis × intermediaDecember to March. Nectar moderate, pollen moderate.Not a honey source
• Alder buckthornFrangula alnusMay to July. Nectar very high, pollen moderate.Minor honey crop
• HebeHebeJune to October. Nectar high, pollen high.Feeds the colony but rarely yields a surplus
• Black sageSalvia melliferaApril to June. Nectar very high, pollen moderate.Major honey crop
• CoffeeCoffea arabicaMarch to May. Nectar high, pollen moderate.Minor honey crop
• CottonGossypium hirsutumJune to September. Nectar high, pollen high.Major honey crop
• GallberryIlex glabraMay to June. Nectar very high, pollen moderate.Major honey crop
• Saw palmettoSerenoa repensApril to June. Nectar very high, pollen high.Major honey crop
• Brazilian pepperSchinus terebinthifoliaSeptember to November. Nectar high, pollen moderate.Major honey crop
• MarmeleiroCrotonJune to September. Nectar high, pollen high.Major honey crop
• SnowberrySymphoricarpos albusJune to September. Nectar high, pollen moderate.Minor honey crop
• Prickly boxBursaria spinosaDecember to February. Nectar high, pollen high.Major honey crop
• BottlebrushMelaleuca citrinaOctober to January. Nectar very high, pollen high.Minor honey crop
• GojiLycium barbarumJune to September. Nectar high, pollen moderate.Minor honey crop
• TeaCamellia sinensisOctober to December. Nectar high, pollen high.Minor honey crop
• TamariskTamarixMay to August. Nectar moderate, pollen moderate.Minor honey crop
• OsierSalix viminalisMarch to April. Nectar moderate, pollen very high.Minor honey crop
• BlackcurrantRibes nigrumApril to May. Nectar high, pollen moderate.Minor honey crop
• GooseberryRibes uva-crispaMarch to April. Nectar high, pollen moderate.Not a honey source
• DogwoodCornus sanguineaMay to July. Nectar high, pollen moderate.Minor honey crop
• SpindleEuonymus europaeusMay to June. Nectar moderate, pollen moderate.Not a honey source
• BuckthornRhamnus catharticaMay to June. Nectar moderate, pollen moderate.Not a honey source
• Wild privetLigustrum vulgareJune to July. Nectar high, pollen moderate.Minor honey crop
• DaphneDaphneJanuary to April. Nectar high, pollen moderate.Not a honey source
• BluebeardCaryopteris x clandonensisAugust to October. Nectar very high, pollen moderate.Not a honey source
• AbeliaLinnaea x grandifloraJuly to November. Nectar high, pollen moderate.Not a honey source
• EscalloniaEscallonia rubraJune to October. Nectar high, pollen moderate.Not a honey source
• Shrubby cinquefoilDasiphora fruticosaMay to October. Nectar moderate, pollen high.Not a honey source
• FatsiaFatsia japonicaOctober to November. Nectar high, pollen high.Not a honey source
• ElaeagnusElaeagnus x submacrophyllaOctober to November. Nectar high, pollen moderate.Not a honey source
• Seven-son flowerHeptacodium miconioidesSeptember to October. Nectar high, pollen moderate.Not a honey source
• Sea buckthornHippophae rhamnoidesMarch to May. Nectar none, pollen high.Not a honey source
• Oil-tea camelliaCamellia oleiferaOctober to December. Nectar very high, pollen high.Minor honey crop
• ManzanitaArctostaphylos speciesDecember to March. Nectar high, pollen moderate.Minor honey crop
• SumacRhus speciesJune to July. Nectar high, pollen high.Minor honey crop
• MandacaruCereus jamacaruNovember to February. Nectar moderate, pollen high.Feeds the colony but rarely yields a surplus

What this group covers

12 of 12 months have something in flower. Nectar and pollen are counted separately and a month counts only where at least one plant offers that resource at moderate value or better — a plant in flower is not the same as a plant worth visiting.

Bees these plants are recorded with

Taken from the relationships on each plant record. These are the well-attested associations rather than an exhaustive list of visitors, so treat the number as a floor.

• Western honey bee
• Bumblebees
• Mason bees
• Iberian honey bee
• Mourning bees
• Mining bees
• Western bumblebee
• Common eastern bumblebee
• Leafcutter bees
• Augochlora bees
• Yellow-legged mining bee
• Two-coloured mason bee

Honeys from these plants

• Rosemary honeyDelicate and softly aromatic — floral first, with a thin thread of resin behind it that tells you where it came from.
• Hymettus honeyIntensely aromatic and herbal, with a warm thyme character, a resinous maquis edge and a long finish that carries a distinct savoury note.
• Alcarria honeyDelicate and aromatic, with a clean herbal sweetness — the rosemary type is softer and more floral, the lavender type more perfumed and slightly camphoraceous.
• Narbonne rosemary honeyDelicate and clean with a soft herbal floral note and a texture that does much of the work — one of the classic pale European honeys.
• Manuka honeyEarthy, mineral and damp — heather-like without the smoke, with a faintly medicinal edge. Distinctive rather than delicious, and not what most people expect for the price.
• New Zealand bush honeyWarm and rounded with a light caramel base and a faint resinous lift, and considerable variation between regions — generally more approachable than any of its monofloral components.
• Blueberry honeyTangy and lightly fruity with a green, slightly astringent edge — recognisably related to the berry without tasting of jam.
• Lingonberry honeyDelicate and clean with a distinct tart berry note and a fresh acidity — one of the few honeys that genuinely tastes of the fruit its plant produces.
• Urban honeyVaries enormously and is frequently more complex than a rural multifloral, because the flowering succession is longer and the species mix wider.
• Raspberry honeyDelicate and lightly fruity with a clean bright acidity — one of the few honeys where a taster unprompted names the right fruit.
• Siberian taiga honeyComplex and warm with a herbal lift over caramel, and a density that comes directly from the low moisture — thick, concentrated and long on the palate.
• Rockrose honeyBalsamic and resinous with a warm amber sweetness underneath — it smells of incense and hot scrubland, and tastes considerably less sweet than its colour suggests.