Flowers are not only a delight for the eyes and nose, but also an important source of food for insects. Here you can find out which insect-friendly flowers are suitable for the garden and balcony.
What would a garden be without flowers? The colorful plants can be found in almost every garden and on every balcony and enchant us with their beauty and their wonderful scent. Insects are also fascinated by the colorful flowers, after all they are an important source of food. Unfortunately, there are more and more insect-unfriendly plants in the garden: breeding roses (Rosa) block the way for insects with their double flowers so that they cannot get to the nectar. The forsythia (Forsythia × intermedia) is even sterile and offers the beneficial insects no food at all - this means that the insects, despite the blooming splendor, do not have a suitable one find habitat. Anyone who wants to take action against this can actively help: numerous native flowers are not only insect-friendly, but also beautiful to look at. Here we tell you which insect-friendly flowers should not be missing in the garden.
Insect Friendly Spring Flowers
Early bloomers are particularly important to insects, as they provide the first source of food after the harsh spring. Some of the particularly insect-friendly flowers include the following.
1. Spring crocus (Crocus vernus): The spring crocus is one of the first spring flowers and is particularly popular with bees.
2. Daisies (Bellis perennis): With its extremely long flowering period from early February to late October, the daisy is one of the most insect-friendly flowers. Although the flower only provides a small amount of pollen and nectar, thanks to its long flowering period it can be an important source of nourishment when there are gaps in the nectar flow.
3. Gold lacquer (Erysimum cheiri): Whether on the balcony or in the bed - the golden lacquer attracts bees and other beneficial insects with its sweet honey scent. From April to June, the plant gives off nectar and pollen with its blossom.
4. Coneflower (Echinacea angustifolia): With its bloom from March to April, theConeflower a welcome spring bloomer, which is particularly popular with bees.
5. Snowdrop (Galanthus): With flowering that can begin as early as January, the snowdrop is one of the first to bloom early and is therefore particularly interesting for insects. Its pollen is gratefully accepted, especially by smaller wild bee species.
6. Star hyacinth (Scilla sect. Chionodoxa): The star hyacinth starts to bloom as early as February and is therefore one of the insect-friendly flowers. It is particularly popular with bees and bumblebees.
7. Winter Agaric (Eranthis): With its early flowering from the end of January to April, the Winter Agaric is a particularly valuable flower for insects: butterflies, bees and bumblebees also fly to it like hoverflies or wild bees.
Insect Friendly Summer Flowers
In summer there are a lot of flowers in bloom. The most important insect flowers include:
1. Knapweed (Centaurea montana): With its long flowering period from June to October, the knapweed is indispensable for many insects. Butterflies in particular, but also bees and bumblebees like to use the plant as a source of food.
2. Bellflower (Campanula): Bellflowers belong to the balcony flowers that not only look beautiful, but are also an important food source for insects. Numerous insect species like to use the plant, scissor bees are even specialized on them.
3. Cornflower (Centaurea cyanus): With its high pollen and nectar content, the cornflower is popular with many insects. In addition to butterflies, hoverflies and bumblebees, the honey bee is a particularly common guest on the cornflower.
4. Tickseed (Coreopsis verticillata): Its extremely long and rich bloom makes the tickseed the favorite flower of many insects. But be careful: only unfilled varieties can reliably provide food for bees, butterflies and the like.
5. Purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea): As a flower for beneficial insects, the purple coneflower is particularly popular with bees, bumblebees and hoverflies. With its long flowering period from May to October, the plant is particularly valuable.
6. Vanilla flower (Heliotropium arborescens): The vanilla flower is definitely one of the insect-friendly balcony plants: When the sun is shining, it is temptingher scent attracts numerous insects, to which she provides a nutritious meal.
7. Violet (Viola): Not only people love the sweet scent of violets: Butterflies that fly particularly early, such as the Painted Lady, find a suitable food source in the plant.
8. Zinnia (Zinnia): Single zinnias are known as insect-friendly flowers for the balcony. Their bloom from July to October attracts numerous beneficial insects such as bees and bumblebees.
Insect Friendly Autumn Flowers
Insect-friendly autumn flowers on the balcony and in the garden have a special meaning as they are often the last source of food before winter. The most important include:
1. Heather (Calluna): With its late flowering, which depending on the variety lasts from December to May, the heather is an important plant for many insects. Butterflies in particular, but also wild bees like to use the Erika.
2. Autumn aster (Symphyotrichum): Myrtle, cushion or borage asters with their late flowering in autumn provide a richly laid buffet, which bees and bumblebees in particular gratefully accept .
3. Autumn anemone (Anemone hupehensis): With its late flowering, which lasts from August to October, the autumn anemone is one of the insect-friendly flowers. It supplies the animals particularly well with pollen, but contains hardly any nectar.
4. Single Dahlia Varieties (Dahlia): Dahlias are not known to be an insect friendly flower. However, if you opt for an unfilled variety, the plant can be a real asset for bees and Co., as it has an unusually long flowering period, which lasts until the first frost.
5. Single marigolds (Tagetes): The marigold is known as an insect-friendly balcony plant with its long flowering period, which lasts until the first frost. However, only unfilled varieties can serve as pollen and nectar donors.
Tip: With seed mixtures like the Plantura Beneficial Magnet you can plant a whole lot of flowers, which support the insects with their large number and the long flowering period. In addition, the mixture is particularly easy to care for and can simply be sown in beds or balcony boxes.
Your feathered garden dwellers will do the same with an insect-friendly gardengood. We've put together more tips for creating a bird-friendly garden for you.