Bumblebees and Anise Hyssop

The bumblebees have started to show up regularly on the Anise hyssop. This plant will provide foraging opportunities right through to the fall.

Bumblebee on Anise hyssop

Feeding the Bumblebees

Fireweed is at peak bloom. Anise hyssop is just starting to blossom. Abundant clover is a constant. All of these plants work together to supply food for bumblebees and that means that many bumblebees have a chance to overwinter on our farm. This picture of fireweed and Anise hyssop together tells the story.

Anise hyssop and fireweed

Anise Hyssop – greenhouse to garden

Shade is needed to help the Hyssop transition from the greenhouse to outdoors.

Anise Hyssop from seed

Transplanted outdoors

Anise hyssop – Spring 2009

Anise hyssop seeds collected from last year were planted in early March. By now the roots are several inches long. In a few weeks the plants will be seperated and moved to larger pots. Plants started this year will blossom in July and provide forage for the bees right through the fall.

month old hyssop

Anise hyssop in March

The purple and green leaves of the hyssop spring up from the base of last year’s crop. This is well before the last frost. Later the plants that start from scattered seed will emerge and fill in between the parent plants. Birds love the hyssop seeds so they are frequent visitors in the fall.

Anise hyssop

Anise hyssop-fall report

Last yaer’s planting has matured and gone to seed. New plants from last year’s seed have filled in around the parent plants. Even in rainy weather bees are drawn to Hyssop plants.

Anise hyssop seed

Plants started this spring have blossomed. They are much stronger and greener than last year’s plants because dolomite lime was added to raise the PH.

Anise hyssop

Plants started later in the season have yet to bloom. They may still produce some flowers.

young plants

 

Bumblebees and Anise Hyssop

More bumblebees are finding the Anise hyssop every day. It is important to provide foraging opportunities for the bumblebees so that there will be lots of bumblebees next spring. This is the time of year when there could be a shortage of nectar sources for the bumblebees.

Bumblebees prefer the Anise hyssop and Comfrey. Both of these plants should continue right through to the fall. Meanwhile the honeybees are foraging on blackberry and fireweed. Both of these plants last for several weeks. The honeybees are also on the clover which will last to the end of the season.

Here are some pictures of bumblebees enjoying Anise hyssop. Click on pictures to enlarge.

          

Anise hyssop in flower

The easy part of starting Anise hyssop is the germination and transplanting. The hard part is convincing chewing insects and slugs that this is not their favorite meal. There is some loss at this point but the advantage is that blossoming can be expected to continue right through to frost. This plant has appeal to both honeybees and bumblebees.

Anise hyssop

We are hoping the mint flavour of the hyssop will combine with our other nectar sources to provide some distinctive honey.

Anise Hyssop update

This is a progress report on the anise hyssop we planted from seed and the self seeding in our anise hyssop bed. We are relying on this plant to keep the honeybees and bumblebees going through the summer and fall. The hyssop started in the greenhouse transplanted easily into pots. The roots disentangle easily and the transplants establish without difficulty in a new location.

                  

In the field the seeds cast from last year’s seed pods germinated readily filling in the space around the mature plants. These plants will be flowering soon. The before and after pictures below show the progress over 5 weeks.

            

Click on the pictures to enlage.