Where are the bees

[llamadrama16]

Anyone else noticing a real lack of bees in their garden this year? Are they taking longer to wake up since it was so cold until recently? I love seeing bees in my garden and am really hoping they turn up soon!

We had very few last year but they seem to be reasonably plentiful this year. Where are you based in broad terms? We are south Central ish UK

Loads of beekeepers round our way (France) lost over half their hives just due to the extended wet and rainy season. Some lost them all.

they suffered from the early warm weather and cold snap after.
my friend lost 2 out of 4 hives this winter. combination of disease (varoa mite) and shit weather.

Lots of bees round here, Perthshire. Might be more of a local issue?

Loads here, bumble bees have been bumbling around since February, honey bees a bit later but noticeable numbers now. We were remarking on them yesterday.

Seen a few bumblebees (not as many as usual, to be honest) but quite a few honey bees. There are hives just down the road from where we live though. They seem to think my opening the windows is an invitation for them to use my kitchen & living room as a shortcut.

Loads of bees buzzing about on my flowering Rosemary plant.

We also have frogs this year, they all seemed to disappear last year so relieved to see them back.

Seen a few dead bumbles and have rescued a few cold/exhausted ones and put them on flowers in sheltered spots. I think the weather has not been kind to them.

I have lots of bees here in south Glos, especially on my cotoneaster which is literally humming with them.
I only plant insect-friendly plants and I love seeing all the insects and bees, especially the little ones and the huge bumblebees.

Got some, a few in the house, but it’s so cold here, north west, that I think they are struggling. I’d expect far more.

I’ve got lots of bee friendly plants…but hardly any bees this year compared to a warm spring.

Our blackberry hybrid is covered in them atm - they're also loving the nepeta & pulmonaria. Definitely the weather has hindered their emergence.
But this weekend there's been lots of mason bee activity on our bee houses too.

We have bee hives, and they are teeming. But there is no artificial lawns around here, and lots of wild flowers and trees, and a garden full of perenials for them. And the swallows, and butterflies, bats and hedgehogs, and so much more. You truly reap what you sow.

Plenty of bees here in Essex, my garden was full of them yesterday in the sun. I do know a couple of local hives failed this winter due to disease which seems really common across the country, so perhaps you don't have many active hives near you at the moment?

Last year with the late spring there was no insect life for ages, but they all came back eventually when it warmed up.

Probably all at my friend’s garden last week! She had a swarm on her Magnolia, and the local beekeepers came over and collected them!

We have loads on our Californian lilac...dozens

Swarming at St Luke's today in Exeter. I got very excited watching them (from a distance!).

Have seen a few mainly Bumblebees. The flowering currant was covered with them. Not seen many Honeybees yet though.

Glad it just seems to be my patch of London missing them then! Glad you all seem to have lots of buzzing friends around 😃

I got chased around my garden today by one persistently buzzing round my head. I'd been leaning over the border to get a plant to go up its support, realised afterwards I was near the old bird box which had tree bumblebees nesting in it the year before last - there were a couple coming and going so hopefully they're going to use it again.

dh is a bee keeper, lost 4 out of 40. the four had poor queens, and were spotted to be struggling in the fall but by spring the writing was on the wall.

We've had a fair few so far this year. Lots on the lithodora a month or so ago and now they seem to be loving the alliums.

I've been trying to make my garden more bee friendly as they were not visiting me very much last year until my cardoon flowered.

I've since learnt about flower fidelity- they'll typically only visit one type of flower per trip so plant lots so they dont get tired doing lots of trips, and that they can't see red, so have been trying to plant blues whites and purples as well as make sure not to plant poison flowers to them like azalea and rhododendrons.

I also got these bee cup things, and make sure they're always topped up.

This year we've got loads of bees, and I needed a good excuse to buy 30 lavender plants.

They're all in my garden! Heather started flowering early February and first bumble bees appeared in mid February. Since then the azaleas, rhododendron and wallflowers have started to come into bloom and we have at least 10 types of bees. You can hear the garden buzzing! I have planted the whole garden to be bee and butterfly friendly from February through to November (although the wallflowers were still in flower at Christmas!) Love bees....

We’ve had loads I think this year. Lots of types as well. I’d specifically noticed.