Bees love purple, blue, and yellow flowers, finding them highly visible and often rich in nectar, with purple being a top favorite because it stands out in their vision and signifies high reward, though they also enjoy white and see ultraviolet (UV) patterns invisible to humans that guide them to nectar. They can't see red well, often perceiving it as black, but some red flowers attract them with UV markings, like Bee Balm.
The "3 feet, 3 miles rule" is a beekeeping guideline for moving hives: move them less than 3 feet (so they find the new spot easily using landmarks and scent) or more than 3 miles (so they're forced to reorient to a completely new landscape). Moving them an intermediate distance (e.g., 50 feet to 2 miles) confuses forager bees, causing them to return to the old, empty location and get lost.
Wear light-colored clothing: Dark colors and patterns can attract bees, while light colors are less appealing. Light, muted colors such as white, beige, and light pastels are less attractive to bees and wasps compared to dark or bright colors.
10 of the Best Flowers to Plant for Bees
Native bees generally like white, yellow, blue and purple flowers the best. However, some flowers provide nectar only, others pollen only, so it's important to have a range of plants. Different bee species are active at different times of the year, so it's also important to offer flowers from late winter until autumn.
They can also see blue-green, blue, violet, and “bee's purple.” Bee's purple is a combination of yellow and ultraviolet light. That's why humans can't see it. The most likely colors to attract bees, according to scientists, are PURPLE, VIOLET and BLUE.
It's best to grow a variety of plants with flowers in a range of colors that bloom from spring through autumn – the showier, the better. As you're selecting flowers, remember that bees are highly attracted to white, yellow, and shades of purple and blue.
Varroa Mites are the #1 enemy of honey bee and beekeepers around the world. These external parasites feed on the blood of adult honey bees, and reproduce on honey bee pupae. They can considerably weaken individual bees, and often vector viruses and other pathogens between bees.
Ten Favourite Flowers Loved by Australian Native Bees
Quite often bees will display some preliminary defensive behavior before going into a full-fledged attack. They may fly at your face or buzz around over your head.
Bee vision is shifted from humans' — a bee can't perceive the color red. Many red flowers are pollinated by birds or other insects; bees prefer white, yellow or blue blooms. While they can't see red, they see into the ultraviolet spectrum.
Flowers with little pollen
To collect enough nectar and pollen, bees would need to stop at lots of these flowers. You will find that quite a few bedding plants like pansies, french marigolds, busy lizzies and petunias come from hybrid varieties. As a result, they contain very little pollen.
Follow these October beekeeping tips to keep your bees safe and healthy and make the most of the fall season.
Think all bees look alike? Well we don't all look alike to them, according to a new study that shows honeybees, who have 0.01% of the neurons that humans do, can recognize and remember individual human faces.
Bounce & Slide
But no matter what the hive style, I always bounce or slide the hive components as I put them back together. When you lower a frame back into the hive, for example, do so slowly and as you get close to making contact with the box, gently bounce the frame up and down so any bees in the way can move.
For year-round blooms in Australia, focus on hardy natives like Grevilleas (especially 'Gaudichaudii'), Correas, Westringias, and some Callistemons, which attract birds and handle tough conditions, alongside groundcovers like Brachyscome (Native Daisy) and Chrysocephalum ('Desert Flame'), providing continuous colour with well-drained soil and sunshine.
The scent and shape of lavender make it a popular choice for many gardeners. It's great for bees, as it stays in flower for many months. You can get English and French varieties of lavender. The English one has been shown to be the best at attracting bees.
Honeybees generally attack only to defend their colony, but will also attack if they are seriously disturbed outside the nest. Common sources of attack stimulus for honeybees include alarm pheromone, vibrations, carbon dioxide, hair, and dark colors (Crane 1990).
Bumble bees are often regarded as one of the friendliest bee species. They are non-aggressive and rarely sting unless they feel directly threatened. These bees are important pollinators for various flowering plants and can usually tolerate human presence.
Observations at 2-3 m range revealed that both juvenile magpies were catching and eating bees, the two together taking a total of at least 10 bees during about an hour of watching.
The 7/10 rule in beekeeping is a guideline for when to add a new box (super) to a hive, suggesting you add it when bees have built comb, brood, or stored honey on 7 out of 10 frames in the current box, indicating they need more space and preventing congestion, which can lead to swarming. This proactive expansion supports the colony's growth, reduces stress, and maintains natural hive behavior, but it's also important to consider factors like time of year and overall hive health, not just frame count.
Homemade Sticky Trap
Place a small container with sugar water or fruit juice near the sticky surface. You can also dab a bit of the sweet liquid directly on the sticky area. Position the trap where bees are most active. Bees attracted to the sweet scent will land on the sticky surface and become trapped.
Use Citronella
Introducing citronella sticks or sprays around the bee colony inconveniences the bees and makes them feel in danger, pushing them to relocate over time. Make sure your citronella is close enough to the bees to affect them. Try using citronella sticks along with a smoking treatment for the best results.