Solitary bees are better pollinators in my yard, but honey bees, butterflies, and wasps are always welcome in our yard as well. The solitary bees tend to get out earlier in the season than honeybees and they pollinate the early bloomers extremely well. There is also the native blueberry bee that helps my blueberries early in the season. Unfortunately we have to deal with Carpenter bees that rob the blueberries because they lazily cut a slit in the blueberry flowers below the pollen so they don't pollinate the flowers, but will get nectar. I recommend everyone plant native and non-native flowers and bushes that pollinators love. The more perennials you put out with differing bloom cycles the more pollinators you'll have in your yard to pollinate your fruit trees and plants. I have 3 or 4 Anise Hyssop plants and they always have bees and pollinators around them and I recently planted 2 sweet almond bushes (non-native) on opposite sides of my food forest. And we have a few native Ceanothus Americanus (New Jersey Tea plants) scattered near the fruit trees. I've ordered various stone fruits for next year: Nectaplum, plumcots, pluots, Pluerries and other trees to go with my plums, pears, citrus, Loquat, apples, pomegranates, mayhaws, blackberries, blueberries, muscadines, chinquapins, persimmons, goumi berries and pineapple guavas (feijoa). Hopefully the younger newly planted will produce in a few years and we will have something fruiting/flowering most of the season. I'm still on the fence on Jujube trees. I'm concerned about runners the Jujube trees put out. Good luck and keep making videos of your orchard. Charles from North Florida
two years ago, I switched to a battery operated lawn mower, and I'll never go back. They're quiet, easier to start, and lightweight. If a gas mower is causing the bees to become aggressive, you might want to consider switching.
Solitary bees are better pollinators in my yard, but honey bees, butterflies, and wasps are always welcome in our yard as well. The solitary bees tend to get out earlier in the season than honeybees and they pollinate the early bloomers extremely well. There is also the native blueberry bee that helps my blueberries early in the season. Unfortunately we have to deal with Carpenter bees that rob the blueberries because they lazily cut a slit in the blueberry flowers below the pollen so they don't pollinate the flowers, but will get nectar.
I recommend everyone plant native and non-native flowers and bushes that pollinators love. The more perennials you put out with differing bloom cycles the more pollinators you'll have in your yard to pollinate your fruit trees and plants. I have 3 or 4 Anise Hyssop plants and they always have bees and pollinators around them and I recently planted 2 sweet almond bushes (non-native) on opposite sides of my food forest. And we have a few native Ceanothus Americanus (New Jersey Tea plants) scattered near the fruit trees.
I've ordered various stone fruits for next year: Nectaplum, plumcots, pluots, Pluerries and other trees to go with my plums, pears, citrus, Loquat, apples, pomegranates, mayhaws, blackberries, blueberries, muscadines, chinquapins, persimmons, goumi berries and pineapple guavas (feijoa). Hopefully the younger newly planted will produce in a few years and we will have something fruiting/flowering most of the season. I'm still on the fence on Jujube trees. I'm concerned about runners the Jujube trees put out.
Good luck and keep making videos of your orchard. Charles from North Florida
two years ago, I switched to a battery operated lawn mower, and I'll never go back. They're quiet, easier to start, and lightweight. If a gas mower is causing the bees to become aggressive, you might want to consider switching.