Bees can be a great help in the garden, but make sure to choose sustainable gardening practices to keep them safe.

Bees are Mother Nature’s sustainable garden helpers, pollinating your plants for great crop production. But many common lawn and garden chemicals can kill them.

Even worse, bees may transport chemicals back to their hives, polluting and sometimes even killing the entire colony. Some scientists have linked these common chemicals to the growing problem of colony collapse disorder.

As small gardeners, it is our responsibility to learn the proper use of organic and sustainable gardening methods that will protect and sustain our bees!

Keep them safe and encourage bees in your garden with natural, sustainable gardening tips like these from Linda Kreidler of Farm Your Yard:

What are some strategies that you can think of that people do to make their gardens safer for honey bees?

Never use chemicals, and plant flowers for all stages of the gardening season, from very early spring flowering plants through fall plants that withstand the chill of oncoming winter.

And finally, what’re your favorite pollinator plants?

Lavenders, Verbena, Clover, Dandelion, Sweet Alyssum, Locust. Everything and anything with a flower is usually wonderful. All these can be planted in or near a vegetable garden. The list is unlimited and if used in the right combinations will not only help pollinate a food garden but make it a beautiful one as well.

Check out the full interview at the Bee Blog for more tips…