Spring blooming pollinator plants

Lots of flowers bloom in the summer. Yet pollinators, especially bees, are active early in spring and many others need food later into the fall. So, if you are planning to add flowers to your garden specifically for pollinators, early and late bloomers might be the first flowers to add.

I know dandelions are the target of much angst and herbicide from gardeners. But these perennial bloomers are one of the first things to flower and are widely used by early foraging bees. My friend, a late-blooming but very enthusiastic bee-keeper, used to be a huge fan of herbicides. Now she has a lawn full of dandelions. She keeps them for her bees that come out of winter dormancy and are desperate for sustenance. She feeds them of course, but her spring lawn is a sea of yellow flowers covered with bees. Then once the flowers fade, she keeps her lawn well mown and only a few dandelions bloom during the summer months.

Spring bulbs are a more satisfying solution as early flowers. Crocus, tulips, daffodils, hyacinth, and other species of bulbs will bloom over several weeks of cooler weather and are visited by early bees and other insects. They need a long period of cold and have to be planted in the fall. You can find cheap bulbs in spring, but everybody sells bags of bulbs in the fall.