10 Tips to Help the Honeybees
Honeybees are at the heart of our food system, our gardens, and our ecosystems. Yet in recent years they’ve faced increasing threats from habitat loss and pesticides to climate stress and invasive pests. The good news? Everyday actions from individuals, families, and communities can make a meaningful impact. Here are the most effective ways you can help support honeybees and strengthen pollinator health in Colorado and beyond.
1. Plant Pollinator-Friendly Flowers
Honeybees thrive when they have access to a diverse, season-long buffet of nectar and pollen. Choose native wildflowers, flowering herbs, and bee-friendly shrubs that bloom at different times of the year. Early spring blossoms, mid-summer blooms, and late-season flowers all play a role in keeping bees healthy. Great choices include lavender, bee balm, blanketflower, penstemon, rabbitbrush, sunflowers, and clover. If possible, avoid ornamental doubles, those fluffy blooms often hide nectar from bees.
2. Reduce or Eliminate Pesticides
Pesticides, especially neonicotinoids, can disorient bees or weaken their immune systems. Choose organic gardening methods when possible, avoid spraying while flowers are in bloom, and read garden product labels carefully for chemicals like imidacloprid, clothianidin, or thiamethoxam. Small changes like hand-pulling weeds or using natural pest deterrents go a long way toward protecting pollinators.
3. Support Local Beekeepers
Buying honey and hive products from local beekeepers strengthens community-based beekeeping and supports sustainable hive management. Local honey has the added benefit of being delicious, unprocessed, and a great way to support small agricultural businesses.
4. Provide Safe Water Sources
Even bees need hydration. A shallow dish filled with pebbles or marbles creates a safe landing area where bees can drink without drowning. Keep the water fresh and place it in a shaded spot where bees can return reliably.
5. Create or Preserve Natural Habitat
Honeybees and native pollinators benefit when we leave a little “wild” in our yards. Allow leaf litter to remain through winter, leave brush piles undisturbed, and maintain areas of bare soil for ground-nesting bees. Whether you have a large yard or a small patio, creating even a tiny pollinator zone helps.
6. Build Pollinator Gardens and Community Habitats
Pollinator-friendly plantings can thrive almost anywhere—balconies, community garden plots, schoolyards, or roadside medians. These small patches can connect larger habitats and provide continuous food sources for bees.
7. Educate and Inspire Others
Conversations matter. Share information with neighbors, schools, and local businesses about the importance of pollinators and what they can do to help. Individual choices compound quickly when entire communities adopt pollinator-friendly practices.
8. Support Bee-Friendly Policies
State and local policies can create lasting structural change. Support initiatives that reduce pesticide use, restore habitats, and fund research on pollinator health and invasive pests.
9. Reduce Lawn Size
Traditional lawns offer very little nectar or pollen. Replacing even a small portion of turf with wildflowers or clover increases biodiversity and benefits pollinators. Consider participating in “No Mow May” to protect early-season blooms.
10. Prevent the Spread of Pests and Diseases
Both gardeners and beekeepers can help stop the spread of pests like the Japanese beetle or varroa mites. Avoid transporting soil or plant materials across regions, follow local guidance on invasive species, and keep hives or garden equipment clean and well-managed.
Saving the honeybees isn’t just a project for beekeepers, it’s a community effort that begins at home, in our gardens, and in our neighborhoods. With a few intentional choices, anyone can help strengthen pollinator populations and keep our ecosystems thriving.