Busy Bee Garden Design

18/12/2025

I have updated my website to show photos of some recent work. I really enjoyed planting up these containers with heathers, alpines and bee-friendly perennials. Check out my other work on the Client Projects page: www.busybeegardendesign.co.uk

05/12/2025

Super excited and proud to have my garden featured by the Bumblebee Conservation Trust. See below for a link to the blog post that I wrote for them about creating my wildlife garden which was inspired by all the wonderful work being done by this fantastic organisation. 😁😊🐝🦋🐞🦔🐸🦇🐦‍⬛

“The garden was little more than a field with a couple of small borders and no bee-friendly plants. Having seen the difference that habitat creation could make to nature, I set about designing a garden to attract as much wildlife as possible … Not finding any landscaping companies that could carry out my vision, I began to create the garden myself.”

Bumblebee Conservation Trust member Emma England transformed the blank canvas of her new garden into a haven for wildlife.

Over the course of a couple of years, Emma introduced garden features essential for wildlife, including a pond, raised beds for homegrown vegetables, and cosy spaces for birds, bugs and hedgehogs.

Emma also planted over 3,000 perennials, shrubs and trees. In the process she learned more about bumblebee behaviour and discovered a variety of plants best loved by bumblebees.

Emma shares her gardening journey and her top bumblebee-friendly plants in our latest blog: https://ow.ly/letr50XAyHQ

📷 Emma England Nature Photography, Busy Bee Garden Design

14/11/2025

Alliums are one of the best plants for bumblebees. The drumstick variety Allium sphaerocephalon is my favourite. They look great planted in groups among other bee friendly perennials. The larger varieties really add interest to your borders. I love Allium 'Cherry', 'Forelock', 'Globemaster' and the white 'Mount Everest'.

Alliums (AKA ornamental onions) are one of our top bumblebee-friendly plants to plant in November 🐝✨

As you might have guessed, these spring- and summer-flowering bulbs share the same family as some of our kitchen favourites: onions, leeks, chives and garlic. Please don’t eat them – bumblebees only!

🌈 Ornamental varieties of allium are available in a range of colours, including white, pale pink, and an array of purples.

📏 They come in different sizes too. Short varieties are perfect for pots while taller varieties stand proud at the back of borders. Beautiful and versatile!

⭐ Many alliums have little star-shaped flowers arranged in a pompom at the top of a long bare stem. Each pompom has more than enough space for two or more hungry bumblebees to feed. Once finished, these pompoms turn into eye-catching seed heads.

☀️ Once you’ve chosen the right allium for you (look for the bee symbol on the packet to help you choose), select a sheltered site, particularly for tall varieties, that gets a lot of sunshine and has free draining soil, or create an allium display in a planter.

💫 Top tip: pair with catmint for a stunning display that will double up as a bumblebee banquet.

Download your FREE November Bee the Change planting guide: https://ow.ly/9yqI50Xea0K

03/11/2025

I will be planting lots of alliums this week.

What can you plant for bumblebees in November? 🐝

This month's top picks are allium bulbs, sweet pea and broadbean seeds, and raspberry canes – a range of plants that will flower at different times of year, helping bumblebees throughout the seasons and adding interest to your outdoor space. Plus, there's nothing better than homegrown fruit and veg!🌷

Download your FREE November planting guide: https://ow.ly/MNjT50XapBe

28/10/2025

I'm so excited that a photo of a bumblebee on Eryngium that I took in my garden has been used by the bee-rilliant Bumblebee Conservation Trust in a pack of Christmas cards. I'm ordering mine now 😁🐝 Watch this space for a blog post I have written for the Trust about how they inspired me to create my wildlife garden. Just a few bee-friendly plants can make a difference to our struggling bumblebees and the Bumblebee Conservation Trust has so much information and great advice about how you can help.

Super excited that the Bumblebee Conservation Trust have used a photo that I sent to them in a pack of Christmas cards. The photo is a bumblebee on Eryngium in my garden. Check out the Trust's website and all the amazing work that they are doing to help our struggling bumblebees: https://www.bumblebeeconservation.org
You can buy the Christmas cards here: https://bumblebeeconservation.shop/products/christmas-cards-10-pack-copy

27/10/2025

Some great tips:

Most bumblebee queens are now tucked up in their hibernation spots, but they still need our help – here’s how you can provide a bumblebee nest site ready for next spring:

♻️ Start a compost heap. The warm layers of decomposing garden material are a perfect place for a bumblebee queen to create her nest. Nest-sized gaps (think small football size) can be created by including a variety of materials like grass cuttings, hedge trimmings, dead headed flowers, unwanted wildflowers, and leaves.

🐦 Put up a bird box. Pop some insulating material inside, like dried grass or wood shavings, ready for a queen to discover next spring. Remember, choose a spot away from windows, doors and patios so you can appreciate bumblebees from a distance.

🦔 No suitable surface for a bird box? No problem! Why not get a hedgehog box instead? Bumblebee queens don't mind time sharing over the year.

🌾 Leave some wild uncut grass edges next to fences and under hedges. This provides a home for mice and voles whose cosy burrows are ideal for bumblebees to discover and renovate next year.

Did you have a bumblebee nest in your garden this year? Have you set up a bumblebee nest site?

Download our free Make space for bumblebee nests guide: https://ow.ly/UwSe50Xcw2Y

27/10/2025

Our insects desperately need our help:

Bumblebees, butterflies and bugs are in crisis – but hope is buzzing and you can help! 📢🐝

We’ve joined forces with Butterfly Conservation and Buglife - The Invertebrate Conservation Trust to work on the Big Insect Rescue Plan: a bold, united push to reverse insect declines across the UK.

How can you help? Take this 1-minute survey before 31 October and help shape the future of insect conservation. People power is vital to adding weight to the plan 🗣️

Add your voice: https://ow.ly/FUYR50Xg7LY

🤝 Please share this post to help build momentum!

06/10/2025

Nature is amazing!

Bumblebees and plants have evolved to develop their own special ways of getting what they need from the other to survive 🌼🐝

Bumblebees get all their food (nectar and pollen) from plants. Plants need bumblebees to spread pollen and fertilise their flowers (we call this pollination) so they can produce seeds. Did you know:

🌷 Plants produce colourful flowers to attract bumblebees to them.

🐝 Bumblebees can fly to search for flowers across gardens and the wider countryside.

🪻 Plants create nectar in special structures called nectaries to reward bumblebees for visiting their flowers.

🐝 Bumblebees have evolved long tongues to reach these nectaries so they can feed from a wide variety of flowers.

🌻 Plants decorate their petals with patterns designed to guide bumblebees to the nectar.

🐝 Bumblebees have ultraviolet vision – they see where nectar is by following the petal patterns.

🌺 Plants produce lots of pollen and arrange it in places that will ensure a bumblebee gets covered when drinking nectar.

🐝 Bumblebees have thick fur and their hairs are branched at the tips – perfect for getting covered in tiny pollen grains!

What have you noticed about bumblebees and flowers? Do your local bumblebees have a favourite plant?

06/10/2025

Check out this great guide from the Bumblebee Conservation Trust Just a few plants can help make a difference to our bees. 🐝

What can you plant for bumblebees in October? 🐝

This month's top picks are crocus bulbs, winter honeysuckle, p***y willow, and mahonia – a range of plants that will flower at different times of year, helping bumblebees throughout the year and adding interest to your outdoor space! 🌷

Download your FREE October planting guide: https://ow.ly/8Y7950X3BoK

28/09/2025

Just a few pollinator-friendly plants in your garden can make a difference to our struggling insects.

Yesterday, the UK’s leading insect conservation charities launched the Declaration on the UK Insect Declines Crisis at the Wild Summit UK 🚨

Led by Buglife - The Invertebrate Conservation Trust, the Bumblebee Conservation Trust, and Butterfly Conservation, and backed by over 60 signatories, this is a united front calling for change across governments, land managers, businesses, and the public.

Why it matters
🐝 Insects are essential for our world to function.
🐞 They pollinate crops and wild plants, recycle nutrients, maintain healthy soils, control pests, and form the base of the food web for birds, bats, fish, and other wildlife.

UK insect populations are plummeting
🐝 Bumblebees declined by almost a quarter (22.5%) in 2024 – the worst year on record since BeeWalk began.
🦋 Butterflies also had their worst year on record in 2024 and have struggled to bounce back in 2025, despite ideal weather – a sign of deep environmental stress.
🪰 Flying insects have fallen by almost two thirds (63%) since 2021, based on Bugs Matter surveys.

What the Declaration calls for
🌱 Restore insect-friendly habitats
⛔ Cut harmful pesticide use
🛡️ Protect key species and ecosystems
🔬 Invest in science and education
📈 Make the UK a leader in insect recovery

You can be part of the solution. Find out more about the Declaration on our website: https://ow.ly/NJFn50WV4YI

📢 Please share this post to help build momentum 🤝

28/08/2025

Planting advice to attract moths which are important pollinators

09/08/2025

It's so easy to help our butterflies. Just 15 minutes is all it takes to take part in the Big Butterfly Count.

"You counted me, right? Good, just checking."

It's the final weekend to get out for the Big Butterfly Count and help take nature's pulse 🦋

You don't need to be an expert to make a big difference for butterflies and moths. All you need is 15 minutes, a bit of sunshine and some patience!

Need help identifying what you've seen? Use the guide on the Big Butterfly Count app or download a free guide here 👇
https://bigbutterflycount.butterfly-conservation.org/

📷: Speckled Wood - Pallant Medical