Help! good shrubs for bees?

[LizardLover]

On this forum I have been reading about good bee plants,I bought a pierres japonica prelude,I really need to know if this is a good bee shrub?,as no one seems to know,I need to take it back if its useless to me!.
Has anyone even heard of pierres japonica prelude?,it seems to be a dwarf version of pierres japonica but I have not seen anything bother with it!.
There was a post here ages ago about this plant attracting bees,but I don't know about my dwarf version!.
Please help?

[Fireweed]

Lizard Lover - I don't know anything about Pieris japonica, but just wanted to signal that your message ( and the other similar one) has been read.

[Blackdogjnr]

I have no idea to be honest either.

But I will add, while I'm here, that Hebe has always been a fantastic bush for bees in my garden, they're quite cheap, grow nice and sturdy and take very little looking after.

Get one

[Cheryl]

I don't know either but another good shrub for bees is Osmanthus - it's evergreen and has white tubuler flowers in the Spring time which are highly fragrant - they smell quite exotic - and the bees love it.

[Hedera]

Lizardlover, I have a pieris Forest Flame and bees just love it. There haven't been many honey bees about yet, but lots of bumbles. Another pretty shrub they like is Ceanothus, with blue flowers (sometimes called californian lilac); and Caryopteris, also blue flowers.

[LizardLover]

Hello everyone,
Fireweed*thank you so kindly that you did read my question.
Blackdogjnr*I have 2 hebes one has very slim shiny pale green leaves & I have no clue what hebe it is,the other is a shrubby veronica rounded small bush like shrub at our front garden the bumblebees love it!,I'm trying to grow cutting for back garden.
Cheryl*I like the sound of Osmanthus,I will look out for that,thank you.
Hedera*I almost bought a forest flame!,but saw no flowers on it,and so thought it would not be good!.I'm happy you mentioned Californian lilac,I have that one!,but its buds not flowering yet.Well this pierres I have,I've also found out all of it is toxic,so its not good as I have a dog and cat,and don't want anything that may harm them.
I have a rockery with heather round it,hebes,sedum,phlox,lavender,californian lilac,scabious,I'm trying to grow flowering current & barbaris darwinii.I must admit I have seen no honeybees,a bit concerning as I've seen beeflies and bumblebees,and because our neighbour has lots of budleia,we get lots of butterflies,but I am concerned for the honeybees. I read herbs are great for them so will need to find all I can!.
I have a raised flowerbed which will also have a wildlife pond,so hoping all goes well,I will have frogs,newts,dragonflies & if I'm really lucky,slowworms & common lizards.
Thanks for the plant advice* ;D
I wonder if I can swap this for the forest flame...

[KeenTeen17]

My garden is always full of bees and hoverflies in the summer, We have

• Cotoneaster franchetti
• Cotoneaster rehderi
• Buddleia davidii
• Berberis thunbergii
• Berberis x stenophylla

These are always popular with the bees when they are in flower. The Berberis thunbergii, Buddleia davidii and Cotoneaster franchetti have been the most popular. Wasps also like them as well.

[LizardLover]

Keenteen17*thank you so much!,I have many new plants to look out for now!

[galanthus]

All sorts of bees and hoverflies in my garden in abundance from spring to late sept. Thing they like best in mine is the lavatera, (you can grow that as big or small as you want it to as it's a woody shrub if you don't cut it back or new bendy growth if you do), either way abundant pink flowers. They also love the cotononeaster horizontalis 2nd best. Welsh poppies quite popular too.