Wildflowers & Plants for Wild Bees – Native Species & List

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Wildflowers & native plants for wild bees in Switzerland

Wild bees not only need safe nesting sites but, above all, diverse food sources. The most valuable for this are native plants such as wildflowers, perennials, shrubs, and trees, which offer abundant pollen and nectar. On this page, you will find a list of native wildflowers for wild bees, tips for selecting them based on location and flowering time, and recommendations for plants in Switzerland with which you can transform your garden or balcony into a vibrant habitat.

Thriving Diversity – Why Wildflowers Are So Important for Wild Bees

Above all, wild bees need one thing: diversity. Within their small radius of action, usually only 200–300 meters, they must find everything – from nesting sites to food sources such as pollen and nectar. Therefore, native plants are indispensable: they provide food and building materials for many species and ensure that wild bees can successfully raise their offspring.

Particularly valuable are wildflowers, perennials, hedges, and trees that offer blossoms throughout the year. Some species – like bird's-foot trefoil or meadow sage – are visited by many wild bees, while others – like purple loosestrife – are vital for specialized species. For your garden or balcony, therefore: The more native wildflowers you plant, the better. A list of native plants for wild bees in Switzerland can be found below.

Who's buzzing there? – Our list of native wildflowers for wild bees

In our Plant Overview with Pollinators (PDF), you'll find a detailed list of native wildflowers and plants for wild bees. It shows you at a glance:

the German and botanical names of the plants,
pollen and nectar content,
flowering time and whether the species is annual, biennial, or perennial,
which wild bee species particularly benefit from which plant.

This overview makes it clear how closely wildflowers and pollinators are connected – and how important diversity of native plants is for the survival of our wild bees.

👉 Perfect for anyone looking for a native wildflower list and wanting to specifically design their surroundings to be bee-friendly and biodiverse.

Open Plant Overview (PDF)

Early Bloomers for Mason Bees – Important Plants for Wild Bees in Spring

Mason bees are among the most important pollinators of cultivated plants. They start their activity particularly early in the year and are not deterred by cold or rain. While some wild bee species are highly specialized, mason bees visit a wide variety of wildflowers and early bloomers.

To ensure they find enough food in spring, you should plant native plants that bloom early in your garden or on your balcony. Particularly valuable are bulbous plants like Scilla or Grape Hyacinths (Muscari) – these can be planted in autumn and provide abundant nectar in spring.

Other recommended early bloomers for wild bees and other early fliers such as the buff-tailed bumblebee queen or the hairy-footed flower bee are:

Aubrieta (Aubrieta deltoidea)
Christmas Roses (Helleborus niger)
Stinking Hellebore (Helleborus foetidus)
Spotted Dead-Nettle (Lamium maculatum)
Hollowroot (Corydalis cava)

With these native wildflowers, you lay the foundation for a successful breeding season for your wild bees – and simultaneously promote more biodiversity in Switzerland.

Bluebells

The beautiful, intensely blue blossoms of squills (Scilla) often produce blue pollen and large quantities of nectar, which makes them particularly attractive to mason bees.

Grape hyacinths

Grape hyacinths (Muscari) are valuable nectar sources and are excellent for providing mason bees with their first energy boost in the morning.

Willow

With their early-blooming catkins, willows are not only beautiful to look at but also valuable sources of pollen and nectar for mason bees.

Blackthorn

The blackthorn (Prunus spinosa) – like the cherry trees to whose plant genus it belongs – offers an exceptionally abundant pollen and nectar source for mason bees thanks to its many blossoms.

Hawthorn

The deciduous hawthorns (Crataegus) belong to the rose family and usually grow as densely branched, thorny shrubs or trees.

Serviceberry

The common serviceberry (Amelanchier), sometimes also called Juneberry or rock serviceberry, blossoms before leaf emergence between April and May.

Lungwort

Lungwort (Pulmonaria officinalis) is an early bloomer, producing its colorful flowers as early as March – ideal for mason bees, which emerge from their cocoons around this time and immediately begin foraging for food.

Wildflowers for Summer - Food for Wild Bees in the Warm Season

Many wild bee species only emerge in summer. To find enough food, they need wildflowers that bloom in the summer months and provide ample pollen and nectar. Here you will find a selection of the most important summer wildflowers for wild bees. They are suitable for both the garden and the balcony and support species that nest and care for their brood during this time.

👉 With the right flowers for wild bees in summer, you can transform your garden into a valuable food source – and at the same time benefit from a colorful floral display.

Betony

The yellow woundwort (Stachys recta) enchants with its delicate white, elegant flowers from June to October. It attracts the beautiful wool carder bee and is very valuable for many late-flying wild bee species.

Bird's-foot trefoil

The bright yellow Bird's-foot Trefoil (Lotus corniculatus) is an absolute all-rounder: It provides suitable food for more wild bee species than almost any other wild plant. Therefore, Bird's-foot Trefoil should find a place in every garden and on every balcony.

Betony

Wood betony (Stachys officinalis) has been used as a medicinal plant for centuries and you'll find it in every monastery and apothecary garden. Its bright purple, towering flowers are a true feast for the eyes.

Dyer's Chamomile

The golden yellow dyer's chamomile (Anthemis tinctoria) is an ancient dyeing plant for wool and linen. Its blossoms radiate a warm, strong yellow – and are a reminder of the summer sun well into autumn.

Mignonette

The charming wild mignonette (Reseda lutea), also known as yellow-weed, is extremely valuable for many wild bee species. This is because its flowers consist almost exclusively of stamens and produce enormous amounts of pollen.

Oxeye

The ox-eye daisy (Buphthalmum salicifolium) looks like a yellow daisy. This uncomplicated wild plant is particularly important for wild bee species that specialize in asters, as the ox-eye daisy, with its sun-yellow blossoms, belongs to the aster family.

Peach-leaved Bellflower

With its large, star-shaped flowers and delicate leaves, this bellflower species (Campanula persicifolia) is one of the most elegant wild plants. It will delight your eye with a delicate violet and thrives particularly well on your balcony.

Harebell

The Harebell (Campanula rotundifolia) is a small, delicate all-rounder: It feels perfectly at home everywhere. With its delicate blue, small flowers, it looks graceful and is an elegant adornment for your balcony or garden.

Viper's head

Once you've experienced viper's bugloss (Echium vulgare) in your own garden or on your patio, you'll never want to be without it again: From May to July, it puts on a true fireworks display of blue and purple – and is visited by various wild bees from the first to the last blossom. An absolute must!

Horseshoe Vetch

Horseshoe vetch (Hippocrepis comosa) forms sprawling carpets of flowers that glow in a delicate pale yellow in early summer. Its countless small blossoms are often visited by specialized wild bees.

Meadow sage

The blossoms of the meadow clary (Salvia pratensis) captivate with a rich, intense dark blue. It produces an exceptionally large amount of nectar and is therefore very popular with both wild bees and bumblebees.

Dove's-foot Crane's-bill

From May to September, the small scabious (Scabiosa columbaria) forms playful-looking, light purple flower heads. In fine weather, these are almost continuously visited by many different species of wild bees.

Nettle-leaved Bellflower

The nettle-leaved bellflower (Campanula trachelium) can also be found in bright deciduous forests. Its delicate blue and exceptionally long flowers offer abundant pollen and nectar from July to September.

Tansy

Tansy (Tanacetum vulgare) prefers sunny locations, where it can grow tall until midsummer – then unfurling its bright yellow, umbrella-shaped flower heads. It still offers abundant pollen and nectar to many late-flying wild bee species.

Scabious Knapweed

The Greater Knapweed (Centaurea scabiosa) is a true eye-catcher with its delicate lilac, sun-shaped flower heads. It is one of the most valuable plant species because it blooms throughout the summer.

Purple loosestrife

The rare large scissor bee (Lythrum salicaria) specializes in purple loosestrife and collects pollen almost exclusively from this plant species. The wild plant with its bright pink flowers likes it moist – and blooms from June to September.

Woody plants for wild bees

Early-blooming native shrubs and trees are particularly rich food sources for wild bees. If you have the opportunity, plant suitable woody plants in your garden. The best time to plant is in autumn, but you can also plant certain shrubs well in spring. Willows, for example, are ideal with their early-blooming pussy willows. You can get them at tree nurseries and garden centers.

Selection of suitable trees for wild bees:

Willows, Bird Cherry, Sweet Cherry, (Wild) Apple, Pear, Quince, Plum, Apricot, Norway, Sycamore and Field Maple, Rowan, Bird Cherry, Whitebeam, Service Tree.

Selection of suitable shrubs for wild bees:

Hawthorn, Blackthorn, Wild Roses, Buckthorn, Alder Buckthorn, Blackberry, Raspberry, Serviceberry, Barberry, Shrub Willows (e.g. Purple Willow), Currant, Crown Vetch.

Planting fruit trees

In autumn, you can plant fruit trees, such as cherry, plum, almond, apricot or peach trees. Some of these saplings can also be bought in pots, allowing you to have fruit trees even on a slightly larger balcony. Incidentally, wild bees also love native maple species and ornamental cherries, as well as wild plums.

Even more important than planting new fruit trees is to leave old specimens standing. These are often somewhat rotten inside, have knot holes, and thus provide food and shelter for many animals – including wild bees. Even if the harvest is no longer so abundant, nature depends on old trees. The basic rule is: the older, the more valuable.

The native hedge made easy

For an evergreen hedge, there are two excellent native candidates: Holly is suitable for rather shady places, and privet for sunnier spots. Both have small white flowers and offer abundant pollen and nectar for native wild bee species.

Where the hedge does not necessarily have to be evergreen, a wide variety of other options opens up: Blackthorn, hawthorn, barberry, common buckthorn, and alder buckthorn are particularly valuable for wild bees. All these shrubs also produce nutritious fruits for native birds.

Replacing exotics

Many shrubs and trees may be pretty, but they are useless for our native pollinators. Among the most common are forsythia, hydrangea, thuja, and rhododendrons. Others may attract some insects, but they are invasive and endanger native flora. These include cherry laurel, black locust, and butterfly bush. Replace these exotics with native species: You will be amazed at how nature flourishes in your garden.

Wildflowers & native plants for wild bees in Switzerland

Thriving Diversity – Why Wildflowers Are So Important for Wild Bees

Who's buzzing there? – Our list of native wildflowers for wild bees

Early Bloomers for Mason Bees – Important Plants for Wild Bees in Spring

Bluebells

Grape hyacinths

Willow

Blackthorn

Hawthorn

Serviceberry

Lungwort

Wildflowers for Summer - Food for Wild Bees in the Warm Season

Betony

Bird's-foot trefoil

Betony

Dyer's Chamomile

Mignonette

Oxeye

Peach-leaved Bellflower

Harebell

Viper's head

Horseshoe Vetch

Meadow sage

Dove's-foot Crane's-bill

Nettle-leaved Bellflower

Tansy

Scabious Knapweed

Purple loosestrife

Perennial and annual wildflowers – Which species help wild bees?

Perennial Blooms - Wild Perennials

Annual Wildflowers - Fast Bloomers Help

Tips for Sowing Wildflowers

Support with Selection

Wildflowers for Every Garden Location

Woody plants for wild bees

Selection of suitable trees for wild bees:

Selection of suitable shrubs for wild bees:

Planting fruit trees

The native hedge made easy

Replacing exotics