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On the Bookshelf:
Plants for Bees
Plants for Bees – A guide to the plants that benefit the bees of the
British Isles
Kirk WDJ and Howes FN
ISBN: 10:0-86098-271-8
Published by IBRA
2012; 280pp; Price £25
In 1945 Dr F Norman Howes, a member of the scientific staff at Kew
Gardens, published the book Plants and Beekeeping. The book has
proved to be enduringly popular with many beekeepers and a second
edition was published in 1979, six years after Norman Howes’ death
in 1973. The book has now been modernised and expanded and has
been re-published by The International Bee Research Association
(IBRA) as Plants for Bees — A guide to the plants that benefit the bees
of the British Isles. The book was published with the support of funds
from the Eva Crane Trust and IBRA are to be congratulated on this
very considerable achievement. It is particularly pleasing to see a
book that places honey bees within the wider context of all the
various species of bee (at least 270 species, both solitary and social)
that can be found in the British Isles.
One of the significant features of this book is the four excellent
opening chapters. The husband and wife team of Dr David Aston
(currently Chairman of BBKA) and Dr Sally Bucknall continue to
make their contribution to botanical writing with a clear and
concise description of the interaction between plants and honey
bees. Dr Jane Stout, Senior Lecturer in Botany at Trinity College in
Dublin contributes an important chapter on plants for bumblebees
where she describes the diversity of bumblebee species and how
plants affect their foraging behaviour. Christopher O’Toole’s
chapter on plants for solitary bees is a gem. It makes the vital point
that by planting a wide variety of plants and by making nest sites
available for solitary bees, great strides can be made in arresting
the decline in the UK of solitary bees and hence enhancing the
resource of pollinators available in the UK. Undoubtedly the star
of these four opening chapters is the one written by Norman
Carreck, who as well as carrying out research at the University of
Sussex, is also the Science Director of the International Bee
Research Association and Senior Editor of the Journal of Apicultural
Research. This well-thought-out chapter introduces the book with
a powerful plea that it is vital to understand the value of bees, their
decline and the value of plants to all species of bee.
The bulk of this book is the re-worked and expanded listing of
plants that first appeared in Howes’ original book by Dr William
Kirk, Senior Lecturer in Ecology and Entomology of Keele
University. The list describes the plants that can be grown in the
UK which can help bees to thrive. The listing provides detailed
information about the value of plants to honey bees, short- and longtongued bumblebees and also to solitary bees. These 280 pages are
a master class in clarity, usefulness and factual information. The
quality of the illustrations and photographs are outstanding. Each
plant listed follows the same format; the botanical name, followed
by the flowering period, how the plant is cultivated and which of
the various categories of bees benefit from an association with the
particular plant. Significant plants e.g. lime (Tilia species) are given a
BBKA News incorporating THE BRITISH BEE JOURNAL December 2012
much more lengthy and detailed description. Those readers who
have access to a microscope will find the inclusion (within the text)
of photographs of the many forms of pollen grains that can be found,
a particular delight. This chapter is a masterpiece in every way.
The book concludes with an alphabetical reference guide listing
all the plants described in the book and their value to the different
categories of bee. The best plants are indicated and the top ten
plants are given special emphasis by bold print. If the book has a
weakness, it is that I wish there was also a listing of the plants based
on the months of the year. This would greatly help the reader to
look out for a particular plant during the year and also it would
assist gardeners in planning a planting scheme. The absence of this
‘month by month’ listing means that this book is more a reference
book than a gardener’s or beekeeper’s handbook. This minor
blemish does not detract from the fact that this is an outstanding
book in every respect.
This book is set to become, like its illustrious predecessor, a
classic among beekeeping-related literature; it is a delight to read
and a pleasure to add to any bookshelf.
Dr Stephen Palmer,
FRGS FLS
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