Bee Lawns and Native Landscaping
What is a bee lawn?
Bee lawns are one popular option for replacing high-maintenance turfgrass with a lower-maintenance mix of flowers, fescues, and turfgrasses intended to support bees.
The University of Minnesota Bee Lab describes a bee lawn as “a landscape design for residential yards that includes a mix of turfgrass and low growing chemical free flowering plants with the intention of supporting bees while maintaining the neat and functional aesthetic of a traditional lawn.”
Dutch white clover is a non-native flower used in most commercial bee lawn seed mixes.
Do bee lawns support native bees?
Bee lawns aren’t explicitly created with native plants. Much of the early research around bee lawns centered on their ability to support honeybees. Honeybees are a non-native bee species used in agriculture and honey production. While they have benefits, honeybees do not pollinate most North American native plants. They prefer non-native flowers like Dutch white clover, creeping thyme, and dandelions, typical species of commercial bee lawns.
North America has more than four thousand native bee species. Most native bees have higher nutritional needs than honeybees, and depend on native plants for sustenance. Non-native flowers like Dutch white clover and dandelions provide less nutritional value. They offer more sustenance for native bees than turfgrass, but less sustenance than native wildflowers.
Some bee lawn mixes mitigate this problem by offering native bee lawn seed mixes. For example, Twin City Seed Company sells a blend of fine fescue grasses and low-growing native wildflowers like wild petunia (Ruella humilis), yarrow (Achillea millefolium), and self heal (Prunella vulgaris). Minnehaha Falls Landscaping provides a similar mix of species in its native bee lawn mix. These mixes can withstand some foot traffic and occasional mowing. This style better serves native bees while maintaining aesthetic and functional value for humans.
Bee lawns and native landscaping
Bee lawns serve human functions first and foremost, so they have lower ecological value than a naturalistic landscape of native plants. Native bees are best served by a ground layer with varied height, diverse flowering plants, and patches of bare soil for burrowing. By their intended nature of carpeting the ground, bee lawns don’t mimic ideal conditions for native bees.
Bee lawns aren’t bad or unimportant. But bee lawns should be reserved for recreation areas and function best when planted alongside native, naturalistic landscaping. Consider this example, a combination of bee lawn and companion native plant gardens, perhaps rain gardens and a pocket prairie. This winning combination would provide big ecological benefits while maintaining the function and aesthetic of a turfgrass lawn. Plus, this pollinator-friendly landscape would have lower maintenance needs than the manicured lawn it replaces.
Keystone species
Asters and goldenrods are “keystone species,” so named for their high ecological value.
Careful plant selection can also increase the ecological value of a bee-friendly landscape. Some native plant species serve more bees than others, and should be prioritized in companion gardens. In the earliest days of spring, willow (Salix) species open fuzzy flowers rich with pollen for queen bumblebees waking from winter. As summer arrives, wild bergamot or bee balm (Monarda fistulosa), draws crowds of native bees, including the endangered rusty-patched bumblebee (Bombus affinis). Native mints, like mountain mint (Pycnanthemum virginianum), draw bees and beneficial wasps that prey on insect pests. In fall, aster and goldenrod species create a flowering quilt supporting all native pollinators as they prepare for winter. This diverse mix provides a pollinator buffet complementing a bee lawn that serves human functions.
You can also increase ecological value by adding host plants for imperiled wildlife native to your area. For example, native milkweed species are the only host plants for federally threatened monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus), which range across North America. In the Midwest, sundial lupine (Lupinus perennis subsp. perennis) provides the namesake color of endangered Karner blue butterflies (Lycaeides melissa samuelis). Including host plants in home landscaping increases critical habitat and gives imperiled species a better chance of recovery.
Bee lawns and native landscaping are companions, not competitors. If you’re looking to add, edit, or maintain your landscape, schedule a consultation. We can work together to create a native plant landscape that serves wildlife, looks great, and functions for your needs.
