Creating a floral installation for Pollinator Week in Australia

[@FridayKetchup]

One of my daughters neighbours is really into native bees. She’s a phenomenal human and works to save as many misplaced hives as she can. (So many in the water meter boxes on footpaths) I am always thrilled to see the native bees in my flower beds. I try and grow as many purple flowers as I can because I’ve heard it’s the colour they’re most attracted to.

[@phaedragardeness]

They do love blues and purples! How awesome is your daughters neighbour!

[@Serendipity_Strawberry_Farm]

Thankyou so very much for sharing this beautiful store in Beechworth. Bees are so forgotten and most people don’t realise that without bees our food supply would be almost non existent. This past year I have been learning about beekeeping with my mentor, visiting his hives and caring for his bees. Finally 3 months ago our first colony of honey bees arrived on our own property and now live in our apiary planted full of the flowers bees need for protein. The bees are flying around our flower and strawberry farm from flower to flower and watching them go back to their hive loaded with pollen has been my dream come true. In December our swarm of native stingless bees will arrive from Canberra, we already have solitary stingless bees here but I wanted a colony so that the small bees can reach in and pollinate my smallest flowers. The proof of a bees value in food production is being able to already pick 7 zucchinis from our vegetable garden. It’s going to be a buzzy season for us x

[@phaedragardeness]

Oh wow that sounds amazing!! It sounds like you are doing such a great job creating sustainability on your farm 🤍🤍🤍

[@mdorn6592]

Love Love Love...your channel and your career has pivoted so nicely...and you did such a lovely job on your display piece - How inspiring!

[@phaedragardeness]

Oh that’s so sweet of you thankyou so much! Still not sure where I’m headed though!

[@Wyldheatherfarm]

Beautiful video. Thank you for sharing such a lovely local shop and your amazing work of art with flowers!

[@phaedragardeness]

Thankyou!

[@nettypets]

Beechworth is a very pretty and I love the lolly shop and the bakery..

[@phaedragardeness]

Such a cute town isn’t it. Heaps to do there too

[@phaedragardeness]

Thanks for always watching Netty 🤍

[@studiorootsjmb7098]

Beautiful work Phaedra, and what a great shop. I love bees and of course honey!!!!!!! 80% of my flower garden is for the bees. Kind regards Joke from Holland.

[@phaedragardeness]

Hi Joke! That’s awesome you are so aware of the bees!!

[@kimmy_mac]

That was beautiful. Love your work. Also don’t forget to put out water too heading into summer.

[@phaedragardeness]

Oh very good point!!!

[@tulle7358]

I especially loved the chair 🪑 “ a seat reserved “ 😂👏 ❤ Even though the last picture was gorgeous with all the stunning Dahlias surrounding your feet, None of those in that picture is good for pollinators since they cant get to the center or the flower doesn’t contain any pollen… I know you know this 😘 perhaps it doesn’t belong in this video - but I always appreciate pictures of delicious stunning gorgeous Dahlias 🥰 Can I just say that your display turned out beautiful 😍 ❤

[@phaedragardeness]

Hello! Bees love dahlias! They are attracted to their bright colours. Unless you pick every single one early before they fully open, many will open to show their centres and the bees can get in 🤍. So leave some on the plant to fully open! The final scene was from when I photographed every dahlia I owned, so they were picked before they blew open 💐

[@margarethatton2965]

I spend so much time in my garden 'rescuing' bees, from webs, my greenhouse, water in containers etc etc or not picking a flower cus a bee is asleep inside 😂

[@phaedragardeness]

I always look out for them too 🤍. Such sweet little hard workers.

[@MarieOhlsen]

Hi Phaedra, I love going to Beechworth. Adele’s dad has bee hives and I get free honey from him, delicious honey. Boxes and display looks great. My garden is full of bees thank goodness hooray to our bees❤. Just a question did you get any of your ranunculus seeds to produce corms. Mine were c..p I threw the lot out, waste of time and space.

[@phaedragardeness]

Oh no! Most of my ranunculus seed produced corms! They are very tiny in their first year though, I’m wondering if you could have thought they were roots by any chance? I leave them in the same seed trays for 2 seasons!

[@glenelkenfarm5577]

First ❤