"clarissa" wrote in message
news:11PJj.16305$pb5.11357@edtnps89...
Hi to all gardeners Does anyone have any suggestions on how to entice bees
to increase their numbers? What flowers do they particularly like?

As others have said there are lists available.

Do
those little bee houses actually work? I no longer use insecticides -
except on rare occasions when a prized plant is about to succumb - and then
only such specific things as bacillus thuringensis for caterpillers and
spray only that particular spot where the nasties are. Could even this small
amount of spray be too much for the bees?

BT will not harm bees at all. Insecticidal sprays certainly will but if you
use the less toxic ones and don't spray while bees are active you shouldn't
have a problem. Weird as it seems spraying at night is the best time as the
bees are all home in bed with the covers tucked up under their litle chins.

I even dug up all the roses that
seemed to have black spot all the time. I have a lot of flowers in summer
and despite being in my garden everyday for a couple of hours, I only see
about 5 bees a summer.

It may not be a problem with your garden. What kind of bees are found in your
area? Is there anywhere that they could live within a couple of miles?
Remember that bees will only travel a limited distance to get blossoms.

Can home gardens help bees in some way or has the
problem originated in some area other than than residential yards? Thanks
for any suggestions

Maybe, see above.

David