If you’ve been wondering what to plant in your garden for the bees, I’m here to tell you- they love borage!

Jeff tucked borage plants into raised beds throughout the garden this year, and the plants have been quite popular with the honeybees and bumble bees.

B said he has also seen the tiny orange butterflies (not sure of the name) that we have here in Western Oregon, visiting the borage flowers.

We love watching which plants the honeybees visit the most in the garden. In the spring, they covered the goumi flowers. Throughout the summer, the borage flowers have been well loved by the honeybees.

One of our favorite books, 100 Plants To Feed The Bees, says “While bumble bees (especially species with short tongues) visit borage, it is most important as a honey bee plant. Butterflies and other flower visitors typically ignore the flowers.”

That’s why we love to plant a diversity of flowering plants, so there are plenty of favorites for all the different pollinators.

Another wonderful thing about planting borage in the garden? Those pretty blue flowers are edible.

I mentioned eating borage flowers before, in this post. I love adding edible flowers to our meals.

Do you grow flowers in your garden for pollinators? If you already do, and are looking for new kinds to grow, or are interested in starting a pollinator garden, borage is a great addition!

P.S. Our plant book said borage grows a maximum height of 2 feet, but the borage in our garden grows much taller than that. Keep that in mind when planning your garden, the borage could take up a bit more room than you expect!