Washington Square Park is abuzz with excitement, because Saturday, August 17th is National Honeybee Day! It’s our opportunity to honor and thank these little gardeners that are responsible for ⅓ of our food production, and much of the beautiful plantlife in the Park. 

Honeybees are one of the most common and prolific pollinators on earth. They’re responsible for pollinating about 80% of all flowering crops. It’s thanks to honeybees you can enjoy a juicy strawberry, those almonds in your yogurt, or the broccoli you make your kid eat. But bees are at risk and are dying off at alarming rates, and last winter’s decline in bee populations was record breaking.

Right here in NYC, in our Park, we’re doing what we can to help the population. In Fall of 2018, the four beds at the corner entrances of the Park were transformed into pollinator gardens—beautiful thriving beds filled with perennial plants that honeybees just love. Check out some of our favorite pics of honeybees living it up in Washington Square Park.

This little guy is happy as can BEE hanging out on a blue fortune (Agastache) blossom. It’s a honeybee favorite, and can be found in the NW and NE pollinator gardens.

A beautiful cone flower (Echinacea) is hard to resist, even if you aren’t a pollen-hungry honeybee! They can be found growing all around the Park, and these buzzy buddies just love them.

Even the early spring flowers are popular with honeybees! These crocuses begin blooming in early spring, providing an early treat for the honeybees in Washington Square Park.

Is there anything more delightful than a busy bee at work? This little gardener is going to town on some Desdemona (Ligularia dentate) blossoms in the pollinator garden in Chess Plaza.

So, what more can we do to support our honeybees? The pollinator gardens are blooming March-November; you can help keep them thriving, along with the rest of the bee’s environment, by volunteering at one of our monthly clean ups. You can learn more about the contribution that honeybees make thanks to the great resources from our friends over at The Honeybee Conservancy. And come to our September 4th Honey Tasting with The Honeybee Conservancy to learn more about the Pollinators that call Washington Square Park home.