Protect bees in winter: How to strengthen your garden in Switzerland
When the garden is dormant, bees need our help the most - especially in Switzerland with its cold winters. Many families clean up thoroughly in the fall, unknowingly depriving the insects of food and shelter. This guide shows you how to prepare your garden so that wild bees and honeybees get through the winter safely - without too much effort, suitable for children and compatible with lawns, play towers and a love of tidiness.
Table of contents ▼
- Why bees need protection in winter
- Bee-friendly winter garden: the most important measures
- Typical mistakes in the winter garden - and how to avoid them
- Decision: How much "nature" can your garden take?
- Bees and children in the conservatory
- Conclusion: Small changes, big impact for bees
- Frequently asked questions about protecting bees in winter
- Don't clear everything "clinically clean" in late fall: stems, piles of leaves and dead wood are winter quarters for wild bees.
- Bees benefit from structurally rich corners, dry retreats and a pesticide-free garden.
- Provide winter food with late-flowering perennials, shrubs and - if available - a bee-friendly drinking trough on mild days.
- With clear paths, distance from seating areas and play equipment, the garden also remains child-friendly and safe.
Why bees need protection in winter
In Swiss gardens, bees only survive the winter if they find enough reserves and protected hiding places. Honey bees form a winter cluster in the hive and need rest, dry wood and energy-rich food. Wild bees overwinter as larvae or adults in hollow stems, in the ground or in dead wood. Where beds are completely cleared, soil dug up and hedges severely cut back, they lack these winter quarters - with consequences for pollination in spring.
Bee-friendly winter garden: the most important measures The
most effective way to protect bees in winter is to deliberately leave your garden "imperfect" in the fall. Leave faded shrub stems standing over the winter, only clear leaves away from paths and the play area and create one or two quiet, undisturbed corners with dead wood or loosely piled branches. Avoid using chemical pesticides and plan to plant late-flowering perennials and shrubs in the fall - this will give bees a stronger start to the new season in the spring.
A structured approach helps to ensure that you don't forget anything important - ideal for getting the garden "bee-ready" together with children.
Leave the sturdy stems of perennials such as coneflowers, fennel or mallow until the end of February/March. The larvae of many wild bee species overwinter in the hollow stems. Only cut back plants that are rotting or very diseased close to the ground and dispose of them in the garbage, not in the compost.
In a quiet corner of the garden, loosely stack branches, rootstocks and some leaves. These piles of dead wood and leaves provide sheltered crevices and cavities where wild bees and other beneficial insects can spend the cold season. If possible, choose a location that is neither frequently walked on nor constantly illuminated.
Rake leaves from lawns and paths, but leave them under bushes, hedges and trees. Here it insulates the soil, protects hibernating insects and improves soil quality in the long term. Under playground equipment or on patio areas, remove leaves more thoroughly for safety reasons.
Add late-flowering perennials and native shrubs to your garden in the fall or next spring. Varieties such as asters, ivy, autumn coneflower or shrubs such as blackthorn, cornelian cherry and willows still provide pollen and nectar in late summer/autumn, which bees use to build up their winter stores.
Plan clear "quiet zones" that are not entered in winter if possible - for example, the area behind the play tower or at the edge of the property. Leaves, stems and dead wood can be left here, while the area near the seating area and house entrance should be kept tidy. This creates a good compromise between everyday family life and nature conservation.
If you are already planning to structure your garden with play equipment or a wooden shelter, quiet corners for bees and other animals can be included - for example behind a play tower or to the side of a shelter.
- Plan at least one corner with deadwood/leaf piles
- Leave shrub stems in place until the end of winter
- Keep lawns and paths free of foliage, edges rich in foliage
- Do not use insecticides or systemic plant protection products
- Plant late-flowering perennials and shrubs
- Reduce light sources in the garden as much as possible after 10 p.m.
- Set up quiet zones that children and dogs avoid as much as possible in winter
Many of these points can be implemented step by step - you don't have to completely redesign your garden all at once. It is important that structures are maintained over several years so that stable bee populations can develop.
Typical mistakes in the winter garden - and how to avoid them
Most bee-damaging mistakes are made with good intentions: if you are a "tidy person", you clear everything away in the fall, blow away leaves and loosen the soil thoroughly. For bees, this means destroyed nesting sites, a lack of hibernation hiding places and disturbed hibernation. Excessive lighting can also be avoided - LED fairy lights on the play tower are a good idea. beautiful, but should not burn all night as they irritate nocturnal insects.
Mistakes that really harm bees
- Completely clearing all shrubs and grasses in October/November
- Removing foliage from all beds and under hedges
- Digging up the ground in areas where ground bees could nest
- Use of insecticides against "aphids" on roses, fruit and ornamental plants
- Permanent lighting of the garden with strong spotlights or bright decorative lights
How to do it better - realistic for families
Instead of "all or nothing", the Swiss family garden is all about differentiating between areas. The areas around the patio, entrance and play equipment can be kept tidy, while wild corners are deliberately left along the fence or behind the tool shed. If you avoid chemical sprays, children, pets and bees will benefit equally. Aphids can often be controlled with a jet of water or beneficial insects - without any poisons.
Many "insect hotels" from the DIY store are unlikely to be used by wild bees over the winter because the drill holes are frayed, too large or run across the grain. Better are high-quality nesting aids with smooth, differently sized holes or self-built variants made of hardwood and pithy stems. Place them sheltered from the rain, in a sunny position and at least 1-1.5 m above the ground.
If you also use structures such as play towers or wooden shelters in the garden, you can use their backsides or roof overhangs as protected installation sites for such nesting aids - far enough away from heavily frequented seating and play areas.
Decision: How much "nature" can your garden tolerate?
The extent to which you allow your garden to "run wild" depends on space, neighbors, children and your own sense of order. The decisive factor for bees is not whether the whole garden becomes a natural garden, but whether there are some quiet, structurally rich zones on a permanent basis. Think carefully about where wilderness is a good fit and where you need clear edges, short paths and open spaces.
When a lot of nature makes sense
If your plot is large, the neighbors are tolerant and children like to watch animals, the proportion of nature can be higher. Longer flower meadow strips, a Benjes hedge (deadwood hedge) or a larger, deliberately untidy border area are then ideal. This creates stable habitats for wild bees, butterflies and other beneficial insects over the years.
When restraint is more appropriate
In densely built-up areas with small gardens and close contact with neighbors, a "controlled natural" style is often wiser. Opt for clearly defined beds with native perennials, a structured hedge and one or two piles of dead wood or leaves at the edges. In this way, the impression remains neat, while bees benefit in secret.
Good compromises for family gardens
A division into play, seating and nature zones has proved successful. Play towers, swings and sandboxes are placed in sunny, easily visible areas, while bee structures are located in quieter corners. If you are already structuring your garden with sturdy wooden play equipment, you can separate the nature area from the family area - visually and functionally.
Bees and children in the winter garden
Bee stings are a common parental argument against "wilder" gardens. However, bees are hardly active in winter: honey bees only leave their hives on mild days, wild bees sit deep in their hiding places. The risk of stings is low at this time of year - ideal for create playful habitats with children without insects constantly buzzing around them.
How to create a child and bee-friendly garden
- Clearly mark resting areas for bees ("This is where the bees sleep" - e.g. with a self-painted sign).
- Do not place nesting aids and dead wood directly next to swings, slides or sandboxes.
- Keep paths easy to walk on and remove tripping hazards (branches, roots) from the main play area.
- Pile up piles of leaves together with children in winter or prepare seed balls for the spring.
- Teach children early on how to behave when they encounter bees: stay calm, don't hit them, keep your distance.
Use playful rituals: "In winter, this corner belongs to the bees - we just watch from afar." This helps children understand why some areas are not entered. Combine this with an observation point, such as a play tower with a view or a bench, from where the children can spot the first bees on the flowers in spring.
If you also structure the garden with robust play equipment, bee areas can be easily demarcated. Solid play towers create clear zones for children, while edge areas and rear garden corners are reserved for the animals.
Conclusion: Small changes, big impact for bees
Instead of elaborate special measures, bees need one thing above all else in the Swiss winter: structures that you don't remove. Make a conscious decision to create one or two quiet corners with dead wood, shrub stems and foliage, refrain from using poison and plan for late-flowering plants. Divide your garden into play, sitting and nature zones - this will benefit bees, children and yourself: less work in the fall, more life in the spring.