Let Me Tell You About the Borage and the Bees
Tamra L Boyce, Anoka County Extension Master Gardener
Borage (Borago officinalis), or Starflower, is a lesser-known annual herb not typically grown in most gardens, but it should be. Its thick green leaves covered in soft, prickly bristles support a profusion of vibrant, highly visible blue, pink, or white blossoms. The distinctive star shape has a central grouping of stamens, which allows bees to easily navigate, access, and forage for food. Because bees see colors in the ultraviolet spectrum, these insects are especially drawn to the vivid indigo blossoms, which produce both nectar and pollen. Using their long tongues, bees can retrieve the nectar while also collecting pollen with their dense, fuzzy bodies.
As an important nectar source, bees visit the borage flowers then continue foraging on adjacent plants in a “chain” of visits, pollinating plants across the garden. While attractive to a broad range of honeybees, native bees, and bumblebees (Minnesota Bee Species List), the blossoms entice impromptu visits from the occasional butterfly, moth, or hummingbird as well. Borage also lures beneficial predatory insects like lacewing bugs, hoverflies, ladybugs, and parasitic wasps, that provide pest control for common garden insects such as aphids, small caterpillars, or mites.
Borage has a long blooming period, from late spring to early fall, providing continuous and abundant flowers throughout the entire growing season, when other plants have yet to blossom or have transitioned to seed development. More valuable, however, is how quicky borage replenishes its nectar. A single plant can generate almost 1000 flowers producing a high nectar yield per flower that encourages repeat visits from pollinators. This combination of floral features (color, shape, design, extended growing season, and plentiful nectar and pollen supply) encourages frequent visits from insects, establishing it as a keystone pollinator plant.
Borage can be planted in any flower or vegetable bed, but it can also be grown in containers. Strategically placing containers of borage throughout garden spaces creates a wide-ranging oasis for bees, allowing maximum pollination, especially in vegetable gardens, where pollination is essential. Borage is easy to grow, self-sows (but not aggressively), flourishes in full sun, and handles nutrient-poor soil. This plant has no specific insect or disease problems, although powdery mildew can sometimes occur.
For borage to thrive in containers, however, it needs enough above- and below-ground space to flourish and prevent root-bound plants and spindly leaves. An appropriate container size of 18” in diameter and at least 12” deep supports a 2-3’ plant spread, which allows room for borage’s long taproot. While not invasive, it can be a bully plant, overwhelming its neighbors by squashing them with its flower-loaded stems and sprawling growth habit. Allowing enough room, with plant supports, occasional trimming, and regular deadheading, helps keep borage blooming into fall.
Borage’s combination of high quality, abundant, and long-lasting nectar increases the frequency of pollinator visits to nearby shrubs, vegetables, and herbs. As an important keystone plant pollinator plant, borage encourages and contributes to diverse, strong pollinator communities by sustaining a vigorous garden ecosystem.