Ivy Flings its Gifts in October
Ivy flowers provide a wonderful autumn food source in October not only for bees but all kinds of flying insects including butterflies. It is so important for that late feeding top-up before winter hibernations. Ivy will flower after a number of years but be careful! It will take over what it clambers over and may cover other important sources of nectar and flowers! Keep it where you want it, especially where the autumn sun will keep the flying insects warm! First recorded October 2022. This October 2024 has followed a very wet and damaging year of floods and very heavy rainfall. There are very few bees and other insects using my ivy flowers for nectar. I would estimate there are only 20% of the usual numbers that would, by now, be swarming, along with butterflies, about my very large ash tree with ivy hanging down in great clumps.