Where Native Bees Spend the Winter (& How Gardeners Can Help)

Ever wonder where bees disappear to in winter—and how they reappear like magic in spring? This gardener’s guide to native bees reveals where they really nest (hint: not in hives) and how you can help them thrive in your garden.

Another helpful ecological garden tip is to skip No-Mow May and grow more flowering plants instead.

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Bees in Our Gardens

In late winter and early spring, many of us are eagerly watching the skies and garden beds, waiting for signs of our favorite seasonal visitors—like ruby-throated hummingbirds making their way up from Central America, or monarch butterflies slowly migrating north from Mexico.

But what about the bees?

They were buzzing around our gardens all last season, pollinating flowers and vegetables. And now, as spring approaches, they’ll start appearing again.

So where were they all winter?

If you’re picturing hives full of bees huddled together keeping warm, that’s not wrong—but it only applies to one type of bee: the honey bee—a non-native species here in Canada and the United States. And honey bees are the exception, not the rule. The rest have been nestled underfoot.

Honey Bees Get All the Press

Most of what we hear about bees—especially in gardening articles—is actually about honey bees, not bees in general. And that’s a problem because honey bees don’t represent the vast majority of bee species.

Honey bees are just one species among thousands. In fact, in the U.S. and Canada alone, there are about 4,000 native bee species. Globally, there are over 20,000. And most of them do not live in hives, don’t produce honey, and don’t have queens or worker bees.

So how do most bees spend the winter?

The Real Answer? Underground

Roughly 70–80% of bees nest in the ground. So, when the cold months arrive, that’s where they go—or more accurately, where the next generation stays. They’re in the soil, tucked away just a few inches down. Not in colonies, not buzzing around a hive—just solitary bees riding out winter in tiny underground nests.

These are not the same bees you saw last summer. Most bees only live a few weeks as adults. The ones emerging this year are indeed the next generation, and they’ve been underground this whole time.

Bee larvae develop in the soil and go into a resting state called diapause, similar to hibernation. Their metabolism slows down significantly until conditions improve. Many will spend several months—or even years—in this underground stage before emerging.

Solitary Bees: No Queens, No Colonies

Unlike honey bees, most native bees are solitary. There’s no queen. No hive hierarchy. Just one female bee doing all the work: digging a nest, building individual chambers, and gathering enough food to feed her future offspring—who she’ll never meet.

Before laying each egg, she collects nectar and pollen (or sometimes oil), mixes it into a nutritious paste, and places it in a waterproof cell along with the egg.

Remarkably, she also decides which of her eggs will produce a male bee and which will produce a female. When she mated with a male bee—which probably happened very soon after she emerged from her nest as a new adult—she stored the sperm in an organ in her abdomen. And when she produces her eggs, the ones she fertilizes with the stored sperm will be female and the ones she doesn’t will be male.

Once her work is done, she dies. Her children remain underground, feeding on their packed lunch, then transforming into adults who emerge when the time is right—some in spring, others later in summer.

Soil Matters—A Lot

This is where our choices as gardeners can help or hurt.

Because so many bees nest underground, the soil itself becomes the most important natural “bee hotel.” But not just any soil will do.

Bees prefer:

• Moist, well-draining soil (like most gardeners want).
• Soil that isn’t compacted, so it’s easier to dig into.
• Access to bare or lightly vegetated areas, since thick mulch or heavy ground cover can block entry.

This means that while mulching is great for suppressing weeds and improving soil structure, it can make it harder for bees to reach their nesting sites. If you can, leave a few small areas of bare or lightly covered soil in your garden.

Not Just Ground-Nesters

This is where advice to “leave the leaves” comes into play. As much as we want to “tidy up” in fall or early spring, hold off clearing leaves and chopping down old perennial growth wherever you can.  

While most bees nest in soil, about a quarter (including wild honey bees) are cavity-nesters, settling into hollow or pithy stems, wood, or other small cavities. And that’s where they must stay to complete their development before they can emerge to do their good work as pollinators. The less we disturb things, the better.

These cavity nesters are the same group of bees who occupy bee hotels.

Growing For Native Bees

Once you know most bees don’t overwinter in hives but instead nest throughout the garden, it’s easy to adapt our garden tasks to accommodate them.

• Skip the deep mulch in at least a few areas for access to bare soil.
• Leave stems standing through winter and into late spring.
• Skip the tilling—no-dig gardening helps preserve bee nests.
• Grow diversely for a variety of continuous blooms from early spring through fall.
• Avoid pesticides and herbicides.

Not all flowers are created equal. Some modern cultivars have been bred for looks (like specialty plants with compact, frilly flowers) rather than nectar and pollen production.  Plant selection based on benefits to local wildlife is key.

Look for native or proven bee-friendly flowering plants—and make sure they bloom across the seasons, especially in early spring when the earliest bees emerge and food sources are scarce. Native trees in particular tend to be prolific, early bloomers.

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Resources

More Tips

• How to Welcome Dragonflies in Your Garden
• How to Identify Butterflies in Your Garden
• 20 Native Plants You Can Grow From Cuttings

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~Melissa the Empress of Dirt ♛