Urban gardens can provide valuable habitat for wild bees, but poorly chosen plants, pesticide use and managed hive placement can also harm the bee populations they are meant to support.
Urban gardens represent genuine opportunities to improve wild bee welfare by providing foraging and nesting resources in landscapes otherwise dominated by impervious surfaces. However, well-intentioned gardeners can inadvertently harm bees through pesticide use, choice of ornamental cultivars with blocked pollen access and introduction of managed honeybee hives in areas where wild bee populations are already under stress. The most welfare-positive urban garden supports native wild bee species through diverse native planting, elimination of pesticide use, provision of nesting habitat and restraint in managed hive placement. Gardeners who engage with bee welfare through evidence rather than assumption achieve better outcomes for the wild bee populations they aim to support.