Flowers and Nectar

Have you ever seen a bee land on a flower? The bee is looking for food. She is on a treasure hunt.

The treasure is a sweet juice. We call this juice nectar. It is like a tasty juice box for bugs.

Flowers make this sweet juice. They hide it deep inside.

Soon, we will look at bees drinking nectar. We will also learn about the honey stomach. Later, we will learn about flying back home.

For now, let us look at the flower. Let us find the hiding spot of the sweet juice.

What is Nectar?

Nectar is mostly water and sugar. It is very sweet. Bees love sweet things.

The sugar gives them energy. They need energy to fly. They need energy to work.

There are different kinds of sugar. Two main sugars are fructose and glucose 1. These sugars make the nectar yummy.

Nectar is not just sugar water. It holds tiny secrets. Tiny living things live in the nectar.

We call these tiny things fungi 1. They float in the sweet drops. The fungi really like the fructose and glucose 1.

Here is a list of things inside nectar:

• Water to make it a liquid.
• Sugar to make it sweet.
• Fungi to float in the drops.

Finding the Sweet Juice

Where does the flower hide the nectar? It hides it at the very bottom. The nectar sits in a tiny cup.

The bee must land on the flower petals. Then she must reach deep inside.

How does the bee pick a flower? She looks at the bright colors. Bees have favorite colors.

Many bees love blue flowers 2. They also like a color named UV-blue 2. We cannot see UV-blue.

But bees can see it perfectly.

In plain terms: Bees live high up in the mountains. These bees really love to visit blue flowers.

The bees fly to the blue flowers first. They hope to find a big reward. But color is just a guess.

A blue flower might have a little nectar 2. It might have a lot of nectar 2. The bee must look inside to know.

Wild Plants and Farm Plants

Bees visit many kinds of plants. Some plants grow on farms. Farmers grow them in big fields.

Sunflowers are a good example 3. Other plants grow in the wild. They grow in the woods and meadows.

Scientists look at the nectar in these plants 3. They want to find the best nectar. They found a neat surprise.

The total sugar is mostly the same 3. Farm plants have sweet nectar. Wild plants have sweet nectar.

But wild plants are very special. There are many different types of wild plants 3. Wild plants give bees many choices.

It is like a big food buffet. Bees like to have many choices. It helps them stay strong and healthy.

Tricking the Bad Bugs

Sometimes, bad bugs try to steal the nectar. We call these bugs nectar thieves. They drink the sweet juice.

But they do not help the flower. The flower wants to stop them. So, the flower plays a trick.

It makes the nectar taste bitter 4. Bitter is a bad taste. It is like eating a sour lemon.

The bad bugs hate the bitter taste. They spit it out. They fly away.

Does a bad bug drink the nectar anyway? The flower does not give up. The flower just makes more nectar 4.

It refills the tiny cup. It is like pouring a new glass of juice. Then the good bees can still get a drink.

Getting Ready for the Trip Home

The bee works hard all day. She flies from flower to flower. She drinks the sweet juice.

She fills up her tummy. Nectar is very important. It is the main food for the bee family.

Bees need nectar. It gives them energy. They cannot make honey without it.

The bee finds a good flower. She lands on the soft petals. She reaches into the tiny cup.

She finds the sweet, sugary juice. She takes a big drink.

Next time, we will see her drink. We will look at her special tongue. We will also learn her storage trick.

She keeps the nectar safe for the long trip home.

Key Terms

• Nectar 3 — A sweet juice made by flowers that gives bees energy.
• Fungi 1 — Tiny living things that float inside the sweet drops of nectar.
• Bitter 4 — A bad taste, like a sour lemon, that flowers use to trick bad bugs.