Borago officinalis

FamilyGenus: Borretschnative in Germany

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Species

interact

🔗

139

Interactions

documented

🐛

Host relationships

Species

About this species

An introduced, established herbaceous plant flowering from March to August, providing rich nectar and pollen for insects.

Ecological network

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PollinationLarval hostFlower visit

Ecological significance

The plant provides valuable nectar and pollen resources for pollinating insects during its long flowering season.

Annual cycle

Flowering occurs from March to August.

Safety note

No safety information is available.

Standort & Merkmale

Light

Sonne

Moisture

Frisch (Mäßig feucht)

Soil

—

Flowering period

Mär – Aug

Bioregion

Continental

Nectar value

Pollen value

Growth form

Krautige Pflanze

Woodiness

Nicht verholzt

Leaf type

Breitblättrig

Plant height

0.324 m

Morphological traits: TRY ID3 (CC BY 3.0) & TRY ID81 (CC BY)

Nectar

3.4987 µl/Blüte

Pflege & Anbau

Prefers full sun and a fresh, moderately moist, calcareous to alkaline soil. Tolerates low disturbance and benefits from medium fertility. Suitable for wildlife-friendly gardens.

Scientific profile

Borago officinalis is an introduced and established herbaceous plant in Great Britain. It is non-woody, with broad leaves, reaching about 0.32 metres in height. It thrives in sunny locations with fresh, moderately moist, calcareous to alkaline soils and a medium nutrient supply. It shows low tolerance for disturbance. Flowers appear from March to August and are noted for high nectar and pollen values, supporting a variety of insect visitors. It originates from parts of Europe and Africa.

Pollinators & visitors

53 Arten interagieren mit dieser Pflanze

Pieris rapae Bombus sylvestris Chelostoma florisomne Bombus campestris Halictus rubicundusBombus humilisLasioglossum calceatum Aglais urticae Bombus pratorum Bombus hypnorum Bombus jonellus Vespula vulgaris Bombus pascuorumOsmia cornutaThymelicus sylvestris Bombus lapidarius Megachile centuncularis Issoria lathonia Polyommatus icarusColletes daviesanusBombus lucorum Vanessa atalanta Xylocopa violacea Anthophora quadrimaculata Bombus soroeensis Polistes dominula Celastrina argiolusApis melliferaAnthophora crinipesCarcharodus alceaeMegachile willughbiellaCheiracanthium punctoriumMangora acalypha Coenonympha pamphilus Anthophora plumipesEucera nigrescensPhilaeus chrysopsCeratina cucurbitinaOedemera nobilisPapilio machaonBombus terrestrisAndrena flavipesOsmia bicornis Bombus hortorumApis.melliferaEucera oraniensisEpistrophe eligans Episyrphus balteatusAutographa gammaSphaerophoria scripta

Host relationships

4 species use this plant as a host

Callimorpha dominulaPhlogophora meticulosa Euplagia quadripunctaria Vanessa cardui

Other flower visitors

7 other species visit the flowers

Synema globosumCoccinella septempunctataOedemera flavipesMisumena vatia Tropinota hirta Oxythyrea funestaPsilothrix aureola

Sources & data origin

•Interaktionsdaten via GloBI (CC-BY 4.0)

•Cook et al. (2025) UK Butterfly & Moth Traits (DOI: 10.5285/dbc7cc17-cbbd-49dd-bab4-8e8855768d66)

•pollinator_interactions

•Baden-Böhm F, App M, Thiele J (2022) — The FloRes Database: A floral resources trait database for pollinator habitat-assessment generated by a multistep workflow. Johann Heinrich von Thünen-Institut, Dryad, DOI: 10.5061/dryad.djh9w0w29 (CC0)

•EIVE 1.0 — Dengler et al. (2023), DOI: 10.3897/VCS.98324 (CC BY 4.0)

•EuPPollNet — Kuppler et al. (2025), DOI: 10.1111/geb.70000 (CC BY 4.0)

•Database of Pollinator Interactions (DoPI) — Pocock et al. (2022), DOI: 10.1002/ecy.3801 (CC BY)

•GBIF Backbone Taxonomy — GBIF Secretariat (2024), DOI: 10.15468/39omei (CC BY 4.0)

•TRY Categorical Traits (ID3) — Kattge et al. (2012), DOI: 10.17871/TRY.3 (CC BY 3.0)

•TRY Global Spectrum (ID81) — Díaz et al. (2016/2021), DOI: 10.17871/TRY.81 (CC BY)

•Checklist Alien Plants Belgium — Verloove F (2023), Botanic Garden Meise (CC BY 4.0)

•Govaerts R et al. (2025) — World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP) v14. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. DOI: 10.34885/xs7h-ze42 (CC BY 4.0)

All data is licensed under CC BY 4.0, CC0, or compatible terms. Attribution according to license conditions. Full source overview →