The Colors of Spring Blooms Enhance Plant Success

Bush Poppy (Dendromecon rigida)

A few budding naturalists recently addressed the question, “What do you find interesting in nature this time of year?” The consensus was the arrival of spring flowers. Just like all inquiries, the observation led to another question. Why does it seem like yellow flowers bloom first?  
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According to Robin Wall Kimmerer, author of the popular book, Braiding Sweetgrass, and distinguished professor of environmental biology—there is some science behind the colors we view as beautiful…and the same for bees! Both love purple and yellow.

Spring flowers give us a warm fuzzy feeling. From a biological perspective, are we anatomically attracted to purple and yellow first? In a roundabout way, yes! Humans have a thin layer of cells in the back of each eye called a retina. Cones are the part of the eye that lets us see colors. 

Colors like yellow and purple activate three types of cones at once. Light from the leaves and trees is activating your green cones. Light from the sky is activating your blue cones. And light from the pollen in the center of the flower is activating your red and green cones at the same time. That makes it look yellow.

Bee eyes perceive many flowers differently than humans, and have the ability to see color much faster than us. The most likely colors to attract bees, according to scientists, are purple, violet and blue. 

According to Robin Wall Kimmerer, “It turns out, goldenrod (a yellow flower) and asters (a purple flower) appear similarly to bee eyes and human eyes. Even more intriguing is that yellow and purple plants growing together receive more visits from pollinators, therefore leading to better plant success.” Doesn’t it seem fitting that yellow and purple are also called complementary colors on the color scale?

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Redwood violet (Viola sempervirens

Silver Bush Lupine (Lupinus albifrons)