How to Breed Bees in Minecraft

Guide Java Bedrock

Quick answer: Give any flower to two adult bees: hold the flower, right-click each bee, and they enter love mode and produce a baby bee. Breeding also works with flowering azaleas and mangrove propagules, and each breeding gives you 1-7 XP.

What you need

Any flower (or flowering azalea, mangrove propagule)
2 adult bees
Beehives for more space (6 planks + 3 honeycomb each)
Campfire for safe harvesting

Step by step

Find bees: they spawn around bee nests hanging from oak and birch trees near flower forests, plains and sunflower plains (5% chance per tree grown near flowers).
Hold any flower in your hand: dandelions, poppies or any other flower works, including flowering azalea and mangrove propagule.
Right-click two adult bees with the flower. Both enter love mode and a baby bee spawns.
The parents need 5 minutes before they can breed again, and the baby bee takes 20 minutes (1 full day) to grow up.
Grow your colony: baby bees stay near their home nest. A bee nest or beehive holds up to 3 bees, so craft extra beehives (6 planks + 3 honeycomb) as the colony grows.
Safety: bees attack if you hit them or harvest their nest without protection, and they die after stinging. Put a campfire under the nest when harvesting, or move nests at night with Silk Touch while the bees are inside.

Java vs Bedrock

Bee breeding works the same in Java and Bedrock: any flower breeds them, the 5-minute cooldown and 20-minute growth are identical, and breeding gives XP in both editions. Bees die shortly after stinging in both.

Versions: 1.15 (Buzzy Bees update)

Frequently asked questions

What do bees eat in Minecraft?

Flowers. Any flower breeds bees, and bees also pollinate flowers to fill their nest with honey. Flowering azaleas and mangrove propagules work too.

How do you get bees into a beehive?

Bees return home automatically at night or when it rains, entering the nearest nest or hive with free space. To relocate bees, lure them with a flower into the area of the new hive, or move their nest at night with Silk Touch while they are inside.

Why did my bee die after attacking me?

Bees lose their stinger when they sting and die about a minute later, like real bees. Anger them only when you can avoid the sting: they will not attack if you harvest with a campfire smoking under their nest.

How many bees fit in one nest?

Up to 3 bees per bee nest or beehive. Craft more beehives when the colony grows past that.