Competition with local bees

[Angularity]

Will my introduction of several thousand honey bees upset the balance with the local bumble bee/other bee population? Logically I think it must, as there would be less nectar to go round, but maybe the plants produce more.

In any case, the flowers in my garden seem not to be lasting as long before they go to seed, but that might just be the bad weather.

 

[B+.]

Will my introduction of several thousand honey bees upset the balance with the local bumble bee/other bee population? Logically I think it must, as there would be less nectar to go round, but maybe the plants produce more.

In any case, the flowers in my garden seem not to be lasting as long before they go to seed, but that might just be the bad weather.

Honeybees prefer open flowers with quite shallow nectary but bumblebees can break into some flowers (like digitalis) at the base or access deeper nectary because of their longer tongue.
I wouldn't worry about it. There's plenty to go around

 

[madasafish]

Will my introduction of several thousand honey bees upset the balance with the local bumble bee/other bee population? Logically I think it must, as there would be less nectar to go round, but maybe the plants produce more.

In any case, the flowers in my garden seem not to be lasting as long before they go to seed, but that might just be the bad weather.

Your bees will not worry too much about your garden : think a 1.5 mile flying radius for forage...

 

[birdsandbees]

honey bees will also head to a larger source which is also why generally they will pass by smaller plants of clumps of plants in favour of a location they can load up at.

 

[theeggman]

On our patch the bumbles make holes in the base of fuchsia flowers and the honeybees take advantage and feed through the hole. I think nature sorts it's self out fairly well if we don't screw it up for them.

 

[Robbo8916]

After I moved mine in, I found there were 5 hives across the road, maybe 500 yards away at most. My bees are still packing in everything they can find.

In the brief flowering period of the apple trees my girls were all over them in the garden, likewise the two Hawthorne trees today. Why fly that far when you have a perfectly good source on your doorstep, thats like me driving to Tesco 4 miles away when there's an Aldi across the road from my house.

They do like the bird bath though:

 

[Angularity]

I haven't noticed any in my garden, it's odd.

 

[Robbo8916]

I haven't noticed any in my garden, it's odd.

I take what time I can to watch them. If I see one on something I follow her, invariably she goes back to my hive. (As far as I can tell).

But then it depends on what they find. When first introduced they were flying a good half mile to the grove of sycamores, beech and willow.

All down to what is available and where.