Forage.

[huntsman666]

Just went for a walk in the field next to me to see what the girls were foraging on, if anything.

Lots of red clover but they're not touching that (probiscus too short on Amm?).

Napweed still in flower but no insects touching it although my bees were on it a couple of weeks ago.

I can't see any ivy in flower yet but I think they have found some judging by the pollen colour going in.

Best was, this field is horse-sour and the household has been vacant for two years. So lots of ragworth. Thankfully I spotted only one of my bees working it. It's about one hundred yards from the apiary.

Must say I enjoyed going out and having a gander.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Ivy here......lots of it. Some are bringing in fluorescent orange pollen from somewhere (asters?) and I had a collection of bees on the supers,recycling the propolis I was scraping off.
First long sunny day for weeks and bees are very busy...another week of rain forecast from tomorrow

 

[huntsman666]

Could also be ivy pollen, which can run a range of shades. Gold'ish mainly in my neck of the woods.

Lots of propolis also going in.

 

[Woeski]

Ivy here on trees that are south facing with no obstruction to sunlight.
My ivy is shaded to some extent and is almost there but not quite.

 

[biglongdarren]

ivy has started here too.

 

[beeatshellards]

ivy up and running here too , looked on Monday bees collecting all over it

 

[MuswellMetro]

Best was, this field is horse-sour and the household has been vacant for two years. So lots of ragworth. Thankfully I spotted only one of my bees working it. It's about one hundred yards from the apiary.

.

One of our apiaries has had really problems with ragwort this year, All we got was stinky honey full of ragwort , it was all that remained after the June Gap extended into a July Gap...and an august just at tick over

hives going from three full supers in early June to half a super by august, these hives normally produce 60lb.....it's london it should be full of forage but it has been a bloody awful year

, if i had taken super off in june, the bees would have starved

 

[Bodger]

ivy has just started here too.

 

[richardbees]

Sorry, Muswell

...but maybe that's localised to North London?

Mine have done alright but there are a lot of Lime trees close by.

Richard

 

[BeeNice]

Lime tree's finish flowering a month or two ago, HB and ivy going mad still. Try planting some HB in the canal! Only joking in case someone get on my case!

 

[MuswellMetro]

Sorry, Muswell

...but maybe that's localised to North London?

Mine have done alright but there are a lot of Lime trees close by.

Richard

other sites were better but again lower yeild than usual, i am on the edge of london..large gardens and lots of horse pasture,golf courses and a country park

the last supers on had a lots of dark fruit honey, very medicinal in taste and only just 20%/21% even though capped, i was told it was sugar from ripe blackberries and means they were under pressure. i thought it was honey dew but no wheat fields near me

 

[richardbees]

Muswell

The last half of my honey also gets darker and darker (and I agree it's got a slightly medicinal / syrup of figs flavour). An analysis of my honey samples years ago by some researcher at Swansea University did identify it as probably sourced from 'honeydew' - what Central Europeans call 'forest honey' = honeybees collecting the sugary excretion from aphids in tree canopies!

It's not something I mention to my honey customers.

Apparently 'Black Forest' honey which is 100% from aphid secretions in Pine trees commands a premium price in Germany.

I bet a jar of 'Daisy Honey' would sell a treat!

rich


(commiserations about your "sad looking empty Beehive in my garden"...)