Gardens of Suburbia : Forage month by month

[Somerford]

So out in bloom plenty of bluebells and what I think is wild garlic flowers. Dandelion starting to come in to flower and fields of OSR

Blackthorn flowering in the hedgerow and in the hotel gardens where one of my apiaries is the cherries (ornamental and fruiting) have been covered in bees.

The apples and pears about to blossom. We also have an orchard of Mirabelles but they aren't ready to blossom yet. In fact I know very little about them

KR

S

 

[Tom Jay]

The girls are spoilt for choice!
Today I saw my bees on apple, Hawthorn and Clematis for pollen.
Current tree options are sycamore nearly done and horse chestnut with some holly beginning to open.

 

[linoleum bonypart]

On Loganberry yesterday

 

[Griffo]

The hawthorn is just coming into full flower here in North Wales. Crab apples about a week off. Most of my bees this morning are on a big yellow rhododendron near the hives and also I think there is a holly tree just flowering as I can hear a lot of buzzing up there.

 

[NickDub]

None too sure what my bees are working - loads of blossom out, as others have mentioned - haven't noticed a single honey-bee on any of them

 

[Tom Jay]

We've a patch of wild flowers, several species of them yellow, and today I watched one honeybee picking out the buttercups. Delightful to see the 'one species only' in process, this bee drawn to but passing over dandelions and other yellow flowers in her search for the buttercups only.

The next in succession of trees - Holly - is well opened now.

 

[Erichalfbee]

My fields are full of buttercups, completely devoid of bees.
I'm sure I read somewhere the pollen is toxic

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

My fields are full of buttercups, completely devoid of bees.
I'm sure I read somewhere the pollen is toxic

It is - brings on May sickness. According to Howse some varieties such as lesser celandines do attract bees but 'infrequently' I'm sure HM said on here not long ago that bees on buttercups was a sign of problems with the colony.

 

[BeeJayBee]

Quote from Howse here http://www.beekeepingforum.co.uk/showpost.php?p=236095&postcount=19

HM's comment #23 http://www.beekeepingforum.co.uk/showthread.php?p=535536

Another sickness that can befall bees during April/May, but not often seen, and usually only when they are desperate enough to forage on buttercups, is known as May sickness, symptoms similar to poisoning or CBPV, but it soon passes.​

 

[Tom Jay]

OK it was just the one bee I saw on buttercups. But it was certainly not because of shortage of other foraging options. So what is that about I wonder? Meanwhile my colonies certainly look like they are thriving. The proportion of buttercup pollen will be miniscule.

 

[Swarm]

The Sycamores were buzzing on the weekend.

 

[Erichalfbee]

OK it was just the one bee............................. The proportion of buttercup pollen will be miniscule.

Aye.......it takes only a speck......they're dooooooooomed.

 

[juanito]

honeysuckle

Greetings,
Almost dark here and our bees are mobbing the honeysuckle growing on the side of our little casa, same with the false pepper tree in our neighbours garden, its the same at first light, its a wonderful to hear the buzzing first thing in the morning, during the day they work the Retama which is a yellow flowering drought resistant shrub , it never showed its face last year however this seems to be a world record for the amount of plants in flower, we may even get a few jars of honey.

 

[Tom Jay]

Cotoneaster is just beginning and every branch seems covered in flower buds just opening. Bees are doing their first investigations - few days and I guess it will all be covered in them.
Spring raspberry has them interested too; our own beds are autumn rasp so that will be later.

 

[Eyeman]

Black locust in flower

 

[Eyeman]

Bramble out

 

[BeeJayBee]

Black locust in flower
View attachment 13180

Is that the same as Robinia?

 

[Eyeman]

BeeJayBee
Quote:
Originally Posted by Eyeman
Black locust in flower
Attachment 13180
Is that the same as Robinia?

Not sure?

 

[BeeJayBee]

Me neither, to be honest. There's a big and quite scrawny tree near us with flowers like that, I'd been told it was Robinia and took their word for it.

 

[Jimmy]

Laurel hedges near me sound like they have a swarm lurking in the branches. Bees busy on extra floral on closer inspection. Bramble and clover just starting.