Ivy Watch

[Stiffy]

Just noticed a hedgerow covered with bees taking advantage of ivy in flower.
S

 

[Plenty of honey]

Still Nothing out here, hot dry and dusty, 27 degrees C today and cooling a little tomorrow, thundery rain due Thursday, fingers crossed it could be a superb ivy flow if the rain materialises, otherwise, its pretty desperate!!

 

[REDWOOD]

Ivy has still not fully opened here and balsam still in heavy flow and pleasantly surprised how much they had collected in the last two weeks.

 

[andyphibb]

Bees doing well on the HB at the moment and the Ivy is starting here weather wet for the morning so will be good for the Ivy, Lets hope the part filled supers get filled so they can be removed so feeding can start

 

[Erichalfbee]

Still waiting in Ceredigion. Another week at least. I'm in Conwy for the Honey Fair and bees are all over the open blossom

 

[Tom Bick]

On my way to and from work the air is thick with the smell of ivy nectar right now and covered in bees and wasps. Give it two or three weeks then supers on to clean up and all been well no additional feeding for the winter.

 

[Tindog]

Some is some isn't. Nottinghamshire.

I have my bees near a church yard. Ivy that is in full sun is in full flower and covered with bees that which is in the shade is yet to flower.

 

[sherwood]

We have ivy buds here in Westmeath but we are at least 3/5weeks away from flowering
Are you feeding because of colony size or lack of forage?
We still have rag worth and bramble in flower here and bees are very active
I find that the last 2weeks of Aug are when my hives put on most weight
Won't start to worry about ivy till mid Sept

Ragwort is poisonous and not at all what you want in your hives or honey

 

[alldigging]

Enough bees on the ivy flowers next door for someone to ask if there was a bee nest there..

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Ivy open around here now

 

[peter genders]

zero main honey crop 4 massive hives loads and loads of ivy 1 super filled in 4 days so hopefully just need to top up in winter.

 

[madasafish]

Ivy will be in flower here in the next 2-3 weeks.. just in time for rain and colder weather to make it virtually inaccessible to honey bees (as usual:-(

 

[Erichalfbee]

Ivy will be in flower here in the next 2-3 weeks.. just in time for rain and colder weather to make it virtually inaccessible to honey bees (as usual:-(

Open here for a couple of weeks and bees are on it. Absolutely pouring with rain now though.

 

[Teemore]

I was dodging heavy down purs on Saturday to put on a bathc of ApiLife Var and all my colonies were wheeling in pollen from the ivy. Traffic slowed for the duration of the heaviest rain but they were working hard otherwise.

 

[Swarm]

Got the supers off a fortnight ago, there was a strong smell of Ivy and the bees were very busy. We timed it just right.

 

[Millet]

Got the supers off a fortnight ago, there was a strong smell of Ivy and the bees were very busy. We timed it just right.

What does Ivy smell/taste like as my lady friend, tested some honey i extracted, she said the initial taste was lovely but the after taste was of a flower she could not remember and did not like, a bit like cat urine she thought, not that she has tasted cat urine lol, but sort of tasted like it smelt.

 

[Millet]

The lady friend has just remembered it is Dewberries she does not like the smell of which is related to Bramble/ Blackberries..

 

[dlawr42103]

Ivy Flowering in Oxfordshire

First of the ivy flowers opening in Oxfordshire... A little earlier than last year.

Took a photo of a honeybee on the flowers... As I was about to take 2nd photo a hornet swooped in grabbed her, bit her head off and flew off with the rest of her! I have a photo ill try and upload later. 1st hornet I've seen this year, normally they are quite common to see around here.

 

[Erichalfbee]

First of the ivy flowers opening in Oxfordshire... A little earlier than last year.

Took a photo of a honeybee on the flowers... As I was about to take 2nd photo a hornet swooped in grabbed her, bit her head off and flew off with the rest of her! I have a photo ill try and upload later. 1st hornet I've seen this year, normally they are quite common to see around here.

Awesome!!!!!!

 

[Erichalfbee]

The lady friend has just remembered it is Dewberries she does not like the smell of which is related to Bramble/ Blackberries..

Most of the Blackberries around here are Dewberries. I never knew until somebody pointed out that although the berries look the same Dewberry leaflets are five and the flowers tend to be white whilst Blackberry leaflets are seven with the flowers tending towards pink. Not a lot of people know that and I certainly didn't....they were all Bramble to me.