Never ending OSR

[Winker]

Looked in some of my hives yesterday to find the supers full again, so I went for a drive around the area to see what they might have been foraging on. Only to find a field of OSR in full bloom 3/4 of a mile from house.

I guess I had better extract the 6 newly filled supers.

It seams like the OSR is never ending this year.

 

[thorn]

I drove from Leeds to Essex again this weekend. The County of the Yellowbellies certainly lived up to its name, and spilled over into neighbouring counties.

 

[eleanor20]

In the Cotswolds this weekend I saw a beautiful field all red yellow and green. Never before have I seen OSR and poppies together!

 

[sjt]

There's several fields like that down here near the coast in Sussex. Not seen them like that before, is it a new farming thing?
I saw suggested that everyone scatters a packet of red poppy seeds on waste land near them so the poppies will be there next year for the 100th anniversary of the WW1

 

[BeeJayBee]

The A34 corridor is still lined with fields of flowering OSR.

 

[farbee]

In Kent I know the farmers have perishedhad to re seed some field as the first sowing .
These are only just starting to flower so that may explain why it is going on along time.

 

[Ely]

Lucky you. Doesnt seem to be much of a flow here

 

[Winker]

Lucky you. Doesnt seem to be much of a flow here

I don't feel so lucky, the Lime will start to flower next week and my bees will ignore it and go for the OSR. I have loads of lime tree around me but you can bet your bottom dollar my bees will zip on by and head straight for the OSR, which I now have over 200lb of.

I would like some lime, then some bramble.

 

[Ely]

Ah. I see what you mean. I'm hoping my colonies will be strong enough for a flow after re-uniting. How do you distinguish between what nectar is coming in and when to remove it so it doesn't mix? I think there was quite a bit of dandelion in the super I took off two weeks ago. Still very runny.

 

[Haughton Honey]

I don't feel so lucky, the Lime will start to flower next week and my bees will ignore it and go for the OSR. I have loads of lime tree around me but you can bet your bottom dollar my bees will zip on by and head straight for the OSR, which I now have over 200lb of.

I would like some lime, then some bramble.

200lb of OSR from 22 colonies?

How many of those are full production colonies Winker?

 

[Winker]

200lb of OSR from 22 colonies?

How many of those are full production colonies Winker?

234lb from 6 colonies, the other 14 hives and 2 nucs are no where near any OSR. They (the 14) have bramble around them and lots of meadows and woodland. and the 6 that got the OSR from has a load of lime trees around them

 

[Haughton Honey]

234lb from 6 colonies, the other 14 hives and 2 nucs are no where near any OSR. They (the 14) have bramble around them and lots of meadows and woodland. and the 6 that got the OSR from has a load of lime trees around them

Well I hope that the weather turns fine for you and your other 14 pile it in.....

 

[Winker]

Ah. I see what you mean. I'm hoping my colonies will be strong enough for a flow after re-uniting. How do you distinguish between what nectar is coming in and when to remove it so it doesn't mix? I think there was quite a bit of dandelion in the super I took off two weeks ago. Still very runny.

I can only take a guess from whats around them, but the ones with the OSR around them have 100+ lime trees near by and the rest of my hives are on a location which has loads (miles) of brambles as hedge rows around them