Oil seed rape

[BT Beekeeper]

The OSR is just coming into flower in this area and each year I resist the temptation to take my hives to the crop because of the risk of spray damage and possible colony loss. I wonder what arrangement those of you who do take advantage of this crop have with the farmer. Do you rely on them to contact you when spraying is imminent? How much notice can be given to move the hives? Is the advantage of early colony build-up worth the effort and risk when the colony might be destroyed and the honey is often described as a second-rate product?

I would be very interested in your thoughts.

 

[REDWOOD]

Sorry but I don't know anything about rape or the honey as the nearest fields of rape are 30 miles away but I have got to say I went to Glastonbury today and could not believe how bright and yellow the fields are looking this year pity the weather is not warmer. Lots of beekeepers who produce rape honey enjoy their honey and sells well to.

 

[craigavonb]

OSR seconf rate!

If as you say OSR honey is second rate why is it that bees are moved to work on it every year. The person who runs down OSR honey is a honey snob. I would love to have 500 pounds of OSR honey every year

 

[iand]

Hi BTB, I have bees on Osr for over 30 years without any problems [touch wood]. The best thing is to try and chat to your farmer on a regular basis and look @ the crop yourself so that you can cage any potential problems which may arise. He may apply a fungicide for leaf/stem diseases, the pests you can watch for are pollen beetle [the black beetle you see on dandelions etc after the rape] threshold levels about 100/plant easy to spot and treat. Much harder to spot are the grey seed pod weevil, which causes the seed pod to split, threshold 1-3 /plant. The farm spray operators have rules/guidelines to follow to minmise any potential damage to bees. When my farmer rings me up it usually to say "I'am spraying tonight and in the morning, I will miss the headland nearest your bees, the other bit I will do after dark." We will discuss when I think the the bees will have finished flying. All these chats you have with the farmer you are feeding him with information to help him help you. So when the the time comes you will be fully prepared to shut them in if necessary.
I take note of your area, and that your bees may not have had Osr within flying distance. Many people elsewhere will have got osr honey just because the bees searched it out even if the Beek never saw any. In that case how do you know when to shut your bees in. What I'm saying is by having them on that field you have a little more control. By the way I only recall having to shut them in once.

 

[Shabro]

can i aska question, I had the local farm manager ring me this evening to tell me that he will be spreaying in 2-3 weeks time, and asked what I should do , I.e. do I want to just block them in the night before?
Now being new to the OSR I'm not sure how long I need to keep them in for, he has explained to me it is a knock down spray and its reasonably species specific and bee friendlyish, but doesnt want to take the chance.

 

[oliver90owner]

Do you rely on them to contact you when spraying is imminent?

They are required to spray at times when non-target species are not flying.

How much notice can be given to move the hives?

Move them? why? I am a bit sharper than to place my hives within the crop.

Is the advantage of early colony build-up worth the effort and risk when the colony might be destroyed and the honey is often described as a second-rate product?

Yes, most years, but posssibly not this season (certainly thus far). The risks of colony destruction are minimal unless one has a stupid farmer, spraying without care, and a stupid beekeeper, leaving their colonies in an exposed (to risk) situation. The vast majority of farmers are certainly not stupid and neither are most beekeepers.

There is a difference between terming some honey as 'second rate' and perhaps using the term 'premium' for certain crops. Many are far more likely to say ivy honey is 'second rate' (than OSR) on your chosen scale.

 

[MuswellMetro]

There is a difference between terming some honey as 'second rate' and perhaps using the term 'premium' for certain crops. Many are far more likely to say ivy honey is 'second rate' (than OSR) on your chosen scale.

Worst on any scale is Ragwort, just extracting it makes the house smell like an old people's home

Half the crop was tainted with it in one apiary

 

[BT Beekeeper]

Thanks iand and others for your comments which have given me a much better insight of what is involved, and a friendly relationship with an understanding farmer who follows the guidelines is clearly crucial. Perhaps rather than knocking on farm doors and taking pot luck I will contact the local Beekeepers to see if they have any reliable contacts.

The nearest OSR to home is about eight miles so I will have to transport the hives to the crop and I take your point that you have more control if the bees are taken to the crop. I have taken rape honey off my bees in previous years and

Interesting comments on the quality of different honies. The many premium honies are well known and often labelled and sold specific to the crop. I believe OSR to be one that needs mixing with a better quality honey - fast and coarse granulation setting rock hard in the pot does the OSR honey no favours if bottled without mixing. I assume that ivy honey is not gathered in such quantities so as to be the sole source of honey extracted whereas OSR is, but I maybe wrong. The spring honey in my area is predominantly blackthorn, hawthorn, spring flowers and trees and from apple orchards so I would be glad to mix rape honey with some of this to bulk up. But the main reason why I would take my hives to rape is for the early spring build up of the colony.

Thanks again everyone for your help.

 

[BT Beekeeper]

Whoops, the unfinished sentence should read....... ' when it was closer to home and not known they were flying to it'.

 

[rockdoc]

You are right to ask about the 'second rate' label that OSR honey gets. I've never understood this as its one of our favourites. Locally my top is Lime and my worst is Ivy, although even this does mellow with time. I was fortunate last year to catch an early honey crop of 80lbs (spun off on May 1st according to the diary). This was predominantly rape with a hedgerow mix. It set hard, but now softens at room temp to a spreadable consistency. So I agree that there appears to be an element of snobbery attached to rape honey. My own experience is that the public quite like it "mild and uncomplicated' was one comment I remember. I'm sure the whole subject of honey quality has been done here before and I'm equally sure that another load of opinions will be along soon, but good OP.

 

[Skyhook]

can i aska question, I had the local farm manager ring me this evening to tell me that he will be spreaying in 2-3 weeks time, and asked what I should do , I.e. do I want to just block them in the night before?
Now being new to the OSR I'm not sure how long I need to keep them in for, he has explained to me it is a knock down spray and its reasonably species specific and bee friendlyish, but doesnt want to take the chance.

Wow, what a nice farmer! Are your hives in the crop, on the edge, or a bit further away?

The general (not universal) opinion seems to be that in most cases, shutting them in can do more harm than the spray. If they're right in the crop, then it might be worth shutting them in the night before, as long as you can ensure adequate ventilation. If it's cool then OMF probably sufficient, but if it's forecast warm, might be worth replacing the crown boards with travel screens the day before, then taking the roofs off immediately after spraying.

.

 

[johnmcc]

This will be my 3rd summer with my bees, and I've got about 40 acres of OSR 200 yards away for the first time - it's been cereal and beet the last couple of years. Do I need to extract early/regularly? Is it harder to extract than a multi-species honey? I ask because I've heard and read conflicting views on this.

 

[beesleybees]

This will be my 3rd summer with my bees, and I've got about 40 acres of OSR 200 yards away for the first time - it's been cereal and beet the last couple of years. Do I need to extract early/regularly? Is it harder to extract than a multi-species honey? I ask because I've heard and read conflicting views on this.

I wouldnt hold out too much mate, this weather is stopping the nectar from rising within the rape, so unless we get temps of 20 degrees withing the 3 or 4 week total flowering period, we wont get any honey!!

we will still get pollen though

 

[YorkshireBees]

This will be my 3rd summer with my bees, and I've got about 40 acres of OSR 200 yards away for the first time - it's been cereal and beet the last couple of years. Do I need to extract early/regularly? Is it harder to extract than a multi-species honey? I ask because I've heard and read conflicting views on this.

You should extract as soon as either, frames are capped or the OSR finishes flowering!

If frames are still uncapped then either a shake test or testing with a honey refractometer is required to make sure the water content is low enough to extract.

 

[johnmcc]

Thanks - learning all the time!