Sun Flowers

[buzz lightyear]

A mate of mine has asked me to take a hive or two to his 4 acres of sun flowers. Has anyone had any experience of them? Is it worth it?

 

[hedgerow pete]

they are rubbish , where does he live i will be there tommorrow morning with hundreds of hives,

you luck git some peope you can realy learn to hate

 

[Bcrazy]

Sunflower honey is rather thick and of a wax colour.

I can't remember if it crystallises or not. I had a good yield off a two acre site a few years ago, so the bees do work the sunflower with vengeance.

Regards;

 

[buzz lightyear]

how many hives would 4 acres take?

 

[oliver90owner]

buzz lightyear

how many hives would 4 acres take?

All of them?

Regards, RAB

 

[peteinwilts]

I heard they practically drip with nectar.

During my second project I planted 250 seedlings earlier this year. Unfortunately I lost over half to slugs, rabbits and deer.

When I checked the bees at the weekend I just started to see yellow on some of the hundred or so that is left (I planted them late), but the bees were still securely locked onto the wild mint that is flowering on the riverbank.

With the weather turning nice I would like to see them opening at any time.

Mine is only a small experiment, but if successful (and I would appreciate hearing your results!) I may plant a couple of acres or more next year.

I am currently working on my third play project. I am trying to gather enough (free!) lavender cuttings to fill an acre and a half with a beehive in the middle.

 

[VEG]

I went to france on hols this year all around were fields of sunflowers the bees loved them photos to follow when i get them off my camera.

 

[alexx_v]

First of all, sunflowers give good flow and the bees like to go and collect nectar and pollen.... But it depends much on the sort of sunflowers seeds....it's good not to be hybrid, because hybrid sorts don't give nectar... sometimes when the weather is hot the surface of the sunflower blossom becomes very sticky like a glue and that's why you may observe reduction in flying bees... ( from my experience with 1/3) .... here we extract all the honey from sunflower because bees "digest" it very hard at the winter time and it crystallize very quickly (even in comb), it's even better to feed them with sugar syrup if after sunflower flow there's no other flow....

 

[buzz lightyear]

quick update re SunFlowers.
Nil, Nothing diddley squat.
Don't know the type of flowers, but they are only about 2 feet tall (is that the norm?) Would have been better off on HB or the Heather I think.

 

[BKF Admin]

They sound like a hybrid that dont need bee polination.

 

[oliver90owner]

buzz lightyear,

You may have been better off without a flow from them. The seeds may well have been coated in systemic insecticide.

Regards, RAB

 

[buzz lightyear]

Thanks for that Oli, I'll consider myself lucky then. buzz

 

[Hombre]

buzz lightyear,

You may have been better off without a flow from them. The seeds may well have been coated in systemic insecticide.

Regards, RAB

Even although the seed has been bought from a petshop as bird food?

 

[oliver90owner]

Hombre,

Even although the seed has been bought from a petshop as bird food

Didn't know that. He didn't say. You obviously know more about this particular 1 2/3 Ha of sunflower than me.
So it wasn't a commercial crop? I wonder why someone would plant up that much to be eco-friendly and then use non eco-friendly plant types.
Perhaps a 'seed-eating bird lover' and not a thinking environmentalist? Please tell us more about this particular sunflower patch.

Regards, RAB

 

[Haughton Honey]

Because if it's a local farmer and he/she is enrolled on to the environmental ELS (Entry Level Scheme) he get's points (and money!) for 'wild bird cover'.......and that can be pretty much ANYTHING. Believe me, the local Rural Payments Agency inspector doesn't know any different!

Hombre,

Even although the seed has been bought from a petshop as bird food

Didn't know that. He didn't say. You obviously know more about this particular 1 2/3 Ha of sunflower than me.
So it wasn't a commercial crop? I wonder why someone would plant up that much to be eco-friendly and then use non eco-friendly plant types.
Perhaps a 'seed-eating bird lover' and not a thinking environmentalist? Please tell us more about this particular sunflower patch.

Regards, RAB