What's flowering as forage in your area

[Macbear]

Friday was 13 degrees and sunny. I decided to weed amongst my allotment snowdrops - the patch is in front of my two hives. Delighted to be joining workers who were collecting pollen. The wonderful smell of wax etc wafting from the hives raised my spirits and the traffic through both entrances was steady and suggesting my colonies have fared well. Wonderful!

 

[StephenT]

oops. wrong thread

 

[StephenT]

The cherry blossom has just started in the Queen of the Suburbs so expect to see the bees piling in the pollen when it gets a few degrees warmer.

 

[Ely]

Crocuses, snowdrops and gorse are around near me. I think they had a week on them before the weather turned again

 

[enrico]

All spring flowers out and cherries in full bloom. Mahonia and Wood anemone showing

 

[Xander]

Saw plenty of hazel in the woods by my out apiary and off white pollen coming in.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

catkins out in force now

 

[enrico]

Our Alder dropping their catkins already. The quince leaves will be open soon too

 

[JamezF]

Our Alder dropping their catkins already. The quince leaves will be open soon too

Just checked our quince when I went out to close up the chickens. The buds have broken but the leaves aren't fully open yet.

James

 

[Erichalfbee]

Willow behind the hives on the cusp with a few flowers open already

 

[BeeBird]

View attachment IMG_4060.mov
Not much brave enough to poke its head above ground here, other than snowdrops

 

[StephenT]

Stunning Blackthorn (I think) on the site next to the new allotment apiary.

 

[Curly green finger's]

Stunning Blackthorn (I think) on the site next to the new allotment apiary.
View attachment 38936

Beautiful! Some blackthorn out here also along the main roads

 

[JamezF]

Blackthorn in full flower before mid-February is absolutely bonkers. Not that it doesn't look fantastic...

James

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Blackthorn in full flower before mid-February is absolutely bonkers. Not that it doesn't look fantastic...

James

London - different planet

 

[Erichalfbee]

London - different planet

And ULEZ

 

[pargyle]

London - different planet

No sign of any Blackthorn down here in the Costa del Fareham - far too early, there's a few ornamental cherry that are starting to break bud but the fruiting cherry in my garden is not even in bud yet.

 

[Antipodes]

No sign of any Blackthorn down here in the Costa del Fareham - far too early, there's a few ornamental cherry that are starting to break bud but the fruiting cherry in my garden is not even in bud yet.

Interestingly, according to this distribution map, Hampshire doesn't look to be a particularly good area for Blackthorn?
Norfolk and West Wales look brilliant in comparison.

http://www.wildflowerweb.co.uk/plant/55/blackthorn

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Hampshire doesn't look to be a particularly good area

true

 

[pargyle]

true

There are lots alongside the road I take to work, loads of hedgerows with Blackthorn in them where we walk the dog - I've picked buckets full of sloes in years past to make sloe gin. I'm not sure which part of Hampshire is devoid of Blackthorn but it's certainly not the part that I live in. I'll post some photos when they finally come into blossom.