What's flowering as forage in your area

[Swarm]

Some of the lime trees nearby are starting to flower. Hopefully the conditions will be right for a good flow. The hives were certainly super busy first thing today.
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Can almost smell those from here.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Spotted some Himalayan balsalm flowering today!

Yea plenty sprouting around here by the Aeron and in ditches. Cattle love it but they leave enough for the bees

 

[Sutty]

Interesting the cattle like it, apparently the while plant is edible (& some say tasty), but someone I met said their sheep ignored it.

 

[user 20297]

Honeybees rarely bother with our millions of garden flowers, but they've been making an exception for the Deutzia.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

bramble starting to flower, bees starting to make income again, thankfully as some colonies were running on fumes

 

[Nannysbees]

Campanula out in all its glory

 

[JamezF]

Looks like we might be getting a second flush of dandelions.

James

 

[elainemary]

Bees are loving the white alliums I’ve planted over last 2 years, several bees to a flower. Must have some sort of heady nectar as they are almost static on the flowers, drinking it in

 

[Antipodes]

I love cotoneaster. I really must try to propagate some cuttings from ours.

James

The ones here had incredible flowering last season and now, in winter here, with fantastic berry set, are providing good forage for all sorts of birds including our Green Rosella.

 

[John Taylor]

Plenty of bramble, dandelion, campion and many other wild flowers, acres of buttercup but bees not so interested in that? They are extremely busy, no June gap it seems this year.

 

[John Taylor]

I should have said that this forum is very enjoyable and extremely informative

 

[MJNT]

It’s a shame about buttercups being ignored wet fields here full of them anyone know why? Flower shape looks shallow enough can see lots of pollen in the flowers as well

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

It’s a shame about buttercups being ignored wet fields here full of them anyone know why?

it makes the bees sick

 

[pargyle]

It’s a shame about buttercups being ignored wet fields here full of them anyone know why? Flower shape looks shallow enough can see lots of pollen in the flowers as well

Honyebees never seem to go for buttercups ...presumably not a high value in terms of yield vs energy expended. They are very clever when it comes to how much work they do for what return ... I suppose they have had a few millennia to get their work/life balance right !

 

[pargyle]

Honyebees never seem to go for buttercups ...presumably not a high value in terms of yield vs energy expended. They are very clever when it comes to how much work they do for what return ... I suppose they have had a few millennia to get their work/life balance right !

Here we go ... Post #19 .... always and answer in here somewhere - so many experts !

https://beekeepingforum.co.uk/threads/bees-and-buttercups.17691/

 

[masterBK]

The sap of buttercups contains the toxic compound protoanemonin and some of this is found in the pollen. Maybe the bees detect this and avoid collecting it.

 

[Erichalfbee]

I should have said that this forum is very enjoyable and extremely informative

Yes. Don’t forget to say that

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Here we go ... Post #19 .... always and answer in here somewhere - so many experts !

https://beekeepingforum.co.uk/threads/bees-and-buttercups.17691/

as I said - it makes them sick

 

[nicolajanewilkinson]

No June gap here this year,from dandilion to maple and sycamore and horse chestnut then to hawthorn and as it went over they moved on to wild raspberries cabbage palm, phacelia and now the blackberries are starting, apiary sounds like a train, first combs of spring honey are being sealed. So far so good.

Phacelia …. I’ve only had bomblers so far on mine ! Was beginning to wonder if I’d got it wrong … I have seen them on my red roses this year tho which I’ve not noticed before

 

[alancooper]

it makes the bees sick

I know that too much buttercup is toxic to farm animals bit how do you say it makes bees sick?