Woodland Question

[pargyle]

I have an avenue of fifty small leaved limes. In a good year the noise from the bees first thing is amazing. The supers are filled fast! However on a poor year, like last year, very little forage. Weather conditions are the driver. Warm settled conditions are best. Lat year was very windy at the start of July followed by heavy rain. Delicious honey when you get it!

There are Lime Trees at Hampton Court Palace alongside the lake - the RHS Flower show usually coincides with their blossom in early July - we've often sat under them eating our lunch and watching someones bees making the most of the feast ... but you are right there have been some years when there is blossom but absolutely no sign of the bees. I love lime honey - not easy to come by in the UK.

 

[ericbeaumont]

Ten years ago we'd booked Clive Cohen to give an outdoor talk in Essex and I picked him up from Mill Hill for a longish drive; we got lost here and there because too much time was spent talking, but I learned a heck of a lot from the loveliest gent in the business.

Clive was long-retired from running a Vauxhall car dealership in Maida Vale where he'd kept bees on the garage roof, and I learned from him that London honey is lime honey; Maida Vale was full of limes.

Most plentiful lime info. is in Plants & Beekeeping by FN Howes; Frank Howes was an entomologist at Kew and though the book was published in 1945 it remains relevant.

There are six pages on limes; mention is made of the stupefying or poisoning of bees (though particularly bumbles) from nectar of T. petiolaris, T.tomentosa and T.orbicularis, and that flowering across the species can begin in mid-June and end in mid-August. Nectar production depends on muggy days and nights before and during flowering; rain is not that relevant as the flowers are pendant.

Time was that copies of of this essential book could be had for less than a tenner on eBay, but here's one on abebooks.co.uk for £17 all in.

 

[Swn58]

One apiary in Birmingham has loads of Limes near it. The honey is superb and would win prizes if I could be bothered to jump through the hoops required to enter it.
This season, I'm hoping that the farm bees will benefit from the limes down there. They arrived a bit late on site to totally benefit from them.
I hope this season will be as good as the last!

 

[Dorchop]

Getting excited now. No bees yet. But am surrounded by trees, both chestnuts, some limes, lots of sycamores, and within a stone's throw of the Severn, lined with pussy and goat willows. Plus all the bramble and hedges, and a bit of heather within flying distance too.

That’s exciting Not too many trees where I am but I’m busy planting them Partly for shelter Now I’m just impatient for them to mature and flower

 

[BigAshW]

Resurrecting this old thread with a question.

My new apiary is sat on the edge of Hainault Forest and I'm wondering what sort of summer flow I could expect, if any.


Looking at the woodlands trust list of species in this ancient woodland can anyone shed a light on what is good and what's not?

Blackthorn
Common beech
Holly
Bramble
Red campion
Cow parsley
Hop
Black poplar
Wild garlic
Hornbeam
English oak
Bluebell
Ash
Hawthorne

I know the holly, bluebells, Hawthorne and Blackthorn are finished and bramble is just starting are the rest of the trees all wind pollinated?

 

[Murox]

Don't forget you also have the possibility of honeydew.

 

[madasafish]

Getting excited now. No bees yet. But am surrounded by trees, both chestnuts, some limes, lots of sycamores, and within a stone's throw of the Severn, lined with pussy and goat willows. Plus all the bramble and hedges, and a bit of heather within flying distance too.

You appear to be in bee heaven. All you need is good weather at the appropriate time.....

 

[bbabs]

It's an interesting topic - I have a mature false acacia which has had masses of blossom for the last 30+ years - this year there is hardly any at all and it is now in full leaf looking healthy. At least we don't have the usual pigeon mess under it! So my point is you can have the right variety of tree but if the weather has not been right you won't win.

 

[NiallD]

Don't forget Ivy which should be plentiful and yields a substantial flow Sept/Oct in most years with the odd exceptional year. It's primarily used as winter stores by the bees but is valuable nonetheless...

 

[madasafish]

Don't forget Ivy which should be plentiful and yields a substantial flow Sept/Oct in most years with the odd exceptional year. It's primarily used as winter stores by the bees but is valuable nonetheless...

Not round here .By October too cold to forage in volume and ivy tends to flower later - right into January.