Yield off beans

[Beefriendly]

I got a crop of July honey last year that had a lovely citrus after taste. The predominant pollen in that honey (about 70%) is identical to that of field beans in shape, size and being an elongated oval it even had the correct length to width ratio. The problem for me was that I could not see a field of beans nearby. Have I mis-identified the pollen....very possible....or did the bees find a field of beans. They obviously liked whatever they found to the exclusion of just about everything else.
I'm afraid this doesn't answer the question until I know for certain that the pollen is from field beans. But if it does it suggests, that in the UK, bees do like field beans or whatever else they found that has a pollen identical to beans.

 

[Finman]

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Bees can gather pollen from beans even if they do not get nectar.
Pollen is grey like ash.

 

[Beefriendly]

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Bees can gather pollen from beans even if they do not get nectar.
Pollen is grey like ash.

Yes, but pollen in the honey is usually an indication of the nectar source....and no there weren't cells filled with pollen in the supers.

 

[Finman]

Yes, but pollen in the honey is usually an indication of the nectar source....and no there weren't cells filled with pollen in the supers.

Ok, you can do with your hives what you want. I have here hundreds of hectars field beans every year and I am not going to even piss to that direction.

I know what kind of nectar plant bean Vicia faba is and I have better pastures here.

Pollen is not indication of honey plants. I must know beforehand, - like I really do-, what are good flow plants and I move hives to such places. They are not many. Vain to look afterwards what pollen they got. Summer is over then.

I have seen with my eyes many years how bees forage in bean fields. No need to read from forums. The fields have been at the distance of 10 feet from hives, and no bees in flowers. .
.

 

[Somerford]

so for the Ayes its 50% and the Nays 50% ( with a particularly strong vote from FINLAND !!!!)

For what it's worth....

I have enough colonies this year to put some on field beans (they are the same as broad beans technically but bred to have more pods lower down the stem and not lodge (fall over))

While they don't always yield, the pollen comes at a good time for us and going on current growth rates will start flowering sometime late May which will give a good Pollen yield through what will be a large June Gap with everything so far ahead in Wiltshire this season (unless the Clover also blooms early) and so helping the bees through a barren spell ready for the main flow.

It's just a hunch I have anyway.

worth a punt on 5 colonies isn't it ?? or some nucs that need pollen to help them build up....

Over to you all for the debate !!

KR

S

 

[masterBK]

Field beans are an interesting crop as bees can get nectar directly from the flower and by using the holes at the base of the corolla bitten in them by short tongued bumbles to get at the nectaries not forgetting the nectar collected from the extra floral nectaries on the leaf stipules or the honeydew on the plant excreted by black aphids. Get a decent yield about one year in three in my area other two years a waste of time as far as beans concerned but there will be other stuff around like spring sown OSrape at the same time.

 

[colinc]

so for the Ayes its 50% and the Nays 50% ( with a particularly strong vote from FINLAND !!!!)

For what it's worth....

I have enough colonies this year to put some on field beans (they are the same as broad beans technically but bred to have more pods lower down the stem and not lodge (fall over))

While they don't always yield, the pollen comes at a good time for us and going on current growth rates will start flowering sometime late May which will give a good Pollen yield through what will be a large June Gap with everything so far ahead in Wiltshire this season (unless the Clover also blooms early) and so helping the bees through a barren spell ready for the main flow.

It's just a hunch I have anyway.

worth a punt on 5 colonies isn't it ?? or some nucs that need pollen to help them build up....

Over to you all for the debate !!

KR

S

Apparently it is not worth a punt. You will get no crop and your bees will die. It is already decided......


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[Somerford]

Apparently it is not worth a punt. You will get no crop and your bees will die. It is already decided......


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

you mean our Finnish cousin has decided that for everyone else ? !!!

I'm with the 50%

LOL

 

[Finman]

you mean our Finnish cousin has decided that for everyone else ? !!!

I'm with the 50%

LOL

Good heavens.... You are all adult people. Use your own brains...

Life teaches....

In Finnish pasture advices it is said that I can put 6 hives/bean hectare.
Last summer I had 30 hectares bean fieds inside radius 1 km. Should I put 180 hives into one spot?
I had 4 hives.

Oh dear...

I do not keep beekeepers very talent.
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About rape fields it is said 4 hives /hectare. I keep 1 hive/ 10 hectares. That is why I get food yields: I know what I do.

 

[Somerford]

then my calculation of 5 hives is spot on Finny !!

ditto OSR

 

[Finman]

then my calculation of 5 hives is spot on Finny !!

ditto OSR

I have 2-4 hives in one spot.

.

 

[Monsieur Abeille]

Have you looked the flowers how much bean field has bees and how they take nectar ? Have you seen bumbles there?

IT is easy too to hear the sound of bees among plants.

No, not looked in the fields at all. Assumption comes from the fact that we are surrounded by mono crops here, and while some nectar does come from other sources, the large volume of what I have always assumed to come from beans coincides with local fields planted with the things.

 

[Poly Hive]

Just to throw another spanner.

I have personally never to my knowledge had honey from field beans despite having up to 20 odd hives in close proximity to the crop over a period of 8 years. Now that could be due to the variety? No real idea but definitely no honey that I know of.

I remember B. Mobus lecturing and saying that when he was a Bee Farmer he had an excellent take from beans and then realising it was actually honey dew from a massive infestation of aphids.

Just though to chuck it in...

PH

 

[B+.]

I remember B. Mobus lecturing and saying that when he was a Bee Farmer he had an excellent take from beans and then realising it was actually honey dew from a massive infestation of aphids.

Just though to chuck it in...

PH

Not so many aphids on beans anymore :-(

 

[Plenty of honey]

Not so many aphids on beans anymore :-(

Thats interesting. , but saying that, they grow a lot of Bio beans here, their strictly not Bio, as there is chemicals used on other crops nearby, but their not treated apart from natural chemicals(soap solution against aphis etc). I've known one of my beekeeping buddies had a couple of supers full off each hive last year. it was very sudden too. looked like a no go, then in just under a week the first super was full. like i said before, it seems very hit and miss!!

 

[Charley]

I've had lovely caramelly honey from field beans. Regretfully this year it is wheat in the neighbouring field. Can look forward to OSR next year though.