Subject: Best Bee plants

Best bee plants!
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The Honey Extractors are available again with 3-frames & 4-frame manual spinners & 6 frame manual!    

What makes for a great Bee plant? 
It's not just about the flowers...

Bees can benefit differently from the quality of the flower's nectar and pollen. Therefore, some flowers can "bee" more friendly than others!

How do you know the best from the rest? 

The best way to find out is from your local plant specialist such as a botanist, refer to a local floral book indicating flowering times, pollen and nectar strength or an institution that studies your local plants and biology!

The Blue Book contains an exact chapter on many trees, plants, shrubs and crops specifying their respective pollen and nectar values out of 4. It's worth purchasing the blue book just for this data!  

More about researching the best plants   
The alternative is to get hold of your local university or college and enquire with the botany or biology department. As we have subscribers from all over the world we look to cater to as common a list as possible but also provide you a way to research your indigenous list of best bee plants! Also refer to horticultural societies.

What about the Common Bee Plants?

The eucalyptus species is prolific as far as pollen and nectar goes in general however the red river gum, ironbark and sugar gum are the real powerhouses of best bee plants.

The question should perhaps be better put before proceeding. If the plants and their flowers are to operate in isolation then it is easy to make a list. If the bees require a more sustained source there would be a completely different list however.

Perhaps one can view it with these two aims in mind: we want bees to be strong and nourished for as long as possible throughout the year with little need for moving them. (It is not healthy for the queen to be laying all year round - she needs a break to preserve her longevity and production performance over time. Recommended 2 month break!)  

From the bee's perspective: 

The common plants to look for or to grow for hobbyists would be lavendar (fine), catmint, sage, thyme, borage and fennel. Not only are these good bee plants but they can be used in the household and generally when cooking! Rosemary also makes for a hardy garden bee plant.

Holyhocks (although have prickly spikes), geranium, buttercup, calendula are also great favourites for the garden! Poppy and sunflower are also great bee plants for common garden use.

It would be good practice to formulate a cycle of flowering that covers all of spring, summer and autumn at high levels of nectar and pollen. A very light winter offering or none at all to allow the queen bee time to rest.

Major health warning!

Unfortunately, seedlings and seeds themselves have been treated with neonicotinoids which is a built-in pesticide. free seedlings or seeds. These type of treatments are threatening to bees and all other natural pollinators. Avoid them completely. You do more damage planting these than if you didn't plant at all...

The alternative to ask for are seeds that are deemed heirloom seeds! At the time of writing we have found a family run business in our city that provides such seeds in Lynnwood, Pretoria who ship nationwide like us!

South African supplier - http://www.organicseed.co.za

Organic Heirloom Seed Suppliers - USA & Canada

Dear Warrick,

Thank you for sharing our concern about bees! All of our 100% certified organic, non-GMO seeds are untreated. Neonicitinoids are not allowed in organic agriculture. Shipping only allowed within USA & Canada!

~ from the reply by  Seeds of Change

Also try Seed Savers USA

For the UK try Plants to plant

BEE Plant wise!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

What are GMOs? Read a blog post about GMO's & What's happening to our seeds and plants across the globe!

What are Neos? Read about the danger to pollinators and honeybees especially with this type of pesticide!

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Going forward the bee course dates for Joburg are:

May 30th in Midrand.  

Bee WARE RETAIL open in Centurion from 09h00 -16h00 weekdays. Sat 09h00 - 12h30.

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Queen bee in hive
Can you spot her? The queen bee [above] is the only fertile female in the Scutellata colony and therefore the only bee that can properly lay eggs of either male or female workers. The Cape worker is reproductive capable raising concern over the relocation into Scutellata territory!
 
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  First Steps
    Keep reading articles, bee books
   We will be sending you tips, articles and news about beekeeping that will help you to better understand the benefits of bees for all of us!

Our recommended first steps are that you get hold of the blue book, Beekeeping in South Africa which is available on our website by mail order or if you collect in Centurion. *25 in stock*

Southern Hemisphere: We have new stock available of uncapping rollers, leather gloves, 3-frame extractors and 4 frame & 6 frame honey extractors. 

We look to a quiet time with bees now going into the winter season. It is a time to reflect on the honey season, plan for the spring and research new sites. 

The best sites for semi-commercial apiary operators are those with multiple sources of nectar flows within 2km of the honey bees. These would include farms that grow mixed crops, grow avocados, litchi, citrus and macadamia all nearby as well as non-hybrid forests/plantations of eucalyptus trees.  


Northern Hemisphere it's warming up! Spring is coming round and flowers are starting to bloom! Bees are taking flight looking for nectar each day now and as it warms up more and more bees will leave earlier to collect and harvest all the hive needs including water, pollen and nectar.

Bank holidays in the UK and holidays in the USA & Canada with warm weather on the rise gives much needed outdoors exposure for family and for bees!

Get to your bees and bee amazing!

   
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