Beemaster's International Beekeeping Forum

BEEKEEPING LEARNING CENTER => GENERAL BEEKEEPING - MAIN POSTING FORUM. => Topic started by: Bob Wilson on February 05, 2022, 09:42:21 pm

Title: Follow the Bloom 2022
Post by: Bob Wilson on February 05, 2022, 09:42:21 pm
When rosemary begins to bloom, swarm season is not too far behind.
Title: Re: Follow the Bloom 2022
Post by: Jim134 on February 06, 2022, 12:12:15 am
        I know the place where. I live there in North Africa... Right along the Mediterranean Ocean..(1983 to 1985) There were thousands upon thousands of acres or hectares... Of Rosemary and Thyme.. I found out later on this is the huge's place. Is along the Mediterranean Ocean...Forl these 2 herbs to grow in a wild.. The locals would pay. Double the money for these 2 kinds of honey. As compared to any other local honey on the market..



                BEE HAPPY  Jim134   :smile:
Title: Re: Follow the Bloom 2022
Post by: BurleyBee on February 06, 2022, 08:04:05 am
A handful of Maples were blooming here a few weeks ago before these big cold spells.  I?m now seeing more budding up.  1-2 weeks more and he busy season will bee here.  Can?t wait.
Title: Re: Follow the Bloom 2022
Post by: Bob Wilson on February 07, 2022, 11:19:22 pm
Red tinged maple trees are appearing around town. I know you northern and western beeks like to see these pics. Hang on...spring is coming.
Title: Re: Follow the Bloom 2022
Post by: Oldbeavo on February 12, 2022, 05:15:40 am
Trying to define swarm season has two parts. One to catch some or two to do some swarm control before your hives swam.
Swarm control is best done before the bees have started to think about swarming. We split in early September as the cherries start to blossom. This is no guarantee as when we went back to pickup our hives at the end of pollination we were catching swarms from hives that we thought were not strong enough to swarm.
Remember, bees make the rules, change the rules without consulting the owner.
Title: Re: Follow the Bloom 2022
Post by: Bob Wilson on February 16, 2022, 08:38:49 pm
Osaka Cherry Tree.
Honey bees are working it, but the honey flow is still 6 weeks away.
Title: Re: Follow the Bloom 2022
Post by: Bob Wilson on February 17, 2022, 08:42:23 am
The hives are pulling in water.
Title: Re: Follow the Bloom 2022
Post by: Bob Wilson on March 01, 2022, 03:11:42 pm
Clover is appearing around town. This flower is on our county's Post Office property. I wonder if she gets government wages?
Title: Re: Follow the Bloom 2022
Post by: The15thMember on March 01, 2022, 05:37:53 pm
My maples are blooming full force now, as is some purplish weed in a field down the road, perhaps henbit or something similar. 
Title: Re: Follow the Bloom 2022
Post by: Bob Wilson on March 01, 2022, 10:02:18 pm
Henbit, I think. Brings in red pollen.
Title: Re: Follow the Bloom 2022
Post by: The15thMember on March 04, 2022, 01:05:54 pm
Henbit, I think. Brings in red pollen.
I did see some red pollen this morning, so you're probably right, Bob. 
Title: Re: Follow the Bloom 2022
Post by: The15thMember on March 07, 2022, 01:41:23 pm
My native cherries have started to bloom, and the bees are all over them.  Unfortunately it's supposed to get cold and rainy later in the week, so I'll probably have to give them some more honey frames, just to be safe. 
Title: Re: Follow the Bloom 2022
Post by: FloridaGardener on March 19, 2022, 09:49:15 pm
Carolina laurel is full on.
Title: Re: Follow the Bloom 2022
Post by: FloridaGardener on March 31, 2022, 11:26:13 am
Henbit is blooming everywhere.  I've had to put the queen excluders on, or I will end up with more than 30 medium frames of brood...

Caught two swarms in bait hives, on the same day (March 26) using "Eau de queen cell and old queen" tincture (alcohol base).
Title: Re: Follow the Bloom 2022
Post by: Bill Murray on July 18, 2022, 11:26:34 pm
crepe myrtles, should start seeing drones again. :grin:
Title: Re: Follow the Bloom 2022
Post by: BeeMaster2 on July 19, 2022, 08:03:34 am
Bill,
Crepe Myrtles do not have nectaries. That means they can only provide pollen for your bees. We were told for years that Myrtles make terrible honey by our bee inspector and then his boss gave a speaking lecture and told us about that they don?t have nectaries. Go figure.
Jim Altmiller
Title: Re: Follow the Bloom 2022
Post by: Bill Murray on July 19, 2022, 01:04:08 pm
well at least the pollen is there. I was always told they produced nectar, thanks Jim.
Title: Re: Follow the Bloom 2022
Post by: Bob Wilson on August 12, 2022, 09:07:36 am
Dearth in middle Georgia.
It seems there are crepe myrtles blooming literally everywhere, but they don't provide any nectar, and apparently very few varieties provide any pollen. Blooms abound, but the bees still have to wait for the goldenrod to come in.
Title: Re: Follow the Bloom 2022
Post by: paus on August 12, 2022, 07:49:26 pm
I do not remember Golden Rod blooming by Aug.12 but I saw some blooming in a bottom where I was brush hogging and someone else on Texas Beekeepers reported thar they saw blooms.   Correction That was beekeeping for beginners.
Title: Re: Follow the Bloom 2022
Post by: FloridaGardener on August 17, 2022, 01:17:14 pm
Finally, after little whiffs of nectar from second-bloom Vitex and just a few early Liriope.....Liriope (Lillyturf) is in full bloom.  It's covered with honey bees and bumble bees. Looks like a real flow at the hives.
Title: Re: Follow the Bloom 2022
Post by: FloridaGardener on September 25, 2022, 08:46:28 pm
9/25/2022

Goldenrod opening up. 
Festooning in empty frames.
Small patch of capped drones next to capped worker brood.
Plague of hive beetles.
Happy fall, y'all.
Title: Re: Follow the Bloom 2022
Post by: The15thMember on November 05, 2022, 01:39:03 pm
We've finally got some goldenrod/aster flow the past couple of weeks following a little bit of rain.  Good thing the warm weather is holding or my bees wouldn't have gotten any nectar this fall.
Title: Re: Follow the Bloom 2022
Post by: Michael Bush on November 07, 2022, 08:03:54 am
Everything was done here weeks ago... It's too warm, but there is nothing for the bees out there...