Blackberry flow is over. How long is dearth?

[allrawpaul]

How long does the dearth last after the blackberry flow? Whats next in your area. How long before blackberry is capped? Thanks!

[allrawpaul]

There is a little clover and fireweed around but it doent seem like much. The knotweed is a good flow but its fairly late.

[Beorn]

The dearth should depend on what flowers grow in your neck of the woods. Here in NY the goldenrod is already starting to flower. So I think our dearth only lasted two weeks or so. Last year the goldenrod didn't bloom until late August.

As to how long it will take them to cap the honey, that also depends on how much nectar they brought in. If there wasn't enough nectar to fill the cells and evaporate it to below 17%, they won't cap it until there's more nectar.

[Dane Bramage]

after the blackberry.... my flow accelerated, purple loosestrife being the main nectar flow now, though there are just loads of flowering plants here in the wetlands, etc.,. (hoping it keeps up as late as possible!). The blackberry got capped straight away (during the flow). 25%-50% rel humidity and warm days probably helped with that.

[Benton2569]

My experience, albeit limited to a few seasons, has been that the late golden rod prodces the nectar. My hives are on a few acres of it. My first bee year I was psyched when the GR came out but could not understand why the bees did not touch it. That is when another beekeeper pointed out the difference. Maybe it is different where you are?

Also note the smell of the nectar- it is much more pungent. As a first year I took a whiff and ran to my bee mentor thinking I had foulbrood or something. It smells that different.

[Kurt S]

There are many varieties of goldenrod, with different bloom times.

[Chef Isaac]

I do not think we have goldenrod over here.

There is really no dearth going on right now per say but smaller flows. The biggest flow here is the blackberries. Blueberries can do well early in the Spring and fireweed if you want to go up to the mountains in the late summer/early fall.