Pineapple

[happybees]

Is anyone familiar with pineapple sage? Other names are salvia elegans or I believe, honey melon sage. I could not find any honey for sale out of this species and was wondering if it produces nectar? Thanks.

[Walliebee]

It does produce nectar, but the flowers are too deep (long) for honeybees to get to it. Hummingbirds and butterfly's will enjoy it.

[NeilV]

A lady in my bee club recommended this as a good flower garden plant for honeybees. When mine bloomed, as stated above, the flowers were ignored by bees but used by butterflies. Also, chickens don't eat it. It is an attractive plant that blooms in September here. I recommend it as a plant, but not for bees based on my experience.

I can't imagine anyplace that would have enough of it to make a crop of honey even if bees did work it.

If you want something similar that bees love and that blooms for a long time, get some Anise Hyssop. Butteflies like it too.

[Hambone]

Is anyone familiar with pineapple sage? Other names are salvia elegans

I'm only familiar with salvia divinorum. k

[Grant]

The other thing to remember is how many acres it takes to produce a jar of honey from this species so you can identify the unique qualities.

I've met countless guys that plant a couple of "blah-blah" bushes in their yards thinking these plants are going to greatly increase their honey production. Then we also tend to forget you'd need a real mono-culture size planting to really be able to call it "blah-blah" honey.

Grant
Jackson, MO

[happybees]

Thanks for your replies. Now you changed my plans, but in a good way.

[jmgi]

Go with Russian sage, honey bees can work those blossoms, and they love it. John

[North Bend Honey]

I agree. Russian sage. The bees work it hard. With a mixture of pollen and nectar plants in your yard you may off set a dry spell for a few days and hopefully the girls have located something larger. Unless you have a large planting area with one floral source most of your honey will still be classified as wildflower. That word large depends on the floral source. I have never seen acres of russian sage. Don't know what it would be for except nursery stock.