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Borage ,Borage, Borage—Safe?!!

2K views 1 reply 2 participants last post by  Randar 
#1 ·
I am in about my 3rd year and just have 4 hives and that is about what I want. Live in central Illinois corn and beans all around me . So I planted some clover and this winter looked up a bunch of “ bee seeds” that for the most part I have finished for forage . One plant I had not heard of was borage. I read some amazing articles about it and it sounds like the bee plant. Sounds like it pulls in all kinds of bees and especially honey bees. Probably won’t grow well in my steaming- freezing climate but we will see. Sead was cheap. Read a bunch of articles and great news till I got to Wikipedia. Said that borage plant contained pyrrolizidine alkaloids that could be transferred to the honey through pollen collection at the borage plant. Advised that commercial honey plants limit this chemical to prevent contamination. This is in Germany. In questions below that the above chemical are toxic to liver and lungs and possibly be carcinogenic and passed in breast milk. I would like for some of you to reply to what you think . I tend to read in things kind of deap. I know a lot of you have to be using borage. It’s reviews are fabulous in places that have a Mediterranean climate. It has such great reviews and loads of people plant it and it seems like the number one bee plant. It’s an herb and some people put it in food.. I need something like this for my bees to feed in in this corn and soybean jungle. Look at Wikipedia and articles that ask if borage is poison to people. I know I may have went into this too deap but please read this and favor this with an answer. PLEASE. Thank you for your time. I am a retired veterinarian but in my time we studied how to kill certain insects. Is the honey safe
 
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#2 ·
I grow borage in my gardens here in suburban Chicago. You need to direct sow it early in the spring but it does very well and it will re-seed itself (to some degree... maybe not where you want it). Some also use it as a cover crop in clay soils as it has a deep tap root and is pretty drought resistant. Bees of all kins seem to love it but I am not sure how much nectar/pollen it actually produces.
 
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