This year I am wanting to plant many various flowering plants to vary the avaliable pollen for my bees. I have 3 hives about 100 yards from my garden so I figure that they will be the bees taking most of the pollen. I have decided to plant broccoli, and let it go to flower, dill, butternut squash, and a few different varieties of sunflowers, because the birds love them too. There are a ton of deer around so I try to stick to plants that they dont eat. Most of the plants I am planting will be blooming about the same time as clover so I know that they will play second fiddle, so my I am hoping to find an early (Mid May-June) blooming plant to provide necter and pollen, any suggestions would be great! Thanks!
Various plantings
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Hi i'm in NY too, nearer to Albany.
Last year I grew lots of vegetables, and long after everything else froze, the bok choy I planted from seed kept blooming on and on through the frosts, and it's little yellow mustard-like flowers full of pollen were BIG favorites with my bees in mid November until Thanksgiving!
Last year I grew lots of vegetables, and long after everything else froze, the bok choy I planted from seed kept blooming on and on through the frosts, and it's little yellow mustard-like flowers full of pollen were BIG favorites with my bees in mid November until Thanksgiving!
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I've planted Bee Balm and Lemon Balm. Both seem to attract bees.
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Buckwheat begins flowering 3 weeks after planting.
Bees seem to like mint and herb flowers too.
Asparagus is a source of early pollen. Strawberries are early bloomers too.
Dandelions are not native to North America. They were brought here by colonists as a lettuce plant. Bees love dandelions too. (I prefer them in my yard and not my garden though.)
Bees seem to like mint and herb flowers too.
Asparagus is a source of early pollen. Strawberries are early bloomers too.
Dandelions are not native to North America. They were brought here by colonists as a lettuce plant. Bees love dandelions too. (I prefer them in my yard and not my garden though.)
When did you plant the seed?
The beginning of July, because we put our new veggie garden in then, in mid summer. I'll be sure to plant some more bok choy seeds in mid July this year too, because of their frost-resistant flowering.
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I found this page ( http://nature.berkeley.edu/urbanbeegardens/index.html) which looks good, although it is CA oriented.
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I plant radishes every two or three weeks starting the last week of Feb.(short row's) fore me and the bees. I let them bloom and replant before they go to seed,bees love the blooms. Brenda, bees do love cucumber blooms, but i've heard (or read) that bees sent to pollenate cucumber fields have to be fed or they will starve to death? They do work my patch hard. Jack
I hadn't heard that. I just know they worked them well. They were also thick in his sweet corn pollen.
Last year was bad year for honey. He had to start feeding those hives in the summer months because they had no stores. But the hives built up really good and are doing ok so far this winter. He's got dry sugar on them too, and will be putting Megabee patties on soon.
Last year was bad year for honey. He had to start feeding those hives in the summer months because they had no stores. But the hives built up really good and are doing ok so far this winter. He's got dry sugar on them too, and will be putting Megabee patties on soon.
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My sweet corn field is within 10ft. of 15 of my hives last year and when i picked my corn it sounded like i was inside a bee hive, they were all over it. I'm getting ready to make some pollen patties (i use Alpha 6 recipe) and will put them on when the weather warms a little. I'm also trying the dry sugar method this year and it seems to be working great so far.:thumbsup: Jack
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Plant some collards. You'll get greens late into the season. Leave some plants in the ground. They'll flower and the bees love them. They also reseed, so I dig a lot of seedlings and give them out in our bee club. Collards are great steamed, in soups, and stuffed like cabbage. Can you tell I realy love them?
I just got in my 2010 veggie seeds in the mail. Along with the vegetables, I got some flower seeds for my bees: borage, anise hyssop, nasturtium, large old fashioned white nicotiana, and calendula. I did plant three mature anise hyssop last fall which will get going pretty quickly in the Spring, but will plant some additional seed as well. I'm hoping honeybees like all these, but if they don't I'm sure other types of native bees will. 
My morning glories were covered with some type of small bee that looked like mason bees a couple of years ago.
My morning glories were covered with some type of small bee that looked like mason bees a couple of years ago.
You will do well with the broccoli. I let my broccoli go to seed last year and it kept blooming well in to the fall. The bees loved it and were all over it from beginning to end. When one stem is don flowering just cut it off and new side shoots will spring up with more blossoms.
I planned quite a few flowers for my vegetable garden this year- all of which are loved by bees. Some of which have lovely edible flowers, too- good for iced tea and salads....
Planting now:
Borage, nasturtium, calendula, anise hyssop (have 3 established plants as well), veronica/sage, 2 types of nicotiana, morning glory, and several types of sunflowers.
Of course lots of the vegetables will have flowers that bees love too, especially the cucumber vines!
Planting now:
Borage, nasturtium, calendula, anise hyssop (have 3 established plants as well), veronica/sage, 2 types of nicotiana, morning glory, and several types of sunflowers.
Of course lots of the vegetables will have flowers that bees love too, especially the cucumber vines!
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