Does having it rain help in the product of nectar during the summer periods? Or what affect does the rain have on bees and nectar if any at all?
I believe you have to have rain for the plants to create nectar how much I don't know.
Michael Bush stated on another post I can't seem to find that "if you have a minimal amount of rain it will concentrate the nectar and make it really sweet and you end up with sweeter honey"
that being said you must have rain or the flowers will not produce nectar at all
Hope that helps some
Keith
I know around here we get a shower ever few weeks during the summer. Today we got a good rain. So maybe tomorrow they can collect some nectar to build more comb. They have slowed down with the hot dry weather recently.
You not only need rain, you need nectar producing plants in bloom. In north Texas, the majority of our bloom is over in May. The remaining bloom is usually concentrated in soybeans, cotton, and mesquite.
I was wondering when or's is over here in Texas. Is there any plants this time of year to gather any nectar from at all? And will there be any in the fall before the frost?
We are having a drought right now in California and it is like a desert here. I guess there is not much nectar in the flowers, because the bees hardly made any honey thus far. Last year I was extracting by this time.
What I've just been informed of for my area(Wichita Falls) is that ALL our bee activities are about 2 months behind..The mesquite have just bloomed for the second time this season...Swarming hasnt even begun yet. I pretty sharp guy from the bee club told me this and I sure hope he's right. Also, theres no mentionable amount of nectar in the mesquite though as it hasnt rained in a long time...For the last 4 nites we were supposed to have rain(including tonite) but it just keeps going around us.
Yeh Annette, my area sounds like yours..I got honey 3 times last year and so far this year the bees have eaten all of it.
your friend,
john