Spring time in central NJ

[amandrea]

Went to the beehive after work today expecting to see a happy yellow hue in front of it. What I found were some bees coming in and out. I quickly realized they weren't playing but working and actually bringing in pollen.
Anyone know from what they could be obtaining this so early in the spring? All I can find is a few buds getting ready to open, a few leaves beginning to grow and some stems breaking through the ground.

[buzzbee]

They can be gathering from maples,cedar,Juniper,Elm or willows . There may be more!!

[KONASDAD]

Silver maples are in full bloom in south jersey, and skunk cabbage is full of light sulphur colored pollen. Crocuses, some dandelions are up and red maple are ready to bloom. Hardwoods probably in two weeks. My bees are bringing in light yellow pollen and pumpkin colored pollen too this week. Also some lawn weed w/ tiny white flowers are blooming and my bees are on that as well.Almost looks like thyme flowers but a weed.

[reinbeau]

Did you list all of this in the What's in Bloom map?  Just checkin'..... :evil:

[CBEE]

OK whats wrong with this picture.. things are blooming in Jersey and I am watching the snow pile up outside in Kentucky :evil: It was 70 monday and today SNOW !! We are normally planting taters by saint patrics day and such cool weather crops but not this year.

[Cindi]

Konasdad, skunk cabbage!!!  Eeeks, we have a deep dark ravine that runs on the southern border of our property, about half way down the length of the property, that is full of them. I am going to go down and check out and see if they are growing up yet, I love the look of the deep dark ravine with all the murkey flatlands and the little creek running through it.  I will take pictures today to show the lovely skunk cabbage, that so smells like a blasted skunk!!!  Beautiful day, beautiful life, Cindi

[reinbeau]

Cindi, I'll bet yours have been up for over a month.  I just wandered down back on Sunday or Monday to do another check, I usually go out the beginning of the third week in February and find the blooms of the skunk cabbage burning through the snow, but this year they're about a week and a half late.  This is the fullest one I could find, the rest are just beginning to open.



You are so far ahead climate-wise I'll bet they've got leaves coming up now.

[CBEE]

Nice pic of the skunk cabbage..
got 9 to 12 inches of snow on the ground now and its still coming down. We haven't had snow like this in about 10 years let alone in march. Well, it's pretty to watch anyway. It will be gone next week

[Cindi]

Ann, holy smoking smoke!!!  I have never seen skunk cabbage when it first emerges, I have always only been down there when it is green and tall.  Wow!!!!  What beautiful and absolutely intriguing pictures, unbelieveable!!!  They look like something alien, and I am totally impressed with their beauty.  Now I am on an agenda to see what stage the growth is of mine, if this ding dang rain ever stops I am heading down the ravine, camera in tow.  I knew the rains were coming, but eeks!!!  They are torrents and the banks of the ravine will be slippery as ol' heck out there.  Even the trails all the kids have made will be slick, but then, maybe the sun will shine, hoping, hoping......have a beautiful, great day, lovin' our life we lead.  Cindi

Ann, I think that those would be perfect pictures to enter into the photo contest for spring, they are unbelievably beautiful!!!  I hope you don't mind if I copy that to a folder on my desktop, permission being asked here, hee, hee.  C.

[poka-bee]

Ann, what beautiful pics, have never seen emerging close up.  Don't have any I can see from close, have to drive down the road & peer out the window hoping no one is behind me!  I would like to put some in my wetland by the pond for the bees..may have to go "hunting" this year ;)  Cindi, that ravine sounds great, think of all the cool crawlies living there!

[Cindi]

Jody, just wait until you see the pictures of my deep, dark ravine.  It has been a source of great fun for the kids through many years.  They play down there like it is a deep and dark alien planet.  It has a little creek that the kids have made little islands in, diverting the stream, causing no harm.  Many have built strong arm muscles from the digging, it is amazing what they have safely done, with no harm to environmental stuff.....I am a firm believer in that.  It even has crawdads in the deeper parts, we have three places where we fish these for fun, catch and release.....

Before we moved into our home here (18 years ago), the former owners had made a cement dam across the little creek and in the wintertime flooded the little creek to make a ice hockey rink (yes, in those days, the weather froze very deeply).  I think that is what has caused the low lying land down there, along with natural erosion, etc.  But it indeed a beautiful place to play, especially in the warm summer days, when down there, about 20 feet below the regular land terrain, it is always very cool, with beautiful filtered sunlight from all the coniferous trees.  If this rain every stops today, and it is OK to go down there, I will love to take some pictures to show.  If not, maybe tomorrow, or one day when the sun shines.  Beautiful day in the great life we live.  Cindi

[reinbeau]

Ann, I think that those would be perfect pictures to enter into the photo contest for spring, they are unbelievably beautiful!!!  I hope you don't mind if I copy that to a folder on my desktop, permission being asked here, hee, hee.  C.

They are amazing blossoms, aren't they?  I'll take you up on your suggestion about the photo contest!

[KONASDAD]

Skunk cabbage is hypothermic. It makes heat so it can grow very early in spring through lite ice to get a pollination advantage. It is a very neat plant and produces lots of pollen. I think the bees like the warmth as their visits seem to last longer than on flowers in summer.