What to expect out of buckwheat?

[David McLeod]

I've been eyeballing the neighborhood for possible plantings in the future. I couldn't do anything major for a couple of years until I get some hive established but around the corner from me is a small field that has been planted to cotton in the recent past. It's fallow now, maybe an allotment or crp, it's about two to two and a half acres. I was thinking about approaching the owner in a couple years and see if he would be interested in putting it in buckwheat. I've never had a hive on buckwheat or even had buckwheat honey. What could I expect?
Not even sure if it would be a go, just wondering out loud.

[rdy-b]

  couple acres is maybe enough to get the bees stimulated-but you wont get surplus honey
  planting for bees might make you feel good-but the amount of forage required is not even feasible
dollars wise - :-\ RDY-B

[harvey]

I planted buckwheat three times last year.  Let it flower and waited till it was done.  Tilled it under and replanted.  Buckwheat honey is the best!  However with only an acrea and a half of buckwheat and the rest of the forage wasn't that great this year never did pull off any honey.  It is definately not cost effective to think you are planting for the bees.  However,  Makes a pretty field,  deer loved it,  bees worked it and it smelt good.  If you have extra ground go for it just don't expect to plant to produce honey.  It definately helps but is not a sure thing.

[Kathyp]

off of a couple of acres of buckwheat planted in spring, i'll get 3 or 4 supers of really good and very dark honey.  i am lucky here that we get the rain and the buckwheat blooms for a long time.
this is the honey i keep for me.  it's not cost effective for that much honey, but it's the best stuff.  i just have to time it so that it blooms before the berries, or after.  they'll ignore it for the berries.


this year we got to much rain and cold and i got nothing  :-\

[rdy-b]

  what i think would be good is to plant trees that would be a source of pollen in the fall and winter-
 in my area there are some sources -even if it was just one tree-maybe loquat-the benefit to the health of the hive with early pollen would give you satisfaction-and results you could see-RDY-B
 

[AllenF]

Why not plant clover instead.  Just a small amount of land, but could not hurt.   If the field is sitting, weeds, wild flowers, and blackberries should be taking over now on their own.

[David McLeod]

I'm pretty good with native nectar sources in the immediate area. The area is mixed with some agriculture. A large soybean field south of me, several old pastures and hayfields with plenty of blackberry along the fences, across from this old field is about ten acres of goldenrod and some aster. A few subdivisions with holly, I spotted one of the neighbor's yard with about fifty feet of twenty foot high chinese holly in it. Tulip poplar is everywhere and red and florida maples are abundant. I am going to try to frost seed the railroad bank in front of the house with dutch clover (low growing) this spring. There's a couple gas line right of ways that might get some sweet clover. Maybe some of the guys with hayfields would want some clover, I'll have to ask.
I'm just wondering if planting can get me from a couple supers per to even more or if two acres of buckwheat or something can get me a specialty honey, maybe even time a planting to come in during a dearth. Like I said I'm just thinking out loud for what could be down the road a year or two.

[rdy-b]

  you cant create a honey flow with 2 acres--with as much nectar sources around you i douhgt
it will even hold the bees-your varital honey wont be buckwheat -but it will be varital in the sense of your location-and it will be a mixed varital as the result of your location-it is not as simple as planting a few acres of forage-
8-) RDY-B

[edward]

 ;) If you want to steer you're bee to a certain nectar source you had better learn how to do the waggle dance so that you convince the bees that they should forage there  ;)

mvh edward  :-P

[bud1]

yellow and white sweet clover; long bloom, bees love it, great soil builder and you plant it once and it keeps coming back-----white blooms every yr and yellow every other yr.

[Hemlock]

We plant buckwheat stating in August so the bees have it for making their winter stores.  We can have blooms in 3 weeks after planting here in Virginia.  We replant as long as can before the frosts.  3 to 5 times. 

[AllenF]

If you can get 2 million flowers to bloom in that field, you can get a pound of honey from the bees.   

[bigbearomaha]

only thing I ever expected out of buckwheat was a hearty "O-Tay!" :mrgreen:

[AllenF]

 :lau: