Lucerne

[Flycaster]

Hi,

I have been offered an apiary site on some lucerne but am unsure if it's worth the effort. 

Any body with experience of bees on lucerne?  Is it a good honey producer? Any info would be gratefully accepted 😊

Cheers

[Lancej]

I had a few hives on Lucerne but I think that they may have also picked up a bit of nectar from messmate. They did really well, with bee numbers increasing very fast and plenty of honey. One hive that was from a swarm that  season  has already been split.  (They were nasty ) i only had it for a few weeks as it was then used for stock feed.  Lance

[Flycaster]

Cool thanks.  Is it an autumn flowering crop or spring?

[Lancej]

It all depends on what they do with it as it can be cut a few times a year for dry feed. Flowering could be from late spring to autumn, I had the bees on it in summer.

[Michael Bush]

If they cut it for hay, which they usually do, it will bloom several times a year.  But usually here, they cut it as soon as it even starts to bloom... to maximize the protein content.

[Flycaster]

Ok thanks, I'll see what he does with it.