Best and Worst Forages

Hopeful · January 01, 2008, 10:23:26 PM

Okay, experts. I need two lists here. One list of the best farm and garden crops for honey yield, especially in the midwest. And a list of the the worst. I will begin the list with a couple I know of for each. Pease confirm and then add your own.

Good- White, yellow and crimson clover. Alfalfa, vetch.

Bad from what I have been told-
Watermelon, red clover

I am wondering about squashes, cantaloup and honeydew. Where do these fit, and what others are notable?

Michael Bush · January 01, 2008, 11:08:32 PM

>I am wondering about squashes, cantaloup and honeydew.

Honey bees are useful for pollination of those but they won't make any honey off of them.

Hopeful · January 01, 2008, 11:09:42 PM

Michael, do you then have a list of honey yielding forages?

Hopeful · January 02, 2008, 09:17:33 AM

Wow! 28 views and not a single addition to the list? Interesting.....

pdmattox · January 02, 2008, 09:32:59 AM

You may want to check with your ag dept and see if they have a list. The cucumbers and squash produce great pollen for building up bees on. The watermelon and canolopes are ok for pollen but not as good as the squash. None of these will make much honey if any. Clover and alfalfa when it blooms is great for honey. I am sure there is more but it is dependent on your local. I just did a search and found this it should be of some help.
http://www.okrangelandswest.okstate.edu/pdfFiles/OSUextPubs/F-7155.pdf

Cindi · January 02, 2008, 10:36:53 AM

Hopeful, I am going to resurrect a list of good honey plants that Ann and I compiled last spring. I would think that most of these plants that are perennials and biennials will do well in your area, they are pretty hardy to everywhere. I haven't listed any that I don't know are any good, haven't bothered to find that out. Hold on.....searching, here it is:

http://forum.beemaster.com/index.php?topic=7367.msg44866#msg44866

This post has an extensive amount of flowers. You will enjoy it. Hope it will help you out and give you some good choices to choose from. Have a great and wonderful day.

Cindi · January 02, 2008, 10:44:55 AM

Hopeful, one that I need to make further comment on is the California Poppy. It blooms early in the season and lasts right until after frost kill in our area. We had some early frost that knocked things down. But the California Poppy still had flowers blooming and the bees were taking advantage of it. I would consider it good for the fall time. Got a great picture of two bees having the time of their life. And this poppy is a beautiful flower and the foliage is very pretty too, kind of lacy grey green in colour. If you have any questions about any of these plants, please ask me or Ann (Reinbeau). We both are pretty good with knowledge of horticulture (flowers mostly for me, she is good at all of it). Have a wonderful and beautiful day, Cindi

Hopeful · January 02, 2008, 11:24:46 AM

The reason I ask, Cindy, is because the organic farmer I know wishes to plant some forage for the bees that is also a sellable crop.That way,m he does not have to pay me for having the hives there.I told him I would bring the hives out for free if they can produce honey, but it would cost him if they do not. I am thinking primarily of which vegatables are good honey producers? He has had a request to plant crimson clover, so that would be helpful.

KONASDAD · January 02, 2008, 11:44:54 AM

mustard greens provide lots of nectar , the bees like it and it will grow anywhwere. Cheap to grow. Orchards will sometimes plant beneath trees to aid the bees.

I dont pollinate, but my bees get a lot more from the trees just planted around the neighborhood. Wild fruit trees, clover and weeds.
As for a graden plant for the bees, cant beat anise hyssop and russian sage. The russian sage blooms a long time and can tolerate drought too.

Hopeful · January 02, 2008, 12:25:01 PM

What about pecan trees?

Scadsobees · January 02, 2008, 12:45:00 PM

Veggies aren't worth a whole lot, unless you want to let them go to seed (broccoli seed anyone?)

As far as forage goes planting a field, mostly going to be field crops...clover, vetch, alfalfa, canola or buckwheat.

Unless you have a lot of forage around the farm, pollination (except for the above mentioned) doesn't generally produce much honey. But chances are that the farm isn't huge and there is other honey sources outside of it.

I don't know much about pecans, but I'd guess they are early bloomers that are good for building up but not for producing honey.

Sunflowers?

Shawn · January 02, 2008, 01:04:32 PM

Here are some links that other people and I have posted for good, great, and not so great plants for bees. Hope this helps you.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_Nectar_Sources_for_Honey_Bees

http://www.thedailygreen.com/going-green/latest/2790

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pollen_source

http://www.xerces.org/Pollinator_Insect_Conservation/generalplantsforbees.pdf

http://www.dianeseeds.com/flowers/beneficial-insects.html

http://www.pollinatorparadise.com/Solitary_Bees/beegarden.htm

Shawn · January 02, 2008, 01:10:26 PM

Woops forgot to say you should check out the post in the Gardening section. I know Cindi and others have posted a lot of plants and pictures, there are some great pictures posted, for different plants. I know you are probably loking for more of a crop than flowers so I cant help out much there. Here in SE Colorado there is an abundance of alfalfa and sunflowers. Myself and another keeper are going to plant white dutch clover, sweey yellow clover, and crimson clover to help out our bees. I have made a bee garden out of a lot of plants that are from the links I posted above. I recently found out that I will be getting a police dog so I have to redo some of the yard. I now have the opportunity to plant another garden of flowers for the bees.

reinbeau · January 02, 2008, 07:53:14 PM

Hopeful, it occurs to me that if your farmer doesn't want to pay then why are your bees there? Or, from another angle, don't charge him, but make sure he lets his 'edge weeds' grow up. Variety is the best thing for honey production, wildflowers bloom all season long, if his edges are allowed to go to seed your girls will get plenty of forage. Just a thought...

Hopeful · January 02, 2008, 09:45:44 PM

Ann,

e is trying to do me a favor and let me keep my bees on organically farmed land, 500 acres of it. There are no other farms around there, so all forage would be legally organic. Organic honey sells for $7 a pound around here. The only thing is, if the bees won't make honey then what good is that? he wants me to make a list of good forage veggies and plants so he can try to plant as much helpful crops as he can. He's a super nice guy!

rdy-b · January 02, 2008, 09:58:24 PM

Tell him to plant Soybeans-that will fill the bill 8-) what about blue berries -tell him to plant some acres of lavender -it is the next ontrepenuring thing dont ay know-what is the climate like and what is the irrigation situation -safflower will make honey RDY-B

rdy-b · January 02, 2008, 10:42:22 PM

yep soybeans and LAVENDER http://www.lavenderhillfarm.net/ -soy beans will be your bread and butter and lavender will fetch a premium- :-D RDY-B

Mici · January 02, 2008, 10:50:29 PM

i have this manual, let me take a look
here it is, per hectare and not honey but nectar:
acacia-1700kg
linden-1000

maple,narrow leafed willow,sweetclover -200
willow- 150
sweedish clover - 125
white clover 100
raspberry 70
buckwheat 60
rape 50
sunflowers 30-50
plums 40
cherries 30
apples 20
red clover 6kg

tansy leaf/phacelia is also excellent forage, yields vary in 300-1000kg

but i'm not really sure about the numbers, 50kg for rape seems awful little to me

JP · January 02, 2008, 11:17:34 PM

Hopeful, I don't know if this is on any of the lists mentioned, buy chinese tallow, if it grows in your area, makes a very good honey. We have a lot of it here. Yes its a tree, but pretty fast growing. Hard to beat sweet clovers, blackberries are great. Like ann said, if he lets the edges go you will have a variety of flowers, good for the bees. I advertise my honey as multi-floral.

Sincerely, JP

reinbeau · January 03, 2008, 04:15:16 PM

Ah, I see. Well, keep in mind that really isn't organic honey, it's honey made by organically kept bees. There's some huge number, I believe it's 8,000 acres, needed to guarantee 'organic' honey.

There are all kinds of honey forage plants, but he wants one he can sell for a profit, also. Herbs come to mind, but they're lots of work, probably not what he's after. Things come in and out of season, too, there's no one plant that will satisfy the both of you!

Have you checked out this list?