Content
Honey-bearing flowers with photos and names will help you choose plants that are the main suppliers of pollen and nectar for honey production. Different flowering periods provide insects with raw materials for the entire period of honey collection. They grow in the wild; they are also specially planted near beekeeping farms and in gardens near small home apiaries.
What flowers do bees like?
Bees are the main pollinators of flowering plants when collecting nectar. The diversity of flora is directly dependent on insects and butterflies that feed on nectar. To collect 1 g of honey, a bee flies about 5,000 flowers a day. Pollinates up to 15 pieces per minute. Therefore, the closer the honey plants are located, the less time the bees spend flying.
There are several criteria by which insects choose an object for collecting nectar. Frequently visited flowers:
- bright yellow;
- pink;
- purple.
The main concentration of bees is on blue honey plants. Bees, unlike humans, perceive colors differently, except for blue. It is bright for them, just as it is for us.By comparison, bees see orange as light yellow with a green tint.
The signal for bees is the aroma; the stronger the smell released by the flowers, the more nectar can be collected. Pollinators are practically not found on odorless plants. Flowers that are unattractive to bees are red and white. Near a violet and white lilac planted nearby, a cluster of bees will be on the first one.
Garden flowers honey plants
For greater productivity, hives with bees are taken closer to fields with honey plants. Near stationary apiaries, the area is sown with flowering crops that produce large amounts of pollen and nectar. In economic terms, this measure is multifunctional; plants are used as animal feed, used in industry, and are raw materials for bee products.
Sunflower
Sunflowers are cultivated in the Black Earth zone, in the South, and Transcaucasia. A crop for industrial and agricultural purposes, oil is produced from the seeds, and the cake is used to feed livestock. Sunflowers bloom in mid-July, lasting 30 days.
The sunflower grows up to 1.8 m, forms 1 thick stem, on which there are large oblong leaves with jagged edges. At the end of the stem there are large inflorescences. The core of the basket consists of numerous small tubular flowers. The edges of the petals are orange; their function is to attract pollinators with color and smell. Nectar collection time is the first half of the day. A strong family collects up to 4 kg of nectar per day. Over the entire period, the honey plant produces 65 kg per 1 hectare.
White mustard
Mustard is a cruciferous, dicotyledonous plant, distributed throughout Russia. In the wild it grows on roadsides and wastelands.It is purposefully planted around apiaries; the flowers produce a large amount of pollen and are a honey plant. The flowering period is 30 days, from June to July.
Description of mustard:
- height 65 cm;
- the herbaceous bush is formed by long, thin, rigid stems, branched at the top;
- foliage is intense, the leaves are elongated, pinnate, and form from the middle of the stem;
- bright yellow flowers are collected in large inflorescences of 70 pieces. and more.
Nectar collection takes place throughout the daylight hours. The honey productivity of the plant is 80 kg/1 ha.
Sweet clover
The most widespread and productive honey plant belongs to the legume family. Distributed everywhere except the Far North. Flowers form gradually, so the flowering time is from early July to late September. Planted near large beekeeping farms to increase productivity. Sweet clover honey belongs to the elite category.
Grows up to 1.5 m. The inflorescences are bright yellow, collected in long racemes. Trifoliate leaves with sharp small teeth along the edge. Sweet clover blooms en masse, regardless of weather conditions, constantly produces large amounts of nectar and pollen, and has a strong aroma. Bees take raw materials for honey throughout the day. Produces up to 200 kg of nectar per 1 ha.
A stationary apiary located on a personal farmstead requires close proximity of honey-bearing flowers for greater honey productivity. Honey flowers for planting in a garden plot are chosen according to the climatic characteristics of the region. To provide bees with raw materials, the timing of flowering and honey productivity are taken into account. The design factor plays an important role.
Colchicum honey plant
Honey-bearing flowers for bees are formed by the perennial colchicum or winterer. The representative of the lily family belongs to the latest honey plants. Leaves and fruits appear in spring, blooms in autumn - from early September to early November. This development is not typical for bulbous plants; the plant got its name due to the unusual growing season.
External description:
- up to 15 cm high;
- perianth with fused petals;
- the shape of a light purple flower in the form of a thin funnel, elongated at the base;
- leaves are round, dark green, few in number.
In the wild it grows in wetlands and wet meadows. Colchicum mellifera flower is planted in the garden especially for bees with daughter bulbs. Honey productivity is difficult to determine; winterberry nectar is part of polyfloral (mixed) honey.
Swamp aster honey plant
Swamp aster (flood aster, salt marsh aster) is a biennial plant of the Asteraceae family. It grows in saline meadows in the southeast of the European part of the Russian Federation, Western Siberia, Crimea, and the Caucasus. The main accumulation is on the floodplains of the Kuban. Honey plant blooms in autumn from the second ten days of July to the end of September.
Description of the flower:
- height – up to 45 cm;
- a large number of thin, branched stems are formed from the root;
- the lower leaves are large in the form of an elongated oval, lanceolate with smooth edges, the stem leaves are narrow and elongated;
- flower baskets are light blue, located at the ends of the branches.
Valued as an autumn honey plant, the peak of flowering occurs in mid-September, when most of the plants have faded. Aster produces a large amount of nectar, the honey is light and transparent. The honey productivity of the plant is 100 kg/1 ha.
Chamomile honey plant
A honey plant for the garden - Dalmatian chamomile - fits well into the landscape. It occupies a leading position in nectar production among representatives of its species. Not found in the wild. Prefers a warm climate, common in the south, Rostov region, and North Caucasus.
It blooms in early May and is the first source of nectar after the bees hibernate. Spring chamomile honey quickly crystallizes and is used by bees for nutrition and feeding their offspring.
The perennial flower has a deep root system; in spring it forms numerous stems that reach up to 70 cm. The leaves are round in shape, formed at the base of the stem, flowers - on its upper part. The inflorescences are medium in size with a bright yellow center and white petals on the edge.
The duration of chamomile flowering is 1 month. Honey productivity – 65 kg per 1 ha.
Lilac
The perennial shrub grows wild in Bulgaria and the Southern Carpathians. In Russia, lilacs are planted throughout the territory up to Western Siberia. It blooms at the end of April, the flowering period is 65 days.
External description of the honey plant:
- bush height – up to 8 m;
- the crown is spreading, the branches are gray with a brown tint;
- leaves with a smooth surface, heart-shaped;
- inflorescences are collected in long cone-shaped racemes;
- Depending on the variety, the flowers are blue, white, crimson, purple.
Lilacs release essential oils, their scent attracts bees. Honey obtained from the nectar of the bush is part of the mixed honey; the productivity of the plant is not determined.
What flowers bloom in May for bees?
The main production of honey by bees occurs in the summer.Spring honey is produced in smaller quantities; insects do not use it for winter storage. Used to feed adults, queens and brood. There are quite a few May honey flowers for bees growing in the wild.
Dandelion
One of the early spring flowers from the aster family. Grows everywhere in the wild. Dandelion supports honey flow after bees hibernate. Blooms in early May, flowering period is within 25 days.
Perennial 20-30 cm high. From the root it produces lanceolate leaves of light green color. The inflorescence is located on a stem-arrow and consists of many thin, long yellow petals.
Nectar collection is carried out by bees in the first half of the day. In cloudy weather, the inflorescences do not open and the dandelion does not produce nectar. 1 hectare produces 17 kg of honey. It is not stored for a long time and has a specific bitter taste.
Coltsfoot
Perennial plant of the Asteraceae family. Distributed throughout Russia. Grows in high places:
- slopes of ravines;
- railway embankment;
- on the side of the roads.
The growing season begins at the first spring thaw, flowering begins in early April, lasting 40 days.
Coltsfoot has a strong creeping rhizome, from which short stems grow in the form of shoots. On each, a bright yellow inflorescence is formed, consisting of reed flowers along the edge, tubular in the center.
One of the first spring honey plants, so bees actively fly around the plant, not missing a single flower. Honey productivity – 18 kg/1ha. Honey is light, thin, with a pleasant smell and taste.
Honey plant flowers blooming in summer
The main types of honey flowers begin to bloom from June to September, during the period of harvesting honey for the winter.A diverse number of them grow throughout Russia; the plants are mainly classified as weeds. Most species grow in meadows, floodplains, forest edges, and wastelands on roadsides.
Chicory honey plant
A perennial plant of the Asteraceae family, found throughout the Russian Federation. Chicory grows on roadsides and can form dense thickets in vacant lots. The plant belongs to the summer honey plants, flowering occurs from the beginning of July to mid-August, approximately 40-45 days.
External characteristics:
- height 150 cm;
- forms several upright branched stems;
- the lower leaves are pinnate, the surface is rough, dark green with a light central vein, the stem leaves are lanceolate, growing sparsely, small, sharp;
- flowers are formed from the middle of the stem in the leaf axils, flower baskets are blue or light blue.
Chicory is characterized by high productivity of nectar and pollen; the harvest is 80 kg per 1 ha.
Cornflower meadow plant
Meadow cornflower belongs to the Aster family. Habitat:
- European;
- Non-chernozem zone;
- North Caucasus.
It is found on flat terrain, meadows, mountain slopes, forest edges and clearings. It is classified as a weed if it is found among crops. Flowering period is 75 days, from June to September.
External characteristics of the honey plant:
- grows up to 1 m in height;
- stems are straight, ribbed, with many shoots;
- the lower leaves are large, lanceolate, the lower ones are narrow, long, pointed;
- flower baskets are solitary, the flowers are funnel-shaped along the edge, the central tubular lilac-pink.
The plant produces nectar and pollen, yielding 112 kg per 1 ha. Honey is thick, dark, and does not crystallize for a long time.
Cornflower field honey plant
Field cornflower belongs to the Asteraceae family, an asteraceous perennial plant distributed throughout Russia and the former CIS countries. A drought-resistant plant produces nectar during the dry season and is often the only source of pollen when other plants stop growing due to lack of moisture.
It grows in the arid lands of the steppe zone, forest edges, and roadsides. Refers to weeds with a well-developed root system. The flowering period of the honey plant is the end of June, the beginning of August.
Honey plant description:
- height – 85 cm;
- stems erect with numerous shoots;
- flower baskets are single, located at the top of the stems;
- tubular petals are bright blue.
1 flower contains 5 portions of pollen. Nectar harvest from 1 ha – 130 kg.
Geranium meadow plant
A herbaceous perennial, meadow geranium is found near roads, on forest edges, and grows in meadows and along the banks of reservoirs. The flowering period is 70 days, from June to August.
It grows in the form of a low herbaceous bush, the flowers are numerous, small in size, bright blue or purple. As a rule, geranium grows away from the apiary.
The plant's honey productivity is low - 52 kg/1 ha, subject to continuous planting.
Kulbaba
Kulbaba belongs to the aster family. The perennial honey plant grows in the Caucasus and the European part of Russia in meadows and forest edges. Blooms from June to early October.
The stems of the flower are erect, reaching a height of up to 65 cm. The basket-shaped inflorescences are located at the top of the stem. The flowers are ligulate, yellow. The honey flower produces nectar even at an air temperature of +50 C.The value of the plant is that in the fall there are only a few flowering honey plants left. Productivity – 100 kg/1 ha.
Chernogolovka
The blackhead is widespread throughout the Russian Federation, growing along river banks, in bush thickets, in meadows, and in wetlands. The plant blooms within a month, from June to July.
The perennial honey plant reaches a height of up to 35 cm. The rhizome is creeping, the plant grows quickly. Chernogolovka is rapidly occupying empty territories. The flowers are blue or purple, collected in spike-shaped inflorescences. The plant is a good honey plant; bees collect nectar and pollen from the plant all day long. Honey productivity of blackhead is 95 kg per 1 ha.
Mint
Mint belongs to the Lamiaceae family. The perennial plant grows up to 0.5 m; there are specimens no higher than 20 cm. It is classified as a weed. Mint is found in fields, among plantings, and in the boundary part of vegetable gardens. Thickets of mint are located along river banks, old riverbeds, roadsides, and in empty wet areas. Flowering time is July-September.
Honey plant with dense foliage on numerous stems. The flowers are light pink, collected in dense whorls in the shape of an elongated oval. Inflorescences form in the axils of the upper leaves. Mint honey production is long-lasting, but small - 62 kg/1 ha.
Conclusion
Honey-bearing flowers with photos and names will help you decide on the choice for planting in the garden, so that the bees are provided with nectar from spring to autumn. The best species for mass plantings over large areas near beekeeping farms are presented. The general characteristics of wild plants will help you decide on a parking location for outdoor apiaries.
