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getting more honey bees
Posted: June 7th, 2011, 2:14 pm
by muradulislam
Tomorrow I'll be getting two more honey bee Langstroth hives from a friend in forestry department
As my garden can't sustain them so will feed them apricot(inferior quality, which we don't eat and are wasted) juice and will hope to have at least one harvest before winter.
Re: getting more honey bees
Posted: June 7th, 2011, 4:27 pm
by Izhar
I love to have a Langstroth hive... Murad why dont you plant sunflowers, duranta, zinnias, cosmos, salvias etc they are loved by bees and are filled with nectar...
Re: getting more honey bees
Posted: June 7th, 2011, 8:52 pm
by muradulislam
Izhar wrote:I love to have a Langstroth hive... Murad why dont you plant sunflowers, duranta, zinnias, cosmos, salvias etc they are loved by bees and are filled with nectar...
From all of above i only know the sunflowers
, will research others and will see whether ican get them or not, i want flowers blooming in summer and fall as spring flowers are plentiful on natural trees here in our locality. plz name some for me.
Re: getting more honey bees
Posted: June 8th, 2011, 9:44 am
by Izhar
Lagerstroemia commonly known as Crape myrtle or Crepe myrtle is a beautiful shrub/small tree... bees love it, in Karachi I have seen three varieties dark purple, light purple and white... they are blooming right now and are surrounded by bees...
You can get Zinnia, Rudbeckia, Cosmos & Gaillardia from seed stores like Sunny View seeds, here is their contact number 03219401925 (Mian Farooq Sb.) give them a call and ask for these seeds, they will send you seeds at home via V.P.P and the postman will collect payment from you.
These all plants re-seed easily and are adored by bees. Duranta is a shrub which has many cultivars but the dark blue flowering is the best and blooms profusely throughout the year.
Other bee friendly plants include Basil like Niaz-bo (Holy Basil) & Tulsi and vegetables like cucumber, kakri (Armenian cucumber), melons. Brassica family like mustard (sarson), broccoli, turnips. Umbelliferae family like Fennel (saunf), carrots, cumin (zeera), coriander (dhaniya). Asteraceae family like Chrysanthemums (gul-e-dawoodi), gerberas, marigolds, asters, calendulas (pot marigolds), osteospermums.
Re: getting more honey bees
Posted: June 8th, 2011, 9:50 am
by muradulislam
Wow, Thanks Izhar. I'll definitely have some of these for my bees. Researching them now to see suitable ones for me.
Re: getting more honey bees
Posted: June 8th, 2011, 10:17 am
by tweedle2009
Bees love Chinese Love Vine,Rhododendron,Azaleas, which will definitely suit your climate as well.
Re: getting more honey bees
Posted: June 8th, 2011, 10:24 am
by Izhar
tweedle2009 wrote:Bees love Chinese Love Vine,Rhododendron,Azaleas, which will definitely suit your climate as well.
Adnan azaleas and rhododendrons produce toxic nectar.
From Wikipedia:
honey produced from nectar of Rhododendron ponticum (also known as Azalea pontica) contains alkaloids that are poisonous to humans but do not harm bees.
Re: getting more honey bees
Posted: June 8th, 2011, 10:51 am
by muradulislam
Thanks to both of you for information. whenever i plan to buy a seed, i at least research that plant for an hour and then decide about it and that's why i have not bought a single plant(seed) till date
Anyways researching your suggestions and i think this time i may end up buying, all you mentioned.
Re: getting more honey bees
Posted: June 8th, 2011, 10:54 am
by Izhar
dear Murad, do let us know what characteristics you are looking for, we can help you finding...
Re: getting more honey bees
Posted: June 9th, 2011, 8:04 pm
by tweedle2009
Now that's strange.I've always found these in list of plants that bees love.