Any melliferous shrub is just as important for the apiary as meadow, field, garden and forest plants are nectar plants. After all, the main task of the beekeeper is to ensure the most uninterrupted bribe during the entire warm period. It is with the help of shrubs, or rather their competent selection in terms of flowering time in a particular area, that you can significantly increase the productivity of your apiary.
The content of the article
- 1 The importance of uninterrupted honey collection
- 2 Why do apiaries roam
- 2.1 Wild bushes
- 3 Live hedges for stationary apiaries
- 4 What is planted depending on the climatic zone
The importance of uninterrupted honey collection
The fodder base is one of the most important factors in the development of the apiary. Due to it, two main types of honey collection are provided at once:
- developing, not profitable, but allowing you to get strong and healthy bee colonies;
- and marketable, which gives the beekeeper the opportunity to earn more or less.
Accordingly, the main task of the beekeeper is to ensure an uninterrupted bribe. Not in all localities in the area of summer apiaries constantly bloom melliferous plants. Blooming breaks are common. Therefore, in the surrounding area, bushes and trees are planted, flowering sequentially (one after another).
The beekeeper studies local plants, and records the sequence of their flowering in a special journal. It will take more than one year of observations to reveal all the advantages and disadvantages of the food supply in a particular area. Much will depend not only on the climate, but also on the weather. The flowering calendar will help to identify the best types of shrubs – mistakes in the formation of the honey base will be minimized.
Why do apiaries roam
It is important to understand that the stationary keeping of bees rarely ensures uninterrupted collection of nectar and pollen throughout the season.
Read: Advantages of a stationary home apiary
Usually, there are two or three peaks in bribe per year with the highest honey yield. And between them there are long non-takings periods. At this time, migration is shown, for example, to windbreaks, woodlands, park areas, large gardens.
Read: Wandering – features and prospects for the beekeeper
Honey plants, bushes for bees are of great value! Although they grow unevenly (much depends on the climatic zone, type of forest, peculiarities of plant associations), stable incomes are provided to the apiary.
Wild bushes
In a word, thickets of wild bushes are a valuable food base, especially for nomadic apiaries. Consider some of the most popular among beekeepers.
Heather undergrowth can be found in pine and birch forests. This evergreen bush is a real long-liver – in one place it can live up to 40 years or more. Readily grown by gardeners and landscape designers due to its spectacular appearance. Provides up to 200 kilograms of marketable honey per hectare.
Read more here: Heather as a melliferous plant
Different types of honeysuckle Is another type of wild undergrowth in pine forests. Its edible varieties are successfully used in horticulture. The productivity of nectar per hectare depends on the variety.
Learn more in our article: The value of honeysuckle as a honey plant
All numerous varieties of hawthorngrowing in our country are excellent honey plants. This shrub is found in the wild in pine forests, alder and aspen forests. Unfortunately, it does not grow en masse on the territory of Russia and Ukraine. It is used in urban greening, as well as hedges. Yields up to 100 kilograms of honey per hectare.
Read more here: The value of hawthorn as a honey plant
Elder native plant for the mountainous regions of Europe and Western Ukraine. Found in southern Russia, Moldova and Belarus. The productivity of nectar depends on the variety. According to some reports, the plant is mainly a pollen. Included in the undergrowth of pine forests.
Read more: Elderberry and its value as a honey plant
Rowan – an inhabitant of the blueberry pine forest and birch forest. The black chokeberry (chokeberry) is an ornamental plant. Average productivity: from 30 to 40 kilograms of marketable honey per hectare.
Details here: Benefits of mountain ash as a honey plant
Holdtree – a wild shrub from the buckthorn family. Found in the Crimea, as well as in the southern regions of Russia and Ukraine. It is able to form a reliable thorny fence, but at the same time it is capricious in the release of nectar – there are completely lean years. Valuable for nomadic apiaries. Bee colonies can collect up to 70 kilograms of marketable honey from a hectare of thickets of “Christ’s thorn”.
Read: Hold the tree (hold the tree)
Wild olive or goof – an inhabitant of river coasts and valleys, growing everywhere in garden and park areas. For apiaries, the most valuable is a narrow-leaved shrub variety.
All the details are here: Loch
Live hedges for stationary apiaries
A suitable honey plant is often used to enclose apiaries.
First, the apiary area needs to be protected from unwanted visitors and animals.
Secondly, living fences serve as an obstacle for the north and east winds prevailing in the area, and also protect against snow drifts and dust in summer (important when placing hives in open areas, near busy highways).
Hedges – honey plants (the most famous species):
Irga – a popular decorative planting of park and garden areas of the Caucasus, North America, Crimea, Europe. It is able to form a very dense fence that reliably protects the apiary from stray dogs and stray visitors. The plant provides a late spring supporting bribe.
More here: The value of irgi as a honey plant
Barberry – ornamental shrub honey plant, numbering in culture more than 45 species. Distributed in southern and central Europe, some varieties thrive in Eastern Siberia, Asia and the Caucasus. The main advantage of such a live fence is the edible and very healthy fruits. The shrub is absolutely unpretentious to grow. And at the same time it gives up to 230 kilograms of marketable honey per season.
Read more: The value of barberry as a honey plant
О honeysuckle we have already mentioned above, as a productive wild plant, which gives a good collection of nectar. Its edible variety is cultivated near apiaries in the Far East and Siberia. The most productive in terms of nectar production is honeysuckle – a variety growing in the Caucasus and Southern Europe.
Sea buckthorn – mediocre, but very useful honey plant. Found in almost all Russian regions. It is highly regarded in medicine and cosmetology. The fruits are used in cooking for the preparation of juices, compotes, wine. Reliable hedges are formed from sea buckthorn bushes. The plant is unpretentious – easily tolerates droughts and frosts, undemanding to the quality of the soil.
More here: Sea buckthorn as a honey plant
Shrub amorph came to us from North America. This is a good honey plant, which gives bee colonies supporting bribes at the beginning of summer. The shrub has fully adapted to the climatic conditions of Asian and European regions. Possessing beautiful inflorescences, the honey plant is a real decoration for any landscape design. In the Black Earth Region, it can produce up to 100 kilograms of honey per hectare.
Read: Shrub amorph
What is planted depending on the climatic zone
Separately, I would like to note that honey plants are selected for a specific climatic zone:
- in the forest-steppe, these are honeysuckle, hazel, wild rose, sea buckthorn, Tatar maple (this is a shrub variety) and yellow acacia (also a bushy variety);
- in a temperate dry zone – honeysuckle, hawthorn, yellow acacia;
- on fertile black soil – wild rose, mountain ash, honeysuckle, Tatar maple, dogwood.
A distance of about a third of a meter is left between adjacent bushes. It is advisable to plant 2-3 rows of plants. Within two or three years, a fence, especially a thorny fence, will begin to perform all its functions – to reliably fence and protect.
