So, why are honey bees such important pollinators?
From an ecological point of view there are at least 3 reasons:
Honeybees have evolved in tandem with certain flowers and they have adapted to facilitate each other;
One bee is able to rapidly communicate the location of a pollen/nectar source to the whole hive and an army sets out;
The bees then concentrate faithfully on that flower species until the pollen runs out or the nectar dries up, at which point the job of pollination is accomplished.
These features obviously make the honey bee important from an agricultural/commercial point of view. In addition, hives of bees are mobile and can be moved from crop to crop – an arrangement which can suit bees, farmers and beekeepers so long as everyone has a bit of respect. Wouldn’t that be great?
There really isn’t much about for the bees in November but when the weather permits they really do love the Mahonia for that little bit of fresh nectar.
The gorse is in flower – again. The main flowering time for Ulex europaeus is March to June but it will also flower sporadically in winter.
Another species of gorse present in Ireland is U.gallii or Dwarf Furze which flowers from July to September. Between the two of them they manage to give the impression that the gorse is always in flower.
Berberis darwinii is a great shrub for honey bees – yeilding a nice supply of early nectar and ample greenish pollen in the spring. Continue reading Bee flowers – Berberis→
