Flowers honey plants for bees

Honey plants with photos and names will help you choose plants that are the main suppliers of pollen and nectar for honey production. Different periods of flowering 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 in the process of collecting nectar are the main pollinators of flowering plants. The variety of flora directly depends on insects and butterflies that feed on nectar. To collect 1 g of honey, a bee flies about 5000 flowers a day. Pollinates up to 15 per minute. Therefore, the closer the honey plants are, the less time the bees spend on the flight.

There are several criteria by which insects choose an object for collecting nectar. Frequently visited flowers:

• bright yellow;
• pink;
• purple.

The main accumulation of bees on blue flowers honey plants. Bees, unlike humans, perceive the color scheme differently, except for blue. For them it is bright, as well as for us. In comparison, orange is seen by bees as light yellow with a green tint.

The signal for the bees is the aroma, the stronger the smell emitted by the flowers, the more nectar can be collected. On odorless plants, pollinators are practically not found. Flowers unattractive to bees are red and white. Near the purple and white lilacs planted nearby, the cluster of bees will be on the first.

Garden flowers honey plants

For greater productivity, beehives with bees are taken closer to the fields with honey plants. Near stationary apiaries, the territory is sown with flowering crops that produce a large amount of pollen and nectar. In economic terms, this measure is multifunctional, plants are fed to animals, used in industry, and are raw materials for bee products.

Sunflower

Sunflowers are cultivated in the Chernozem zone, in the South, Transcaucasia. Culture for industrial and agricultural purposes, oil is produced from seeds, cake is used for livestock feed. Sunflower blooms in mid-July, duration – 30 days.

A sunflower grows up to 1,8 m, forms 1 thick stem, on which large oblong leaves with jagged edges are located. At the end of the stem are large inflorescences. The core of the basket consists of numerous small tubular flowers. On the edge of the petals are orange, their function is to attract pollinators with color and smell. The time for collecting nectar is the first half of the day. A strong family collects up to 4 kg of nectar per day. For the entire period, the honey plant gives 65 kg per 1 ha.

Mustard white

Mustard is a cruciferous, dicotyledonous plant, distributed throughout Our Country. In the wild, it grows on roadsides, wastelands. It is purposefully planted around apiaries, the flowers give a large amount of pollen, and are a honey plant. Flowering period – 30 days, from June to July.

Mustard Description:

• height 65 cm;
• a herbaceous bush is formed by long, thin, stiff stems, branched from above;
• foliage is intense, leaves are elongated, pinnate, formed from the middle of the stem;
• bright yellow flowers are collected in large inflorescences of 70 pcs. and more.

The collection of nectar takes place all daylight hours. The honey productivity of the plant is 80 kg / 1 ha.

Donnik

The most common and productive honey plant belongs to the legume family. Distributed everywhere except the Far North. It forms flowers gradually, so the flowering time is from early July to late September. Planted near large bee farms to increase productivity. Sweet clover honey belongs to the elite category.

It grows up to 1,5 m. The inflorescences are bright yellow, collected from long brushes. Trifoliate leaves with sharp small teeth along the edge. Sweet clover blooms massively, regardless of weather conditions, constantly produces a large amount of nectar and pollen, has a strong aroma. Bees take raw materials for honey throughout the day. Gives up to 200 kg of nectar from 1 ha.

For a stationary apiary located in a private courtyard, for greater honey productivity, a close arrangement of honey flowers is necessary. Honey flowers for planting in a garden plot are selected according to the climatic features of the region. To provide bees with raw materials, the timing of flowering and honey productivity are taken into account. Not the last role is played by the design factor.

Honeydew honeybee

Honey flowers for bees are formed by perennial colchicum or wintering. The representative of the lily family belongs to the latest honey plants. Leaves and fruits appear in spring, bloom in autumn – in early September until early November. Such development is not characteristic of bulbous, because of the unusual vegetation, the plant got its name.

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 rounded, dark green, few.

In the wild, it grows in wetlands, wet meadows. A colchicum flower is planted in the garden, especially for bees, with daughter bulbs. It is difficult to determine the honey productivity, wintering nectar is part of polyfloral (mixed) honey.

Honey plant aster marsh

Aster marsh (flooded, saline) is a biennial plant of the Compositae family. It grows in saline meadows of the southeast of the European part of the Federation, Western Siberia, Crimea, and the Caucasus. The main accumulation is on the floodplains of the Kuban. Flower-melliferous autumn flowering from the second decade of July to the end of September.

Flower Description:

• height – up to 45 cm;
• a large number of thin, branched stems form from the root;
• the lower leaves are large in the form of an elongated oval, lanceolate with smooth edges, stem narrow, elongated;
• flower baskets are light blue in color, located at the ends of the branches.

Valued as an autumn honey plant, flowering peaks in mid-September, when most of the plants have faded. Astra produces a large amount of nectar, the honey is light, transparent. The honey productivity of the plant is 100 kg / 1 ha.

Honey chamomile

The flower-honey plant for the garden fits well into the landscape – Dalmatian chamomile. It occupies a leading position in the production of nectar among representatives of its species. Does not occur in the wild. Prefers a warm climate, common in the south, the Rostov region, the North Caucasus.

Blooms in early May and is the first source of nectar after the hibernation of bees. Spring honey from chamomile quickly crystallizes and is used by bees to feed and feed offspring.

The perennial flower has a deep root system, in the spring it forms numerous stems that reach up to 70 cm. The leaves are rounded, formed at the base of the stem, flowers – on its upper part. Medium-sized inflorescences with a bright yellow center and white petals along the edge.

The duration of flowering chamomile is 1 month. Honey productivity – 65 kg per 1 ha.

Lilac

A perennial shrub in the wild grows in Bulgaria, the Southern Carpathians. In Our Country, lilacs are planted throughout the territory to Western Siberia. It blooms at the end of April, the flowering period is 65 days.

External description of a honey plant flower:

• shrub 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 brushes;
• depending on the variety, the flowers are blue, white, crimson, purple.

Lilacs release essential oils, their smell attracts bees. Honey obtained from the nectar of the bush is included in the composition of the mixed one, the productivity of the plant has not been determined.

What flowers bloom in May for bees

The main harvesting of honey by bees falls on the summer period. Spring honey is produced in smaller quantities; insects do not use it for winter laying. Goes to feed adults, uterus and brood. There are quite a few May flowers-honey plants for bees growing in the wild.

Dandelion

One of the early spring flowers from the aster family. Grows in the wild everywhere. Dandelion supports the honey flow after the hibernation of the bees. Blooms in early May, flowering period within 25 days.

Perennial 20-30 cm high. From the root gives lanceolate leaves of light green color. The inflorescence is located on the stem-arrow, consists of many thin, long yellow petals.

Nectar is collected by bees in the morning. In cloudy weather, the inflorescences do not open, the dandelion does not produce nectar. From 1 hectare you get 17 kg of honey. It is not stored for a long time, has a specific bitter taste.

Mother and stepmother

Perennial plant of the Asteraceae family. Distributed throughout Our Country. Grows in high places

• slopes of ravines;
• railway embankment;
• on the side of the road.

The vegetation period begins with the first spring thaw, flowering – in early April, lasting 40 days.

The coltsfoot has a strong creeping rhizome, from which short stems grow in the form of processes. 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 the bees actively fly around the plant without missing a single flower. Honey productivity – 18 kg / 1 ha. Honey is light, sparse with a pleasant smell and taste.

Flowers honey plants blooming in summer

The main types of honey flowers begin flowering from June to September, during the period of honey harvesting for the winter. Their diverse number grows throughout Our Country, plants are mainly classified as weeds. Most species grow in meadows, floodplains, forest edges, wastelands on roadsides.

Honey chicory

A perennial plant of the Compositae family, found throughout the territory of the Federation. Chicory grows on roadsides, in wastelands it can form dense thickets. The plant belongs to summer honey plants, flowering occurs from early July to mid-August, approximately 40-45 days.

External characteristic:

• height 150 cm;
• forms several upright branched stems;
• the lower leaves are pinnate, the surface is rough, dark green with a light central vein, stem lanceolate grow rarely, small, sharp;
• flowers are formed from the middle of the stem in leaf axils, flower baskets are blue or blue.

Chicory is characterized by high productivity of nectar and pollen, the collection is 80 kg per 1 ha.

Meadow honeysuckle

Meadow cornflower belongs to the aster family. Growth area:

• European;
• Non-chernozem zone;
• North Caucasus.

It occurs on flat terrain, meadows, mountain slopes, forest edges and clearings. Refers to weed grass, if found among crops. Flowering period – 75 days, from June to September.

External characteristics of the honey plant:

• grows in height up to 1 m;
• stems are straight, ribbed, with many shoots;
• the lower leaves are large lanceolate, the lower ones are narrow, long, pointed;
• flower baskets solitary, funnel-shaped flowers along the edge, central tubular lilac-pink.

The plant produces nectar and pollen, yields 112 kg per 1 ha. Honey is thick, dark, does not crystallize for a long time.

Field honey cornflower

Field cornflower belongs to the Aster family, a composite perennial plant distributed throughout Our Country and the former CIS countries. The drought tolerant 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 on arid lands of the steppe zone, forest edges, 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.

Description honey bee:

• height – 85 cm;
• stems erect with numerous shoots;
• flower baskets solitary, located at the top of the stems;
• tubular petals are bright blue.

1 flower contains 5 servings of pollen. Nectar harvest from 1 ha – 130 kg.

Geranium meadow honey plant

Herbaceous perennial, meadow geranium is found near roads, on the edges, grows in meadows, along the banks of reservoirs. Flowering period – 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. Grows, as a rule, geranium away from the apiary.

The honey productivity of the plant is low – 52 kg / 1 ha, with the condition of continuous planting.

Dandelion

Kulbaba belongs to the aster family. Perennial honey plant grows in the Caucasus and the European part of Our Country in meadows and forest edges. Blooms from June to early October.

 The stems of the flower are upright growing, reach a height of up to 65 cm. Basket-shaped inflorescences are located at the top of the stem. Flowers ligulate, yellow. The honey flower produces nectar even at an air temperature of +5⁰ C. The value of the plant is that there are only a few flowering honey plants in autumn. Productivity – 100 kg / 1 ha.

Blackhead

The blackhead is distributed throughout the Federation, grows along the banks of rivers, in shrubs, in meadows, in wetlands. The plant blooms within a month, from June to July.

Perennial honey plant reaches a height of up to 35 cm. The rhizome is creeping, the vegetation of the plant is fast. Chernogolovka is rapidly occupying empty territories. The flowers are blue or purple, collected in inflorescences in the form of an ear. The plant belongs to good honey plants, bees collect nectar and pollen from the plant all day long. The honey productivity of the blackhead is 95 kg per 1 ha.

Mint

Mint belongs to the mint family. A perennial plant grows up to 0,5 m, there are specimens no higher than 20 cm. It belongs to weeds. Mint is found in fields, among plantings, in the boundary part of vegetable gardens. Thickets of mint are located along the banks of rivers, old channels, roadsides, in empty wet areas. Flowering time – 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 are formed in the axils of the upper leaves. The mint honey plant is long, but small – 62 kg / 1 ha.

Conclusion

Honey plants with photos and names will help you make a choice for planting in the garden so that the bees are provided with nectar from spring to autumn. The best species for mass plantings on a large area near beekeeping farms are presented. The general characteristics of wild plants will help determine the parking place for visiting apiaries.