Honey Plants - Curious Web Page w/ Unusual Claims

[Vetch]

Are there any plants that yield 1000 pounds of honey per acre?? I just came across >> This Page << which has numbers for typical honey yield per acre of various bee plants.  Are these realistic, or are they way high? 

[Keith13]

Never knew clover could grow to 6' tall!
is that true maybe 18" but 6' WOW

[Vetch]

Woa - I didn't notice that (not interested in bringing more clover honey into the world).  6 foot sounds like a tall tale. All the white clover on the roadside here is really short, even when not mowed that often. But I found one credible source saying it can get to 5 feet on the second year. 

http://dnr.wi.gov/invasives/fact/clovers_white.htm

[Keith13]

I just read the article I think I'm thinking of a different type of white clover. nothing like the picture in the article

[Keith13]

this is what I was thinking of

[Vetch]

Ok. That seems to be Trifolium repens, while the 6 foot white clover is Melilotus alba.  I also was thinking of Trifolium.

[ooptec]

Hey,

Here in SK this is what we refer to as white clover, and it also comes in yellow tho the white is purported to be a excellent honey producer and 6-8 feet high is common. Blooms for a good month or so too.



cheers

peter

[Cindi]

Wow, Peter, that is pretty darn cool that this grows in Saskatchewan.  Never seen it here.  It is unbelievable that clover can grow to that height, what beauty.  Have that most beautiful and wonder-filled day, Cindi

[Jessaboo]

Great resource page - I don't know about those honey totals but I like the way it is broken down.

Anyone got viper's bugloss (echium) seeds - I have a few railroad tracks where I could lay it down. Sounds like I don't want them in my garden anymore than I want thistle!

Found an article that says phacelia is sometimes used as a cover crop - guess as long as it doesn't go to seed it would work as both cover crop and honeybee forage.

Thanks for the link.

- Jess

[Ross]

It's called sweet clover, both white and yellow are bi-annual.  Hubam is a white annual variety.  4-6 feet tall is common.  The roots go down 8 feet.  It's very good for re-conditioning land, even salty land, and it's very drought resistant.  It's considered invasive in some areas.  You have to be cautious with it where cattle graze.
http://www.ag.ndsu.edu/pubs/plantsci/hay/r862w.htm

[jimmyo]

I just planted some yellow and some white sweet clover to see how it works around here.  If any of it grows well and the bees like it I'll plant more in the pasture. I'm also trying buckwheat and a couple other clovers.  there's a garden supply in Ca that sells seed by the single pound if you want it.
Jim

[Cindi]

Phacelia is a wonderful cover crop and the bees are nuts on it.  Letting it go to seed, well, I haven't replanted it in the original garden spot since I sowed that seed.  I have ripped out thousands and thousands of plants to keep a decent level so that they grow better, with about a foot between each plant, hundreds and thousands more will germinate, not to mention all the new places on my property where I have sown the seed this year.

I gathered about 10 pounds of seeds last year from my phacelia, that was alot of dried flower heads, winnowed to get the seed separated from the chaff. I had to use a fan to blow that chaff and let the seeds fall below into a garbage can.  Just a part of my life.  Beautiful and most wonderful day, loving and grooving on life.  Cindi