Beemaster's International Beekeeping Forum

BEEKEEPING LEARNING CENTER => GENERAL BEEKEEPING - MAIN POSTING FORUM. => Topic started by: Dane Bramage on July 22, 2009, 12:45:12 am

Title: Spanish Lavender & Mimosa
Post by: Dane Bramage on July 22, 2009, 12:45:12 am
Spanish Lavender & Mimosa on the menu today.

(http://i27.tinypic.com/5b3atz.jpg)

(http://i32.tinypic.com/2uihyrn.jpg)

(http://i30.tinypic.com/20pvtog.jpg)

(http://i29.tinypic.com/2d9v0k8.jpg)

(http://i26.tinypic.com/sflcgk.jpg)

(http://i25.tinypic.com/2elaxc6.jpg)

(http://i30.tinypic.com/30vdgkn.jpg)

(http://i25.tinypic.com/1231dav.jpg)

(http://i31.tinypic.com/r2jmyp.jpg)
Title: Re: Spanish Lavender & Mimosa
Post by: David Stokely on July 22, 2009, 02:17:54 am
I love your pictures.
Title: Re: Spanish Lavender & Mimosa
Post by: adgjoan on July 22, 2009, 06:44:22 am
Beautiful!
Joan
Title: Re: Spanish Lavender & Mimosa
Post by: irekkin on July 22, 2009, 07:04:08 am
i was wondering about mimosa. it's been in bloom around here for about a month but i don't have any growing near me. now i know. thanks
Title: Re: Spanish Lavender & Mimosa
Post by: Irwin on July 22, 2009, 10:07:21 am
Dane great pic's thanks for sharing.
Title: Re: Spanish Lavender & Mimosa
Post by: Dane Bramage on July 22, 2009, 12:27:24 pm
Thanks all, glad you like the images!  :-D

That Mimosa is very challenging!  The bees disappear into the "fluff",  stop at each flower just for a few seconds, it's a tree (rather big too), some wind and swaying wreaking havoc with the focus and.. lucky to get any decent images at all!  (I had a load of deletes!!)  It smells of lovely perfume and the bees (honeybees & bumblers) are all over it. 
(http://i26.tinypic.com/117a7nd.jpg)

It's the end of season for many out here.  Temps in the high 90°s+ are surely not helping.  But where I'm at in the wetlands things will be going strong for quite awhile.  The Blackberry is just finishing up and the purple loosestrife is just starting.  Those are the major producers supplemented by the mimosa, wetlands clover (alsike), birdsfoot trefoil and, to a lesser degree, by the cultivated plants such as jasmines, lavenders, mints and loads of herbs.  I'll have many more images to capture prior to the end of season here!  8-)

Cheers,
Dane
Title: Re: Spanish Lavender & Mimosa
Post by: RyanB on July 23, 2009, 12:58:47 pm
I've been considering getting a Mimosa.  however am told they make a horrible mess as well.

From everything I have read, our flow is over. But you make it sound like there is still some hope to get some more winter stores during the fall?
Title: Re: Spanish Lavender & Mimosa
Post by: lakeman on July 23, 2009, 03:06:49 pm
I've been considering getting a Mimosa.  however am told they make a horrible mess as well.

From everything I have read, our flow is over. But you make it sound like there is still some hope to get some more winter stores during the fall?

Mimosa is a beautifull tree, and fast growing, but is short lived (you see very few large mimosa trees) but are easy to start from seed, and not so messy.
Title: Re: Spanish Lavender & Mimosa
Post by: Dane Bramage on July 23, 2009, 06:12:27 pm
I've been considering getting a Mimosa.  however am told they make a horrible mess as well.

I'd say they are fairly messy.  First it's the dried pom-poms (flowers), then the seed pods
(http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3178/2909731320_7c8a3639f7_m.jpg)
but it's not all that bad.  The cherry blossoms dump a lot more flower petals.. then there is the walnut trees... and, in the Autumn, don't get me started on the massive Poplar's leaf dump!  :roll:  

From everything I have read, our flow is over. But you make it sound like there is still some hope to get some more winter stores during the fall?
Is it your first season at present location?  Beekeeping is like real estate; "location, location, location".  ;)  In general, the entire of the Willamette Valley is past peak & drying.  The 100°s+ forecast for weekend & early next week surely won't help!  :-P  I'm unfamiliar with Lafayette but it looks like a town surrounded by flat farmland.  Do you know what the farmer's within forage range currently have growing?  Are there any wetlands and/or significant reservoirs, creeks, etc., within forage range?   If so you could take a stroll along there and see what's blooming that might give you some estimation.  If you see something like this (purple loosestrife) in the distance ~>
(http://i30.tinypic.com/3525f93.jpg)
You might be in business.
(http://i26.tinypic.com/2u5w30l.jpg)
Also see if there's any birdsfoot trefoil
(http://i27.tinypic.com/xm1nk0.jpg)
that one also lasts/produces well into summer.

Alsike clover & vetch going strong:
(http://i25.tinypic.com/15yckk8.jpg)
I seeded a few acres with Alsike early this spring.

The Jasmine is another one here that is just coming in now.
(http://i30.tinypic.com/rhtzsk.jpg)

and the Anise Hyssop that I planted is suppose to be an excellent producer.  I don't have it going in any significant quantity as yet but do hope to have it growing in large and increasing numbers every successive season.
(http://blueberrytalk.files.wordpress.com/2008/08/pollen-025.jpg)


Mimosa is a beautifull tree, and fast growing, but is short lived (you see very few large mimosa trees) but are easy to start from seed, and not so messy.

Ours must be one of the few.  It is huge.  I'll try to capture a good image of the canopy and trunk.

Cheers,
Dane


Title: Re: Spanish Lavender & Mimosa
Post by: greenismycolor on July 23, 2009, 06:18:53 pm
Great pictures Dane!! Beautiful!
I had 2 huge mimosa for years and the bees tore them up, but some some strange reason they completely died. They've left plenty of seed pods , hoping they'll start again.  Keep the pic's comming.
Title: Re: Spanish Lavender & Mimosa
Post by: RyanB on July 23, 2009, 06:27:48 pm
Very nice pictures!  We have a river about a mile away, as well as a few creeks that feed it.  I've never been to any of them to be honest. For the most part, the farms dont seem to have any flowering things in their fields.  I'll have to take a walk down to the creek. Would be interesting. I know there is TON AND TONS of blackberries down there as I can see them when I drive by.

Thanks for the pics and the info!!
Title: Re: Spanish Lavender & Mimosa
Post by: lakeman on July 23, 2009, 09:01:48 pm
.com/2u5w30l.jpg[/img]

Ours must be one of the few.  It is huge.  I'll try to capture a good image of the canopy and trunk.


That could be because you are in Oregan, never been there, but I believe you have great weather for growth, correct? I know here in SC they usually die before becoming very big. Also you may have a different variety there.
Title: Re: Spanish Lavender & Mimosa
Post by: lakeman on July 23, 2009, 09:10:50 pm
Great pictures Dane!! Beautiful!
I had 2 huge mimosa for years and the bees tore them up, but some some strange reason they completely died. They've left plenty of seed pods , hoping they'll start again.  Keep the pic's comming.

You will probably get some starting from the seed, I know they spring up like weeds in all of my flowerbeds, they are a very intrusive plant, although controllable, and very beautifull.
Title: Re: Spanish Lavender & Mimosa
Post by: sparks on July 23, 2009, 10:06:27 pm
Dane,

Your pictures make me want to pack my bags today and move to your neck of the woods.  Here it has been over 100 every day for a month and EVERYTHING is dead and dry.  I used 65,000 gallons of water last month just to water a 1/4 acre yard.  Keep those beautiful pictures comming. 

The real question is: Where are the recipes?  :-x ;)

Chuck
Title: Re: Spanish Lavender & Mimosa
Post by: greenismycolor on July 23, 2009, 10:19:52 pm
Great pictures Dane!! Beautiful!
I had 2 huge mimosa for years and the bees tore them up, but some some strange reason they completely died. They've left plenty of seed pods , hoping they'll start again.  Keep the pic's comming.

You will probably get some starting from the seed, I know they spring up like weeds in all of my flowerbeds, they are a very intrusive plant, although controllable, and very beautifull.

I know what you mean, I've had to cut 3 that were to close to building and to large to transplant. Maybe the next ones will come in the right place. :rainbowflower:
Title: Re: Spanish Lavender & Mimosa
Post by: Natalie on July 24, 2009, 12:57:12 am
Dane if this is your first year with it you won't believe how big the hyssops gets from the first year to the next.
If its not then you know how nice and big it gets.
I planted some average sized hyssops last year and they are 5 feet tall now.
I planted another dozen this year, the bees love them and they fill in some big areas quite nicely.
I usually buy the anise but have picked up some black adder and blue hills( I think its called) as well this year and they look nice planted together, it has a layered look of slightly different shades purple/blue.

Your pictures are beautiful.
Title: Re: Spanish Lavender & Mimosa
Post by: lakeman on July 24, 2009, 09:10:59 am
Also, if you like Hummingbirds, they love and are atracted to the mimosa tree. Anybody that would like some mimosa seed, if they send me an addressed and stamped envelope, I could send them some when the seed pods dry out, as they are too green at this time. Hey, that would be a good idea for admin, to start a special, and separate (maybe a stickey) seed exchange, for offers, and request for seeds to bee friendly trees and plants. A while back, I made a seed exchange with a fellow member of the forum frrom Tennessee, catalpa seeds for princess tree (pawlownia) seeds, and now I have quite a number of princess trees about 1 to 2 feet tall that I am planting.
Title: Re: Spanish Lavender & Mimosa
Post by: Irwin on July 24, 2009, 10:07:17 am
Here you go Lakeman


  http://forum.beemaster.com/index.php/topic,17833.0.html     
Title: Re: Spanish Lavender & Mimosa
Post by: lakeman on July 24, 2009, 10:26:59 am
Here you go Lakeman


  http://forum.beemaster.com/index.php/topic,17833.0.html     

Ahh! Irwin, I thank you, that is the place where I previously made the seed exchange, I will have to bookmark that so I can readily find it.
Title: Re: Spanish Lavender & Mimosa
Post by: catfishbill on July 25, 2009, 11:26:43 am
what does the honey taste like from mimosa?i had no idea they got netcar from them.
Title: Re: Spanish Lavender & Mimosa
Post by: Dane Bramage on August 02, 2009, 04:52:50 pm
Dane if this is your first year with it you won't believe how big the hyssops gets from the first year to the next.
If its not then you know how nice and big it gets.
I planted some average sized hyssops last year and they are 5 feet tall now.
I planted another dozen this year, the bees love them and they fill in some big areas quite nicely.
I usually buy the anise but have picked up some black adder and blue hills( I think its called) as well this year and they look nice planted together, it has a layered look of slightly different shades purple/blue.

Your pictures are beautiful.

Thank you so much Natalie.  :)  Though I've known of the Anise Hyssop for a couple of years, this is actually my first year with them.  They are indeed doing very well, flowering and at about 3', which puts them nicely above the beds of spearmint, oregano, basil, cilantro and catnip at their base.  I took some photos just now and will post them up on another thread.

what does the honey taste like from mimosa?i had no idea they got netcar from them.

They must get quite a lot of nectar from them as it flowers prolifically and for a fairly long while.  Much competition from the bumblers and hummingbirds for the Mimosa!

I'm unsure what Mimosa honey tastes like.  I imagine it is just a small % of the nectar that comprises my August Wildflower harvests.  I did find one honey on-line that is advertised as Acacia & Mimosa Honey (http://img.alibaba.com/photo/11503439/Acacia_Mimosa_Honey.jpg).  I believe it may be more common in Saudi Arabia.

Quote
Mimosa, Albizia julibrissin, a legume (in the Pea Family), is a fast-growing, relatively short-lived tree from China that quickly colonizes roadsides and spoil areas across the eastern U.S. Its pink powder-puff blossoms are fragrant and practically drip with nectar, attracting everything from hummingbirds to honeybees to butterflies.