Did someone post a year or two ago that this could be broom or am I imagining that. Is the broom even in flower yet?
Did someone post a year or two ago that this could be broom or am I imagining that. Is the broom even in flower yet?
Apparently broom produces abundant pollen but no honey - so perhaps not that.
Broom starting here in Speyside but I've no experience of it producing honey which, of course, isn't to say it doesn't. Always thought the pollen was akin to gorse or whins as we call it here ie vibrant orangey colour.
On a side note we had our first nice day in ages here today and many colonies have very depleted stores. Need to feed a fair few - something I find galling at this time of year! Plus - not a hint of a swarm cell to be found yet. Still a couple of weeks yet before we have to worry about that I suspect.
Yellow faces at this time of year are often OSR. OSR honey is, of course, pale in the liquid state and often when cold has a glassy look to it.Originally Posted by GRIZZLY
Yellow wax and yellow odd-tasting honey - could that be dandelion?
Off in a minute to spend another happy hour with a Tacwise nail gun :-)
Last edited by gavin; 23-05-2015 at 09:33 PM.
Sounds like dandelion. Smells of sweaty socks.
The wife has done some research and we agree it is probably dandelion- which the French call " pissenlit " or " piss the bed ". The bees from 4 hives are involved and must have found several fields blanketed in dandelion flowers to draw 4 supers and fill with unripened honey. I don't think I will be jarring too much of the stuff. Thanks for the interest.
Glad the Tacwise is working for you Gavin - you must have a more delicate touch than me.
Some honeys that are distasteful, toxic or just odd change with storage as the chemicals responsible break down. Maybe the dandelion honey will taste better after a while. Or maybe you can find someone who likes it and is happy to buy it. Some folk like ivy honey, and others dislike heather honey. Takes all kinds ....
The Tacwise is coming in very useful, thanks Grizzly. There is the occasional jam and a proportion of nails need a tap with a hammer to finish them off but it is still a major improvement over nail and fingers (never a good combination!). I haven't timed it but it wouldn't surprise me if I'm getting twice the number assembled in a set period of time. As I'm heading for 50-60 colonies over the summer that is a big help!
The nail gun I got from Lidl for £9.99 is a vast improvement on a hammer and fingers. It's not perfect as some nails need to be tapped home with the hammer but I am very pleased with it. I think I still have about 500 frames to put together.
Oh dear. Rough guess at 700 to go for me as long as I get a reasonable honey crop. Wish I'd done them in the winter ....
I had a pollen trap on three of my hives for the CSI project. It must have been a bonnie day as after 24 hours a single hive had filled 2 x 1lb jars with pollen ! Unbelievable. Most of it was sycamore I think.
Bees are next to a lovely wee woodland but I never expected even a quarter of that.
What can I do with pollen other than make patties next spring ? Must be a market for it somewhere ! Gourmet foodie types ?
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