# new book "Garden Plants for honey bees" is great



## ruthiesbees (Aug 27, 2013)

I just received my copy the other day. As a gardener, I'm really loving this book. There are full color photos on every page and it is arranged by months so you can use it as a field guide of flowering plants and to plan what to grow during the summer dirth. (the data comes out of Delaware, so I have to adjust the dates a bit for the south) The thing I like about it the most is that it has a rating system for each plant to tell if the honeybees use it for nectar or pollen









http://wicwas.com/Garden_Plants_for_Honey_Bees


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## RudyT (Jan 25, 2012)

Thanks. Now I know I'll get one for me and one for the bee club.


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## dadux (Feb 23, 2012)

Ok. I look forward to hearing more about it.


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## msscha (Jan 4, 2014)

Neat -- I'll have to check this out. I ordered "Native Plants for Honey Bees" recently and found it fairly disappointing. Lots of pictures and discussion, but not really aimed at honeybees, and the Kindle version was riddled with repeated errors such as "prophet" for "profit" and "boarder" for "border".


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## msscha (Jan 4, 2014)

ruthiesbees said:


> I just received my copy the other day. As a gardener, I'm really loving this book. There are full color photos on every page and it is arranged by months so you can use it as a field guide of flowering plants and to plan what to grow during the summer dirth. (the data comes out of Delaware, so I have to adjust the dates a bit for the south) The thing I like about it the most is that it has a rating system for each plant to tell if the honeybees use it for nectar or pollen
> 
> http://wicwas.com/Garden_Plants_for_Honey_Bees


For those visiting Amazonia, it's on sale for $29.70


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## TheCompound (Jan 24, 2011)

I ordered a copy as a gift for my mother who loves to garden and enjoys having one of my hives on her property. I enjoy her daily updates on the bees activity. 

I looked it over briefly before wrapping it up and it looked great. Everything listed by bloom month. However, it looked like the index in the back had the plants listed by scientific name with common name in parenthesis. It would be helpful if they listed them both ways. I'm looking forward to reading it a little more on my next visit.


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## max2 (Dec 24, 2009)

I live in the Subtropics ( Queensland, Australia) - of any use?
thanks


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## ruthiesbees (Aug 27, 2013)

max2 said:


> I live in the Subtropics ( Queensland, Australia) - of any use?
> thanks


The guy that wrote it is in Delaware. I doubt that you would see too many of your plants in the book. More people in different climates need to write these types of books. And yes, it would be helpful if he had put an index in the back using the plants common names. (good thing I have my 4 yr horticultural degree to fall back on as a reference).


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## canoemaker (Feb 19, 2011)

I have this book and also love it! I've read that some folks are put off by the index--listing plants by latin name, but I haven't found it to be any bother. I highly recommend this book to any beekeeper who is curious about which plants their bees may be visiting.


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## msscha (Jan 4, 2014)

Definitely the case that you'd have to "translate" into your climate, and in Australia, your country! I live several agricultural zones south and not everything which is in the book is applicable here, both in terms of the seasons and the plants themselves. However, the structure of the book overall is quite inspiring, and the idea of creating a hyper-local plant database for foraging is a really good one!


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## max2 (Dec 24, 2009)

Another interesting publication on this theme:

https://www.google.com.au/url?sa=t&...91GIPmSeei2ZcQw&bvm=bv.85970519,d.dGc&cad=rjt


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## msscha (Jan 4, 2014)

max2 said:


> Another interesting publication on this theme:
> 
> https://www.google.com.au/url?sa=t&...91GIPmSeei2ZcQw&bvm=bv.85970519,d.dGc&cad=rjt


Wow! Great find.


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## WBVC (Apr 25, 2013)

So Delaware is 39 latitude and I am at 40 degrees latitude. Are there any gardeners out there that can advise how I should adjust garden times with this difference?


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## BadBeeKeeper (Jan 24, 2015)

WBVC said:


> So Delaware is 39 latitude and I am at 40 degrees latitude. Are there any gardeners out there that can advise how I should adjust garden times with this difference?


How can you be at 40N? 40N passes thru northern California on my map. Isn't BC more like 50N?


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## WBVC (Apr 25, 2013)

Sorry...my typo...I am actually at 49.

I am trying to find out if bees use canary reed grass pollen....is that listed in this book?


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## kanikka (Feb 16, 2015)

max2 said:


> Another interesting publication on this theme:
> 
> https://www.google.com.au/url?sa=t&...91GIPmSeei2ZcQw&bvm=bv.85970519,d.dGc&cad=rjt


Really good read , thanks for sharing!


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## Brent Georgeson (Mar 8, 2015)

I also just bought this book a really love it. I hope that this idea really takes off. I agree with the author of it that raising plants is the most over looked aspect of beekeeping.


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## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

>I agree with the author of it that raising plants is the most over looked aspect of beekeeping.

Maybe partly because it is difficult to plant enough of anything to make much difference unless you have quite a bit of land. Not that you can't make some difference, but I think there is a tendency to overestimate how much difference it makes. It is still fun, of course, and if you have enough land you may be able to fill some gaps where SOMETHING is coming in when otherwise there might be nothing. But it's really doubtful you can make a crop with just plants you your yard. Now if EVERYONE would plant stuff for bees in their yard, it could make a HUGE difference... so we may as well do our part...


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## TheCompound (Jan 24, 2011)

Michael Bush said:


> But it's really doubtful you can make a crop with just plants you your yard.


You haven't seen the dandelions in my yard!


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## Brent Georgeson (Mar 8, 2015)

Well Thank you Michael Bush what an honor to have you reply to my post. I have your first book and am reading it now. I am a new beekeeper and like what you have to say. Anyhow I agree with you here to. I think many people believe what can I do I don't have that much, but yes if we all did something it would help the bees out tremendously. Now that bee laws are being overturned in cities I now hope that lawn maintenance standards can also be overturned. That people will start to see it is ok to have an overgrown lawn and their is a lot of beauty in it. Not the boring chemical produced lawns that we have today, anyway thanks again.


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## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

>You haven't seen the dandelions in my yard!

I have always planted them in my yard... whenever I see an overgrown yard with dandelions gone to seed I pull the heads off and put them in a grocery bag and take them home and scatter them.

>I now hope that lawn maintenance standards can also be overturned.

That would be a HUGE step forward... but I'm not going to hold my breath. Those rules have been the status quo since before I was born and as stupid as they are, cities don't seem to want to budge on them...


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## Brent Georgeson (Mar 8, 2015)

http://www.minnpost.com/earth-journ...r-bees-plight-and-prospects-stay-focused-food


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