# Tulip Poplar Honey



## Riskybizz (Mar 12, 2010)

25 years ago we kept a commercial operation in Virginia. Our spring flow from the tulip poplars used to be a can't miss. My friend who still runs a bunch of hives there claims his bees hardly make and tulip poplar honey at all now. 
Has he gone senile on me or has anyone in that area noticed a similar occurrence. Just curious if something has changed agriculturally or something in the soil??


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## psfred (Jul 16, 2011)

Spring seems to have moved earlier in the last ten years, and it is likely they are using the tulip honey for brood instead of storing it. We get huge amounts of black locust honey here, but Walt Wright thinks bees in his area (norther Alabama vs extreme southern Indiana) use black locust for brood instead of stores.

Or maybe with the earlier spring the trees aren't making as much nectar, or all of them within flying distance of the hives. Or there aren't very many within flying distance, for that matter.

Peter


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## rookie2531 (Jul 28, 2014)

Around here, Im told poplar is a lttle bitter so it can be for them, its the sourwood what we want to extract. But that blooms July. That's what im being told anyway, don't know yet.


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## Riskybizz (Mar 12, 2010)

We also managed about 30 yards on sourwood but those days are long gone in that area I'm told they cut almost everything down so they could plant more pine. Really a shame.


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## Mountain Bee (Apr 7, 2012)

Still get a good crop of tulip poplar in this part of VA, one of my favorites (if not the favorite) But it's not always a given every year,a few hard rains at the wrong time of the year is really hard on the bloom but if you catch a really good year it's not unusual for a strong hive to fill out 2 to 3 supers easily in a week. Just like any other nectar source you got good years,bad years,and really awesome years. BTW I have several quarts of tulip poplar honey that is over 5 years old and still has not granulated.


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## Mountain Man (Aug 26, 2013)

My bees made several pounds tulip popular this year and then sour wood later. I liked the popular honey kinda red tinted and good flavor


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## Dunkel (Jun 12, 2009)

Pretty good flow last year, but a lot was used in refilling the hives and brood after a cold winter. Year before was one of my worst in my local area due to a last freeze and untimely rains. A few miles away it wasn't as bad. I really don't care for honey but poplar is what I hold back for myself.


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## UTvolshype (Nov 26, 2012)

*Re: Tulip Poplar Honey in East Tn.*

Super cold weather in Feb last year and late March blooms took out early spring build up last year so most TP honey went into brood production and the year before the heavy rain in May-early June took out the nectar for 2013. It was a lot easier 20 years ago, well I remember it that way.


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## AstroBee (Jan 3, 2003)

*Re: Tulip Poplar Honey in East Tn.*

Last two years were good TP seasons. Particularly last year. However, TP is heavily impacted by spring temps, and when our April/May are too hot, then the flow is very poor. I've heard from some old time keepers and they say that the TP flow is a fraction of what is was in the past. I got a great yeild last year and it was mostly TP. 2012 was poor TP, but other sources came to the rescue.


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## rolftonbees (Jul 10, 2014)

*Re: Tulip Poplar Honey in East Tn.*

In my area the spring was dismally rainy the past 2 years, this may have impacted the tulip poplar honey. Sourwood was great however.


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## j.kuder (Dec 5, 2010)

*Re: Tulip Poplar Honey in East Tn.*

last year at the begining of the sour wood flow i was talking to an (older than me timer). i told him i needed more equip. for the sour wood flow he told me don't worry about it cause the bees never do any good on the sour wood around here. well my bees packed my hives with sour wood
here is an old farmers bulletin put out in 1922 entitled Beekeeping in the Tulip Tree Reigion. the key to getting a crop out of tulp poplar is to get honey production colonies built up in time for the flow. i'm going to add brood from 20 over wintered nucs to 10 honey producing colonies to make them super strong for the tulip poplar flow.
https://archive.org/stream/CAT87203054/farmbul1222#page/n0/mode/2up


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## beemandan (Dec 5, 2005)

*Re: Tulip Poplar Honey in East Tn.*

My local yards (piedmont of GA) have failed to make a decent tulip poplar surplus for the past three years. Too much rain during the blooming period for a couple of those years, I'm guessing. Last year, as has already been posted, we had a hard freeze that finished off most of the season's buds before they ever opened. On the other hand I have a yard in the mountains near Franklin, NC that has produced a good tp surplus every year for the past three years (which is as long as I've had that yard). Lots of variables....


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## rkereid (Dec 20, 2009)

*Re: Tulip Poplar Honey in East Tn.*

Tulip Poplar is the one we can count on nearly every year. By far our biggest flow. Most of my yards are surrounded by hollows full of large stands of poplar. Mixed with the other spring flowers it is very flavorful. 

Black locust is very fickle here. Some years (like last year) we see very little bloom. Other years it can bloom prolifically, but it is delicate, highly impacted by rain or heat, and the flow is so short that if the stars don't align there is nothing.


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## COAL REAPER (Jun 24, 2014)

*Re: Tulip Poplar Honey in East Tn.*

all while TP was blooming last year i did not see bees on them at all. i would check in the trees every day with binoculars. is there anything else that they might preffer to forage on during that time? we had a weak black locust bloom. my spring honey was light though, nothing like what is described as tulip poplar honey. this kinda confirms that they are not getting into the TP, but what else might they be getting after?


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## j.kuder (Dec 5, 2010)

*Re: Tulip Poplar Honey in East Tn.*

last year during tulip poplar flow i was at my sisters house in north west tenn. i walked out in her yard white clover was coming on strong and i wanted to see if the bees were working it yet i saw none but i could hear a loud buzz up in the persimmon trees around her yard on closer look they were covered with bees.


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## dsegrest (May 15, 2014)

Waynesboro is still wild & wonderful. My son lives in Fredericksburg. They are cutting down all the trees to plant houses.


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## m1ke05 (Jul 16, 2014)

Is Tulip Poplar the same as a Tulip tree? If so Ive identified about 30 of those trees on my property alone.


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## beemandan (Dec 5, 2005)

m1ke05 said:


> Is Tulip Poplar the same as a Tulip tree? If so Ive identified about 30 of those trees on my property alone.


 Liriodendron tulipifera is the tulip poplar and also called a tulip tree. Look it up and see if the description fits what you have.


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## m1ke05 (Jul 16, 2014)

Thanks. That's exactly what I have. They are in abundance here on my property as well as maples. Thanks


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