Why I DON'T Plant Flowers for my Bees 

My wife and I are beekeepers. Bees fly approximately 50,000 miles and visit over 2,000,000 flowers to make 1 pound of honey. Please feel free to plant all of the pollinator friendly plants you like but unless everyone else in the county does the same thing it really is not going to tip the scale much.

The hive and watchers re sorry to see the loss of the hive's queen bee. It's monumental loss. And the hive was doing well too with their new installed bee.

You really caught my attention with this video. I'm in my 1st year of bee keeping and was thinking this same very idea of planting for bees. Now that I think of it I'm not going to plant just for the bees. I'm going to head back to my food plots for deer but try and get some heavy clover which the bees will benefit from as well. Really enjoy what info you put out for the bees. You keep it simple yet entertaining.

Good thing about clover is you plant it once every 5 years more or less with just a little fertilizer added every year.

We just finished our honey harvest in central Alabama and you definitely called it. Were are down about 40% from last years harvest. Although, to be sure, last year was a banner year so I guess it's not so bad. That late frost really got us good. Also, we did lose about 20% of our hives, but not too bad. I'm always glad to see your beekeeping videos. Thanks again.

My dad has bees. He planted buckwheat right in front of the hives, and the bees hardly ever used it. He never planted it again. In the end, it wasn't worth the cost, like you were saying.

Wes Excellent and informative work 👍👍👍. Thank you for sharing. Be safe 🇨🇦

Very informative video Wes as usual. I'm not a beekeeper, but I am a BIG honey sopper - not many days go by without honey on/in something I eat. So, I appreciate all it takes to make honey happen and what you beekeepers go through as well. Thanks for sharing the info and God bless.

Nooo! RIP queen bee. Hope you can recover well and quickly! The bees are one of my favorite things!

I think plating or the apiary can only be worthwhile if you have a major dearth at some point in the year, and you have the time and space to plant a lot of something that blooms when there is nothing else available and that also gives a useful crop for you, either to sell or use yourself.

We do plant different pollen producers for our bees. It helps during Dearth because something will bloom. Also helps when we have to feed sugar water to the bees. Sugar has gone up a lot so we need all the help we can get

Thank you for a great explanation on your bees. You are not wasting your time in any way. Have great Summer.

Great video. I think it just all depends on the preference of the person and what they want to do. As for me I think it would be great to plant a little extra things to help out the bees. I have nine hives I'm actually in north Carolina but I think every little bit helps but I guess it all depends on the person and what they think would be best. But I'm sorry about your queen I hope that hive does great and I enjoy your videos keep up the amazing work your awesome and a big Hello from North Carolina.

As an ex Bee Keeper in San Diego - 44 years ago, I found your video clip very interesting !! Nothing new since I was handling bees - yet still very interesting !!

Great edit with the multiple stills of the flowers. Thanks .

I’m not a beekeeper but everything you’ve said here makes perfect sense to me. Great video as usual Wes. I would think that planting trees that would over time become a source not only for the bees but also other wildlife could be helpful because of their longevity and little upkeep. Plus they would also be another source of shade on these scorcher Ga days.

A few basswood or black locust trees near the hives can increase honey production by a lot! A mature basswood tree could yield the nectar equivalent to 100 lbs of honey.

Aw I’m so sorry about the queen ❤ Don’t beat yourself up too bad about it. You can tell you really have a great amount of respect for the ladies in your care and otherwise. They’re in great hands with you and your beautiful family 🪷

This video is Buzzing with information. Thanks Wes.

Good talk. Precise and clear. Thank you

Thanks for sharing mate. Your doing great work

Thank you for the comprehensive answer to my question. I was suggesting a temporary solution after a major frost but you have explained the practicalities of that.

I lease my pasture to a neighbor since o don’t live near the farm. He has clover for his hay and he suggested putting bees on the farm to help with pollination. Except for the harsh winter they’ve really done well and are helping the hay production. And the honey is great

Your never boring Wes always informative

Makes perfect sense to be honest! It was indeed not in line with popular opinions but it’s logical the way you described it 🤝💯

Great video

I've never owned a bee hive but I do find it interesting at how it works, I always thought of as great pollinators for gardening and as a side benefit. Keep up the good work.

Love the videos of the bees. I live vicariously through you on these videos. If I wasn't allergic, I'd LOVE to have bees!

On my land (20 acres) I bought a year ago, I’ve been adding native tree and plant species and removing invasive ones. I’ve planted over 370 baby trees, many plants and flowers. All with a shovel and a wagon. No tractor, nothing fancy. The idea is to do what I can, and then stop. Each year do a little more. You’re right the bees go off my land to forage, but one airport that used to be covered in acres of wild field started mowing this year-cutting off a huge food supply that used to be there. You can’t bank on your neighbors providing consistent safe forage. You can do SOMETHING to improve forage on your land without going overboard or adding toxins to the environment. Grab seeds where you can-even off other locations. Milkweed, for instance, is fantastic for bees, smell great, and help monarchs reproduce. The pods are easy to collect from another field. Just dry then in a cloth shopping bag and let your son sprinkle the seeds out in the field. You can make a wildflower haven and ensure blooms during dearth by caring for them.

I was one of those that suggested planting flowers. Thank you for the explanation, it makes sense.

People just slay me! They have all this advice and comments about how you should do you bees, and they probably don't have a flower one in their yard because they don't want to risk being stung by a bee flying around out there. Cracks me up ! Just do your thing and know that the real folks out here love watching you whatever and however you are doing it.

I mostly agree with you. I don't plant things specifically for honey bees. I do plant sweet clover mostly to improve soil on my heavily eroded farm. I try to bushhog when it is most beneficial for wildlife. I have native Butterfly Root, Butterfly Milkweed, Goldenrod, Ironweed, Passionfruit and many other native species that are extremely endangered in my area due to development. The goldenrod is a great source of pollen but in my area of Tennessee honey production is very low most years. I have been moving my bees around with mixed success. I am sure I have mashed some great queens myself. It is easier than many may think. Thanks for giving us your logic when you talk about such subjects.

Your approach sounds well reasoned and practical. The bees will always pollinate your garden since they are nearby when it blooms. Diversity in the food supply is important to all creatures so I think you are probably on the right track. Enjoyed the video.

Planting for the bees sounds like a great idea, however the way you presented this has educated me, and shown me that do really be successful you would need a tremendous amount of property. Thanks for showing the facts and figures.

Very interesting and informative I would like more videos on bees🇬🇧😊

Im buying acreage & I plan to plant 1AC that will attract my bees. since Ive been a successful gardener Im planting things that will bloom in succession. And for beauty. And to feed us too (fruit trees). Yes bees forage, & its not just for them. I wont plant things that dont have a purpose. Will have a hay field as well. Looking forward to logging & creating lumber too.

great work!

As a prospective beekeeper, this video was EXTREMELY helpful for me. I am looking at a 40acre property and was thinking of citrus trees for the bees for orange blossom honey. I still may do the trees but not as much for the bees anymore. Thank you. 🙏

LOVE your channel!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Keep the good work you are already doing. Different solutions to different people.

Don’t sell yourself short my friend. I’ve subscribed for over a year and your content is very enlightening. I’m sorry I don’t know your name but your work is admirable.

You missed an opportunity to create a photo montage with you and that dead queen showing all the fun y’all had together there at the end. The music was perfect for it.

Thanks for the info Wes. I’ve often wondered about this. It makes sense though. When I was driving coast to coast, I see several covered wagons carrying hives. They didn’t get messed with much! Take care and stay safe! God bless!✝️🙏🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸

I think, with my name, I should start a hive or two..😂 Thanks for sharing your experiences. It's a very interesting subject.

Great video! I like learning about bee keeping. I might try sometime Where is a good place to buy bee hives to get started?

Thanks for addressing this.

Love the bee videos! every time I watch I think I will start one as a hobby, but then I procrastinate on it 😢

That's why they call it nature. Great video!

Thanks that information helps so much

Definitely much to think about. I recently gained access to a 22 acre farm that has weeds and grasses on it. I see no harm in throwing several acres of wildflower mixes (that flower at different times) and clover I want to use to help condition the soil in areas I want to start getting ready to put crops on. For now my idea is throw seed and walk away after I take up the grass/weeds. Zero maintenance flowers for now. I'm in no hurry as I'm still building my massive compost supply now. I think you're right, it's not realistic to have a contained beehive.

Hi Wes. I nearly asked the same question about planting, but given how long you had been doing this, I knew there was a reason. I thought that seeds bought could come from a different region and might not give the desired result. Optimism did prevail and the queen survived the splitting. On the other hand, the least desirable choice unfortunately happened. You will find another queen and perhaps they might take a jar or so in honey for trade. Have good days!

Outstanding! From California 😊

I'm in southern New Mexico and we get Mesquite honey - from the mesquite bushes! We also have one my local honey lady calls the valley blend, which gets all of the mix of things, but especially the alfalfa. Helps with local allergies a TON. But it's crazy to hear the different types of honey around the US, mostly because all that doesn't grow here! But I suppose our honey would seem exotic for places that don't have cactus and creosote naturally, too

Man I won’t lie I was so happy when you found the queen live and well but um R.I.P queen

In-law family just north of Albany, NY has an apiary. But, they transport their bees all over NY, VT and Pennsylvania to the orchards and other farming facilities in those states. (Sister-in-law used to give us a "Honey Bear" of their honey, for our daughter when she was little.)

planting some perennials with different blooming times around with the deer food plots wouldn't hurt anything and likely help the hives gain a bit more nectar and pollen. putting a trellis in and letting blackberries or morning glory cover it ( the berries at least are food for the family and saleable ) would also help for low cost and effort.

If you have eggs in that hive, the workers will manage to feed a couple of those eggs with royal jelly. You will find within a week at least 1 queen cell. Do don't worry

I watch and agree with most of what you post. But, I strongly disagree with the idea an acre or more not making any difference. An acre of Sumac can produce several gallons of honey in a few weeks

Thank you

I really enjoy the bee education videos

You could resolve most of those expenses by simply sowing native wild flowers that are already adjusted to the native soil and natural water availability, thereby skipping most of the soil amendment cost. Certainly tilling the soil will improve germination and killing the grass would help improve growth and survivability of the plants, but even that's not completely necessary, as these wild flowers and most of not nearly all natural wild plants grow without any of that. The seeds are simply spread via wind and animals and rain, and eventually weather buries them. Before you know it you have a self sustained yearly bloom that cultivates and propagates it's self. If you wanted to increase the initial germination, tilling and turning the grass under, rather than spraying it will help to kill the grass, and fertilize the soil without poisoning the area, and it will allow the grass to grow back in after your wild flowers have already established themselves in the area, so you won't just have a mudhole with flowers in it. It'll look like the highway medians filled with prairie flowers and grass. You have a point that it's moot for you to do this alone on your small acreage, but as stated elsewhere, oceans and clouds start with and are ultimately composed of "drops in the bucket". And they sustain all life. Even the bees know building a hive alone is impossible for one bee. But yet it's one bee who takes on the role of queen (takes the initiative), and around that one, the whole hive is built. If no one does something because no one else is doing it, then no one will ever do whatever that thing is. It will never get done. I'm not insinuating it's your responsibility, especially yours alone, I'm just pointing out that it's flawed reasoning as to why not to plant. The reality is you aren't alone, and your small contribution is a part of a greater contribution. Surely you aren't the only one around that would have flowers in their yard. But you might be one of the only ones around without them. Of course, on the other hand, you may be the only one around with bees, and if it's truly a decision between space for bees or space for flowers, then it may be more beneficial and over all effective to let others grow the flowers and you raise the bees. But I don't see any harm and only contribution in spreading wild flower seeds around any vacant space. Even if you just filled the yard with clover, that would be both low lying and survive what little traffic you have on it, that the deer and bees could enjoy.

Plant flowers that don't need work and will take over. Also I noticed that wherever I mowed my grass down the clover is taking over without any planting at all. Also I planted some mint in my garden a few years ago and it spreads like wildfire.

Crops of plants generally flower at different times. The tupelo honey producers in Wewahitchka only produce tupelo honey during the blooming season of the tupelo tree. The rest of the time from the same hives they harvest honey that came from other blooming plants and they name it according to what has been blooming.

it is a worth while video and it makes perfect sense.

Hey Wes … “stuff” happens sometimes. You’re doin’ fine my man … ✌🏻!

That hive is already making another queen. With the young eggs, they will make an emergency queen. Check that hive in 4 or 5 days for a queen cell.

What a shame you lost the queen! that's gotta be a bummer

I couldn't agree more with your assessment. Nobody knows your ground better than the guy who has bits of it stuck in his boots. God Bless you, your family and your beautiful farm Wes. Sorry about your queen.

You plant a mix of seeds, not just one kind. Keeps your bees close to home.

Good day to you, sir. The world before our time was much more in sync with each other than in present times. Much of the foraging plants and trees of old times, haven’t got enough space and time in a big part of the world, to provide the bees enough nectar and pollen. However if all the beekeepers and lover’s of nature, plant a native tree which will bloom in season, and plant native bushes en flowers in their surroundings who will give nectar and pollen to all insects, that would make the area a little bit richer in food, is my thinking. I love your way of life and the way you make your clips. With kind regard’s, Marcel

Great video! One question, since bees cover such big areas, how do bee keepers know what do bees make the honey from?

Love this channel. The best part about it is the Faith in God. How not everything goes as planned but the Faith in God never wavers. I am 65 years old and it is channels like this that make watching RU-vid worth every minute. God Bless!

In my opinion and that is all it is, trees that the bees can utilize is the way to go. The surface area of a tree verses the foot print makes a whole lot more sense. Yes I understand it may take some time for a tree to get to the point of producing enough nectar to make a difference. We are propagating and planting vitex trees here in central east Texas. They bloom from late spring till first frost (with sufficient moisture) mid November they start putting on limited blooms at 2' in height. Have been told that acre will produce a ton of honey? At the very least it seems to help them get through the dearth period.

It makes sense. I don't have beehives nor plan to. I do have plantings to attract them for my gardens and enjoy watching them work so hard. 💖💖🎶🎶

In Northwestern NM where I live, it's not only impractical to plant bee specific crops, it's darn near impossible. Sunflowers and other hardy plants like corn, beans, peas and squash seem to do great, but flowers need a greenhouse to sprout before planting. I ain't got time for that! My bees took off when it got very hot and am adding second supers this weekend. We live 1/4 mile from a large lake right behind the house so the bees know what to do. I'm more concerned with bitter cold Winters often -7° F mornings for months at a time into Spring. I use Apimaye insulated hives for that reason. Pricey, but so are nucs when they die! I can split hives in late spring, early summer. Apimaye hives have built in dividers to do that without extra brood boxes. Blessings.

I look at it the same way you do on planting seeds. I don’t have the land to plant. I’m going to put out some goldenrod seeds they reseed their self and they spread fast and they would be blooming in the dearth when he bees need it the most. I don’t think my neighbors would mind helping me grow some for my bees .😊

Okay, here's what I think. I think that, if you sewed half that field with clover and the other half with rows of blackberries, you would have more honey to sell, and you could sell blackberry jam on top of that. Bees are not going to fly 2 miles if they don't have to, and less energy flying means less energy consumed. And the whole point of making honey is to store energy from crops that have a limited window, so 2 months with clover is better than two months without clover. Clover also sells pretty good in the fall, and it's a good deer crop. Triple win!

Are you far enough south to grow citrus? Excellent early spring nectar source to kickstart your hives after winter. Produces high quality honey, smells awesome during the bloom and unlike Christmas trees, you get many years of harvest.

Yeah, that's how it is with scale! A beekeper can't plant enough plants to make any real dent in honey production and bees will only visit nearby plants last. But most people here, as individuals with land to plant on, will no doubt benefit both themselves and beekeepers by planting flowers ^^. Other than that, just having a diverse native wild pasture is a good thing for the ecosystem one way or another.

I think that there are cut flower farms that are massive & replanted several times a year. The flowers would work if you had your apiary on one of those mega farms

I was born and raised in central Florida. I remember in the 40s and 50s there were huge orange groves and my father would purchase wild honey with the honey-comb. With the population explosion, all of the Orange groves have been taken out for housing tracts. I no longer see the Bee keepers and suppliers of wild honey. Its so sad. I miss those days.

Wes ,I'm wondering what Royal Jelly is. I know it's associated with bee keeping

I have little bees swarming around my deck (one stung me) they are always moving around. I do not know what kind of bees they. I do have milkweed around for the Monarch & Hummingbirds. ????

I love your hat

While you are correct in many things you say, yes they range far and wide things Bloom in different time frame windows and most people don't have much area. And the small patches or flowers beds won't amount to anything as far as honey production. Yet I still plant and like to plant for my bees. Why? 1 efficacy, 2. # of hives in area. Now we have planted orchards, also other trees, cover, buckwheat, sunflowers amount others. We also don't mow areas and leave the Golden rod 3 varieties and milkweed , yellow wing stem and many other late seasion local weeds available for the bees. So there is always something available all seasion. To bloom during the Darth I stager plant buckwheat every 2 weeks so there is something available to them. This keeps them less aggressive during the Darth. Now I'm a small time bee keeper with only 21 hives currently. 17 are at home on my 96 acre farm. The rest are at another location. We are not talking about huge plantings sunflowers maybe an acre or two clover 8 acres including paths and trails. I love the clover for its long blooming time frame. Yes the bees will go 2 miles but it's much more efficient if they are only going a quarter mile or less. There are 4 other bee keepers within 2 miles so we have lots of bees. 5 acres of white clover in front of the hives honestly does boost honey production during the spring flow. But I have also planted things only to have them completely ignored by the bees becuse there was something else natural blooming at the same time they preferred. So getting to know what is blooming localy and when is important so you are not wasting your time and effort. At the end of the day its like food plots for the deer its not necessarily to kill the deer but it helps and mainly I just enjoy planting and enjoying the wildlife. Also most of what I plant for the bees also is great for deer and other wildlife.

i legitimately gasped whenever you said that you killed the bee!! sad day for the bees. very sad day

All makes sense to me. I have never thought along the lines of planting crops for bees for all the reasons you mentioned. As long as we don't eventually pave over all the resources, bees are sustainable. Within the past couple years, I have learned that bees are transported to large plantings for pollination. That I was not aware of. I was in the middle of a huge orange grove in FL (several square miles) about a year ago and there were probably 100-200 hives near the road with a transport truck parked alongside with bee logos on the side. I didn't realize it was an industry. I would suspect that is the only way a producer could almost guarantee the source or type honey they sold. By the way, my brother accidentally killed a queen same as you only 2-3 weeks ago. IT happens. Thanks.

Your land, your life... God will provide.

I am not a beekeeper but I think you should plant flowers for your family to enjoy, plant gardens for food and plant food plots for deer and the bees will enjoy with you

i hope you didnt throw away the queen outside the hive, ive done this before, when it looked like i squished a queen from marking her, i put her back in the hive, and when i went back to install a new queen, the old supposedly dead one was walking around like nothing happened!

Can a Queenless beehive not make another Queen? I thought they fed some of the brood Royal Jelly. I have much to learn.

Most people are clueless when it comes to understanding the difference between farming and gardening. I retired in 2020 after a career with a family owned agricultural company. We owned and farmed fruits and vegetables on over 100k acres in GA, NC, SC, FL, LA, OH, NY, MI, TX, AZ, and CA. That doesn't count the Mexico, Canada, and European deals nor the South America, Mediterranean, and African deals we had with citrus growers. That level of farming requires huge amounts of capital. Land, land rent, and equipment costs are huge. I was in sales, and customers were always fascinated to hear about the family and how things are done on that scale. We had contractors for labor because we couldn't find the 1000s of seasonal workers needed as production moved around the country. My travel budget alone was over $100k each year. I say all that to reinforce your thoughts on the magnitude of planting crops specifically for honey production. Even if it did increase your honey production, the financial costs would outweigh any increased profits you might make from a little extra honey. While it's not expensive to plant a clover field, the time involved would require years of increased honey production just to "break even". I need bees for pollination purposes in my fruit trees. The honey would be a bonus. If you need to finish up your firewood just let me know. I've got 3 huge oaks that I'll be dealing with in the next few weeks. Red oaks that the storm got last week. No way I would work those bees without a hood!

Just curious have you ever looked into planting 1 or 2 Linden Trees? I read they can do more than acres of clover fields.

Totally agree‼️ Do do anything to combat the SHB?

I’ve never thought about the different season of plants and the access bees have to them throughout the year. Not planting flowers for your bees makes a lot of sense as a bee keeper!

I love the music what is it called and by who

I feel like the only reason why I plant be friendly plants is because I love the look at them😂 honestly it has nothing todo with the bees but if they enjoy it then 🎉 yay

Some white clover seems to be your favourite honey

I'm guessing people were thinking a planting would have provided them with something when natural resources didn't, but the problem with that is a planting would have been subject to the same frost / freeze.

You made no mention of the linden tree. According to our arborist, it is the number one provider of both pollen and nectar in our area in the pacific northwest. We don’t have hives simply because I am allergic to bee sting. It I have to tell you the tree during the season is literally alive with wild bees. All day you can walk onto our patio and hear the buzzing of our little friends. Lord only knows where their hives are as I don’t go looking for them. Our arborist also says this is a specimen linden and he has registered it in the database. It came back as the second largest in the state. So, we are doing our part for the bees and none of them in over 25 years has ever bothered their human partners.