When do bees start pollinating

Honey bee hives moved in to pollinate a carrot seed crop. Lindsay Bourke. Although there are a variety of mechanisms of pollination, both abiotic wind, gravity etc and biotic birds, flies etc , these pollination pages focus on the pollination services of the European honey bee Apis mellifera specifically provided by beekeepers to growers of pollinator-reliant crops.

The European honey bee is the most important insect pollinator of cultivated agricultural and horticultural crops worldwide for variety of reasons, including:. Spotted anything unusual? So where are they? As the days grow longer and temperatures rise in March, the queen bee will start laying more eggs requiring the workers to use up their honey reserves from the autumn before. Come April, flowers begin to bloom meaning the bees will begin foraging.

In May, the rate of growth should increase again with bees coming and going from the now active hive. This is when bee season is typically in full swing with food replenishing regularly, traffic flowing into and out of the hive, and an active queen.

Drones or male bees are in their highest numbers in June and July. The hive should be producing honey on a large scale now. The hive has reached maximum capacity between the worker bees, the drones, and the queen. During the upcoming months, the drones will leave the hive and the number of bees will start to decrease. Thinking of beekeeping? Spring is the best time to start. What is a Bee? Which Foods Depend on Bees? Effects of Bees on Fruit Types of Pollinators.

Next Page In her quest for the nectar found inside each flower's base, the bee brushes against the stigma and stamens, transferring pollen from one flower to the next.