What Happens When the Flowers Disappear?

What Happens When the Flowers Disappear? 

One of the hardest things to accept about beekeeping is that you can't make the bees make honey.

You can have strong colonies. You can care for the hives. You can do everything right.

But if the flowers aren't there, the honey isn't there.

We learnt that one season at a time.

It starts with the flowers

For the bees, the season begins outside the hive.

When flowers are abundant, the bees have plenty to forage. They leave the hive, return with nectar and pollen, and the colony becomes busy with the work of bringing food home.

But flowering doesn't last forever.

A tree finishes flowering.

An orchard changes.

The weather shifts.

And suddenly, there is less for the bees to find.

We started to realise that when we talk about a "honey season", we're really talking about a much bigger story.

The bees are following the flowers.

When the flowers slow down

When nectar becomes harder to find, the bees change their behaviour.

Foraging becomes less productive. The colony becomes more careful about how it uses its food stores.

This is where the beekeeper has to pay attention.

Is there enough food?

How strong is the colony?

What is happening with the weather?

Are there more flowers coming?

Or is the season coming to an end?

There isn't always an obvious answer.

And sometimes, the right thing to do is simply wait.

Not every season is the same

This was something we learnt very quickly when we started working with beekeepers in different places.

In Western Australia, the timing of flowering can make a huge difference to the honey season.

In Northern Thailand, the seasons and flowering cycles are different again.

Even in the same place, one year can be very different from the next.

A good season can bring an abundance of flowers.

A dry spell can change everything.

Rain can arrive at the wrong time.

The bees don't know what year it is.

They simply respond to what is happening around them.

Patience is important 

This might be one of the hardest parts of the job.

When you see a hive full of active bees, it is tempting to think about the honey that might be waiting inside.

But a beekeeper has to think about what happens next.

Will the bees need those stores?

Will the flowers return soon?

Has the colony had a difficult season?

Is it better to leave the honey where it is?

The more we learnt, the more we understood that good beekeeping isn't about taking every opportunity.

Sometimes it is about knowing when not to.

We started looking at the landscape differently

Before we spent time around bees, we probably would have walked past a flowering tree without thinking much about it.

Now, we notice.

What's flowering?

How long will it last?

Are the bees visiting it?

What does that mean for the hives?

A landscape that once looked simply beautiful starts to look like a food map.

And when the flowers disappear, you understand why the bees become quieter.

Honey follows nature

This is perhaps one of the things we appreciate most about honey now.

It doesn't follow a production schedule.

There isn't a factory where someone can simply make more when demand increases.

The bees depend on flowers.

The flowers depend on the season.

And the season depends on things none of us can completely control.

The more we try to understand honey, the more we realise how much of it is outside our control.

Perhaps that's why a good honey season feels a little special.

You know it wasn't simply made.

It happened.

The flowers were there.

The bees were ready.

The weather played its part.

And the beekeeper knew when to wait, and when the time was right.

Sometimes, the best thing you can do is let nature set the pace.