Observations of Phαceliα tαnαcetifoliα as a Food Plant for Honey Bees and other insects

PDF
Published: Jan 7, 1998
DOI: https://doi.org/10.12681/eh.14019
Keywords:
Phacelia tanacetifolia date of sowing flowering bee forage insect visitors
Andreas Thrasyvoulou
Laboratory of Apiculture-Sericulture, Aristotelian University of Thessaloniki, 540 06 Greece
Basilis Tsirakoglou
Laboratory of Pomology School of Geotechnical Sciences, Aristotelian University of Thessaloniki, 540 06 Greece
Abstract
Three consecutive sowings of Phacelia tanacetifolia Bentham (Hydrophyllaceae) were examined for plant growth and attractiveness to bees and other insect-visitors over a three years’ study. Plants that were sown in March flowered uniformly for periods of 24 to 40 days, while those sown in June and July had a non-uniform anthesis that was impossible to estimate. Plants sown in early August, remained vegetative throughout winter and flowered the following spring. Maximum visits of honey bees were observed between 10:00 h and 17:00 h. Most honey bees (>70%) collected nectar. Seasonal differences in the ratio nectar/pollen gatherers were noted. Two species of bumble bee (B. terrestris and B. lucorum) and 9 species of solitary bee visited Phacelia.
Article Details
  • Section
  • Articles
Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:

Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons 4.0 license.

Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g. post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (preferably in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work.

Downloads
Download data is not yet available.
References
Alford, D. V. 1975. Bumblebees. Ebenezer Baylis & Son Limited. The Trinity Press Worcester and London 352 pp.
Antsiferova, T. A. 1971. Efficient honey plants for beekeeping and for biologic protection of plants. Proc. XXIII Intern. Apiculture Congr. Moscow 27 August - 2 Sept. 1971:543-548.
Baculinschi, H. 1964. Nectar production of the chief wild and cultivated plants in the steppe zone. Apic. Abst. 133/64.
Crane, E. 1975. Honey a Comprehensive Survey. Heinemann in co-operation with I.B.R.A., London UK, 384 pp.
Crane, E. , P. Walker and R. Day. 1984. Directory of Important World Honey Sources. I.B.R.A., 384 pp.
Jablonski, B. 1960. Effect of date and density of sowing on the value of Phacelia tanacetifolia. Apic. Abst. 341/64.
Kamenov, K. 1971. Successive nectar blossoms in conditions of intensive agriculture. Proc. XXIII Intern. Apiculture Congr. . Moscow 27 August-2 September, 1971:552-553.
Kilsopanidis, G. E. , E. Papanagiotou and M. Martika. 1991. An economic analysis of the effect of moving and feeding of bee colonies in Greece. Aristotelian University Dept. Agric. Econ. Res. Bull., 38 pp (in Greek).
Makri, S. , S. Demberthemi, P. Koutsabelis and A. Thrasyvoulou. 1991 Exploration of capabilities of using Phacelia (Phacelia tanacetifolia) in Apiculture. Melissokomiki Epith. 5(5): 119-125 (in Greek).
Orsi, S. and A. Biondi. 1987. La Phacelia tanacetifolia: il npotenziale mellifero. Informatore Agrario 47: 53-57.
Pellett, C. F. 1976. American Honey Plants. Dadant 467 pp.
Petanidou, T. , E. N. Willem. 1993. Pollinating fauna of a phryganic ecosystem: composition and diversity. Biodiversity Letters 1: 9-22.
Petkov, V. 1973. Possibility of providing for successive nectar flow in the plain and hilly regions in western Bulgaria. Proc. XXIV, Intern. Apiculture Congr., Buenos Aires, 14-20 Oct. 1973: 502-503.
Serelis, B. 1988. The bee plant Phacelia (Phacelia tanacetifolia). Melissokomiki Epith. 2(5): 142-143 (in Greek).
Skourtis, B. 1989. The activity of the Beekeeping Association nof Corinthia. Melissokomiki Epith. 3(5): 123 (in Greek).
Tampoukou, A. 1992. Phacelia, a plant with a lot of abilities. Georgiki Technologie (7): 46-51 (in Greek).
Thrasyvoulou, Α., S. Iliathou, P. Iliopoulou, I. Koulakidis, and K. Bladenopoulos. 1993. Observations on Phacelia tanacetifolia Bentham(Hydrophyllaceae) as food plant for honey bees in Greece. Melissokomiki Epith. 7(1): 6-10 (in Greek).
Williams, I. H. and D. G. Christian. 1991. Observations on Phacelia tanacetifolia Bentham (Hydrophyllaceae) as a food plant for honey bees and bumble bees. J. Apic. Res. 30(1): 3-12.
Williams, I. H. , S. A. Corbet and J. L. Osborne. 1991. Beekeeping, wild bees and pollination in the European Community. Bee World 72(4): 170-180.
Zimna, J. 1962. Comparative investigation of nectar secretion in four species of Phacelia. Apic. Abst. 274/62.
Zimna, J. 1964. Phacelia tanacetifolia as nectar plant. Apic. Abst. 848/64.