Natural Beekeeping International Forum

[SamH]

Advice please: my bees are on the edge of a field due to be sprayed with the following

http://headland-ag.co.uk/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=120

The purpose is to remove broad leaf weeds before making a hay crop. Would you consider this a risk, and if so would you shut the bees in for the morning during spraying? Thanks[/url]

[Barbara]

Are there dandelions or other blooming plants which the bees may work in the field to be sprayed and is the field directly adjacent to your hives. If so, I would consider keeping them in to prevent direct spraying, more because a "shower" of any chemical is not going to be good for your bees and will most likely be groomed off (ie licked off) by other bees on return to the hive, than that I can categorically say that the chemical used is specifically toxic to bees..... Some of these agricultural chemicals used to be labelled "bee friendly" which is a misnomer in my opinion and I'm not sure they still use the term now.

If it is several fields away and/or there are no obvious flowers that the bees are working, then I probably wouldn't bother.

[SamH]

Thanks Barbara,

Your thoughts mirror mine but I wanted to get a second opinion. The hive is right on the edge of the field to be sprayed but luckily I know the contracting farmer and he knows my bees so I can be confident of good timely communication. I'll close them in the evening beforehand and let them out again after the spraying is finished. It's a hay crop so the spray will be targeting broad leaf weeds, none of which are in any great number or of much interest to the bees anyway.

Thanks again, Sam

[Barbara]

Hi again

Great that you have a farmer who is happy to communicate and work with you.
Just to clarify, dandelions are considered a broad leaved weed and are very attractive to bees, but sadly because hay fields are sprayed almost annually, most fields have very few, so if it is not noticeably yellow with their blooms, I would doubt there would be anything else of interest to them in such a field......

However....

.... it might be worth providing your bees with a water source close to the hive before and after spraying. Before, so that they get used to using it, before the event. Bees will often collect water from dew and run off from fields, and since the weather has been particularly dry recently, it may well be their main source, so providing them with an easily accessible clean source before the spraying starts is probably a good idea.

Good luck with them

Barbara