Iberian knapweed
A spiny, pink-purple knapweed common on roadsides, field edges and grazed pastures; a dependable midsummer nectar source.
- Nectar
- Good
- Pollen
- Medium
- Flowering
- JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
- Height
- 0.3-1 m
- Life cycle
- Biennial
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Iberian knapweed is found almost everywhere in Anatolia on roadsides, fallow fields and overgrazed pastures. The bracts beneath the pink-purple flower heads end in stiff, yellowish spines. Like most knapweeds it is rich in nectar; honey bees and wild bees visit the heads constantly.
Flowering
It flowers from June to August; its greatest advantage is that it keeps secreting nectar on dry summer days. It is biennial and forms a leaf rosette in the first year.
Honey and pollen
No honey bearing its name is produced on its own; its nectar goes into the highland and mixed flower honeys of Central and Eastern Anatolia. The pollen loads are pale.
Note for the beekeeper
It has been introduced to North America, where it is regarded as an invasive weed; in Turkey it is a native species. Its sites, often together with thyme, Astragalus and other knapweeds, give good support for midsummer migratory beekeeping.