Soybean

Value for beekeeping

Soybean flowers are small, white or purple, and largely self-pollinating. Nectar secretion differs greatly between varieties: some are almost worthless to bees, while others, on hot (about 25-32 °C) and humid days, yield enough nectar to keep bees working the field. In dry, cool or very windy weather secretion falls.

Flowering

In Turkey it is sown as a main crop or as a second crop after wheat, so flowering falls between June and August, mostly during the summer dearth, and lasts 3-5 weeks.

Honey and pollen

Although light-coloured honeys dominated by soybean are obtained in the USA and Brazil, it is not common as a separate monofloral honey. Pollen collection is limited.

Note for the beekeeper

Second-crop soybean areas on the Çukurova plain and along the Black Sea coast can be used for summer migration; yields, however, vary from year to year. Insecticide applications coincide with flowering, so keep track of the spraying schedule.