Banana

Value for beekeeping

Banana flowers open in rows under large purple bracts and secrete very abundant, watery nectar. Wild bananas are naturally pollinated by bats and birds; the fruit of cultivated bananas develops without pollination. Nevertheless, honey bees and stingless bees visit heavily for nectar and pollen.

Flowering

Each plant produces a flower cluster only once, but because the plants in a plantation are of different ages, there are flowers all year round in the tropics. The bracts usually open in the morning, and bee visits peak in the morning hours.

Honey and pollen

It is not common as a separate honey; it goes into tropical mixed honey. The nectar has a relatively low sugar content and a high water content.

Note for the beekeeper

In Turkey, open-field and greenhouse banana plantations in Anamur and Alanya offer a limited source. As spraying and high temperatures in greenhouses pose a risk to bees, placing hives inside greenhouses is not recommended.