Wild radish
A long-flowering weed of fields and fallows that offers nectar and pollen from spring to late summer, giving colonies a steady supplement.
- Nectar
- Good
- Pollen
- Medium
- Flowering
- JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
- Pollen colour
- Height
- 0,2-0,8 m
- Life cycle
- Annual
🐝 Add to my apiary
Log in to add it to your apiary.Value for beekeeping
Wild radish belongs to the same family as oilseed rape and mustard and is a field weed whose nectar is easy to reach. Its four-petalled flowers, white, pale yellow or with purplish veins, are a nectar and pollen source that honey bees visit often. On its own it gives no big nectar flow, but where it forms dense stands on large fallows and cereal margins its contribution is clear.
Flowering
It starts in April-May and, in wet years and with late-germinating plants, continues until August. The long flowering period fills the gaps between the major flows.
Honey and pollen
The pollen loads are yellowish. Honeys from this family are rich in glucose, so honey with a large share of wild radish crystallises quickly and finely; plan to extract before it sets in the combs.
Note for the beekeeper
It declines fast where herbicides are used in cereal fields. Leaving flowering strips along field edges creates a lasting forage corridor for bees.