Yellow azalea

Value for beekeeping

Yellow azalea is a deciduous shrub with very fragrant yellow flowers that forms large stands in forest clearings, along the edges of hazelnut orchards and on the high summer pastures of the eastern and western Black Sea region. It is rich in nectar and visited heavily by bees; because the pollen is held together by sticky threads, its pollen contribution for honey bees is small.

Flowering

Depending on altitude it flowers in April–June, together with the leaves. Flowering begins in late April in the lowlands and continues until mid-June on the high pastures.

Honey and toxicity

Its nectar contains grayanotoxins. Together with pontic rhododendron it is the source of the dark, bitterish, throat-burning honey known locally as mad honey or bitter honey. Even small amounts of this honey can cause serious poisoning, with dizziness and drops in blood pressure and pulse; cases requiring hospital treatment are frequently reported.

Note for the beekeeper

Keep honey taken from these areas during flowering separate, do not mix it and do not put it on sale. Some studies show that rhododendron nectar can also harm honey bees.