Maize
Gives no nectar; bees gather plenty of pollen from the wind-pollinated tassels in midsummer, though maize pollen alone is nutritionally poor.
- Nectar
- None
- Pollen
- Good
- Flowering
- JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
- Pollen colour
- Height
- 1.5-3 m
- Life cycle
- Annual
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Maize is wind-pollinated and produces no nectar. The male tassels at the top of the plant, however, shed large amounts of pollen, which bees collect especially in midsummer when few other flowers are available. In colonies near large maize fields, most of the load caught in a pollen trap may be maize.
Flowering
Main-crop maize produces tassels in July-August, second-crop maize in late August-September. Pollen shed peaks in the morning and lasts about 1-2 weeks in a field.
Honey and pollen
Maize yields no honey. The pollen loads are pale yellow to cream. Because its protein content is low and it is poor in some amino acids, bees cannot raise healthy brood on maize pollen alone.
Note for the beekeeper
Droplets that collect on leaf tips in the morning on maize grown from treated seed can pose a risk to bees; provide clean water in the apiary. To increase pollen diversity during the maize period, sowing phacelia or sunflower nearby is useful.