>Bob, is this both for agricultural and *wildflower* plants?  What might be
>the reasons?

Not sure of all the reasons. Sunflowers were the basis for honey production
a few decades ago for Bell Honey around Pierre SD. . Then crops changed and
little honey was made. Many felt varieties which produced less nectar were
being planted others felt the weather and soil etc. was to blame.

The bottom line was an area which had produced a million pounds of honey in
six weeks (documented) had turned into an area which would barely support
hives. The commercial beeks left.

Now we see similar issues for many areas. One very large beekeeper said the
problem is today's bees and not the plants.

I see visible less production when hives are placed near row crops and
almost never honey produced from soybeans. I see clover fairly stable in
range country. Poor in row crop areas.

The difference between the way we keep bees in Missouri and in North Dakota
are different in that we scout out locations from our many locations and
then move the bees to the flows ( not using some yards). In North Dakota the
beekeeper usually is forced to simply place hives on registered locations
and hope for the best. Range land is turning into farm land and your best
location last year can be your worst the next year.

My friends in the Dakotas say many times their hives are in poor shape by
the time dropped in honey yards but the vast fields of fresh pollen & nectar
turn most hives around. However when weak hives are dropped in and only poor
nectar & pollen is available then in fall you see problems.

commercial beekeeping is constantly changing and those which do not adapt
and adjust go under.

Each area of the U.S. has its own method of keeping bees. I see the actual
time spent on hives being dropped in Dakota before supers are placed as a
problem area. To explain the hives might have been on crop pollination and
the large beekeeper gets the call to remove the hives. A truck is sent in
and the hives are loaded and trucked to the holding yard. The next day moved
to a registered honey location and supers placed.  The priority is on hive
movement rather than hive condition. The method worked for decades and most
of us were jealous but then we started hearing of problems.

In the above method most decisions are made in an office controlling hive
movement with quite a few "box movers" involved. I have sat in my Rv in
large operations and heard the trucks loaded with hives arrive all night.
Watched those same hives loaded on other trucks the next morning for the
yards. crews working each day to simply haul and super all hives recently
set in yards.

In speaking with the owners many times the first concern in these large
operations is hive movement. One outfit said his hives are only seriously
looked at once a year. Banded the whole season.

bob

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