<Hello Bee-L,
<    This is my first post to Bee-L. I am Joel Parton from Tennessee near
<Knoxville. Tim Morris wrote asking about Privet as a bee forage and for any
<other suggestions for a small planting. The book Honey Plants by Lovell,
<reprinted by Bee Culture in 1977, briefly mentions Privet (Ligustrum spp.)
<as being an important honey plant in England. I'm not sure this is the same
<Privet we have here in the States. Most references I have found do say the
<bees like privet but that privet honey has a disagreeable smell and very
<strong flavor

    We have two sorts of privet here in the UK, the native privet, Ligustrum
vulgare, and the introduced oriental privet, L. ovalifolium, which is used in
urban hedges. Native privet is a widespread shrub, producing honey which is
variously described as 'objectionable' and 'dark and strong tasting'. In my,
admittedly very underbeed area, I don't see them on it, so they may not be
very keen. I don't think it could be described as an 'important' honey plant.



Regards,

Robert Brenchley

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