Not a botanist, but a biologist and natural historian involved in
pollination ecology for years...I'd say it's an excellent hypothesis,
and  matches some of my observations in the Virgin Islands (not
blueberries) and South Carolina.  Here in SC, if there are any problems
with the concurrent maple bloom, our wild blueberries are full of
honeybees and the fruit set is immense.  I also noted that during last
year's rainy spring,  the bees were reduced to collecting pollen from
the edges of fallen leaves where the water had pooled, leaving a rim of
pollen (mostly wind-borne).  The tulip poplar was completely washed
out.  Though most of the honey made looked like blackberry, there was so
much oak pollen mixed in that many of us are highly allergic to it, even
in minute amounts.  So far this year things are looking much better!

>
> A blueberry grower has just indicated to me that he has never seen so
> many
> honeybees working his bushes. I thought about this for a few minutes and
> came to the following supposition. We have had about a 1-1/2 weeks of
> rain,
> high winds and 40 deg. weather. My observation is that almost all
> nectar/pollen sources have been either blown or washed out. The
> structure of
> the blueberry blossom is such that it could quite well avoid much of
> these
> invironmental conditions thus being about the only source available. What
> say you botanists?
>
> Alden Marshall
> Hudson, NH  03051
>

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