Since I have become a bee keeper I have experimented with a few bee related cover crops.. this one I like in my grow zone 7.. It blooms in April and goes to seed in May, if I let it complete its cycle it comes back the next spring without resowing.. Crimson clover these bees work it despite what the books say that they can't because the nectar is to deep. I like it, it about finishes its cycle close to the time that I should plant a garden.
In this field I am going to follow it with buckwheat, the buckwheat will help the bees and will mature quickly, I can plow down the seed heads and it will come back again.. It should mature quicker than the weeds I have acquired over the years from store bought seeds.. and maybe I can eliminate some of them and improve my field for next season..
Good looking field, swampcat. Sounds like you have a great plan. Always interesting when the bees are all over something they aren't supposed to like or be able to use. Guess your bees are like mine - they don't read very well.
Let us know how they like the buckwheat and how you like the honey. Up here, the bees love it, but only a few folks like the honey.
Brad this picture was taken in April early in my season. So the clover is ahead of the weeds. this field has a lot of Dock in it and last season I picked up a lot of pigweed seed in some peas I bought. I've been cutting the seed heads off the dock lately. The buckwheat is quick to mature and seed out so I hope I can plow it down and keep the pigweed killed out for a season.. Not sure if that will work yet but Its my plan for now. I've heard that the buckwheat makes a strong favored honey, I planted a small amount of it last summer to try out I liked how it grew The beekers didn't harvest any honey from the hives they had on my place last summer. I'm thinking I may be able to harvest a little honey from my new hive, this first season. I'm giving the bees plenty of space to grow into right now. Its amazing how fast they can multiply.
Yesterday I overseeded buckwheat over the clover surrounding the hives. thats another experiment of mine to see as the clover dies down if the buckwheat will come up and fill in without plowing. I don't want to plow around the hives, last season I sowed white clover, ( Durana) around the hives it failed as a complete crop, but this spring it seems to be trying to come in, I would love to have the white clover cover around the hives, but we don't always get what we want..