Beaked hazelnut (Corylus cornuta) catkin
Although snow covered my backyard last week, some plants are beginning to act like spring will be here soon.
Flowering plants rely on the transfer of pollen from the anther of one flower to the stigma of another for reproduction. Flowers have co-evolved with their pollinators or “pollen vectors”. This co-evolution has brought about a multitude of different flower shapes, sizes, colors, and rewards. Flowers that are pollinated by the same type of pollen vector usually have many traits in common. This grouping of flower “types” based on their pollinators is called a pollination syndrome.
The transfer of pollen via wind is known as “anemophily”. Plants in this category have small inconspicuous flowers and produce abundant light, small, dry pollen. These flowers have no scent and are usually green providing no nectar.
Late January 2012 first pollen from beaked hazelnut (Corylus cornuta)
But just because the flowers don’t need the bees to reproduce doesn’t preclude them from being important bee plants. In fact, some of the earliest pollen sources are these wind pollinated plants. Beaked hazelnut (Corylus cornuta), red alder (Alnus rubra), and various willow species (Salix spp.) are some of the first plants that bees can collect fresh pollen from on those rare warm (above 50 F) days of late winter.
Pollen provides vitamins, amino acids, and minerals necessary to grow bees. In the hive, it is mixed with bacteria and enzymes and packed into wax cells. There it ferments, worked on first by bacteria, then fungi, yeasts, and molds. Eventually it turns into nutritious bee bread fed to developing drone and worker larvae and young adult bees.
With fresh early pollen and mild temperatures, queens can start laying eggs and building up the colony population for the summer ahead.
Beaked hazelnut (Corylus cornuta) catkin
another summer working at the University of Minnesota Honey Bee Research Lab. However, my job as a bee technician has evolved to leading a brand new program called the Bee Squad. I have worked closely with Marla Spivak and Gary Reuter to build this new hands-on mentoring program for beekeepers and bee supporters in the greater Twin Cities area. This job starts in April so I will miss yet another beautiful bee season in the shadows of Mt. Baker.
