Newbie adding bees to specialty produce farm

Hi there,
I own a small farm in South West Florida. I received my Flow Hive yesterday and am picking up a nuc this weekend. This is my first foray into beekeeping.

I have been reading a little about feeding the bees after picking them up to help get established. Our farm is currently filled to the brim with mostly pepper plants and tomatoes. Do I need to worry about feeding them with this many flowers in the immediate area? We also have beds of native wildflowers and other flowering perennials that encircle and are planted throughout the farm.

Thank you for your time.

Charles

Hi Charles, welcome to beekeeping and the forum! How exciting to look forward to seeing your own bees buzzing about your farm, which sounds lovely.

Personally I see no reason to withhold food if there’s any kind of setback in play, such as what your bees will experience in getting established in a new hive and oriented to your locale in the first few days - longer if there’s bad weather. Go ahead and feed them 1:1 sugar water, and if they don’t bother with it or they stop taking it you can just remove it.

Check out the search tool for loads of info on types of feeders if you need any - & let us know how it all goes!

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Tomatoes are not dependent on honey bees, nor particularly attractive to them. However it seems that bell pepper plants may benefit from pollination and give something to bees:

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/230014116_Flower_and_nectar_attributes_of_pepper_Capsicum_annuum_L_plants_in_relation_to_their_attractiveness_to_honeybees_Apis_mellifera_L

Anything as a monoculture is problematic, as I am sure you are well aware. However, if there is a variety of forage within a mile or so of your hive, they should be fine. The best thing to do is inspect them every week or two. If the honey stores are dropping, feed them. If not, leave them to find their own food.

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