nikki watts 905 Posted December 13, 2020 Share Posted December 13, 2020 Does anyone know what conditions make or wreck the Manuka flower ? Only the Manuka in wet areas has flowered here this year. Up in the hills only kanuka has been flowering with the odd valley floor of Manuka putting on a good show. I was wondering if it could have had anything to do with last years drought ? Link to post Share on other sites
Popular Post Jamo 534 Posted December 14, 2020 Popular Post Share Posted December 14, 2020 17 hours ago, nikki watts said: Does anyone know what conditions make or wreck the Manuka flower ? Only the Manuka in wet areas has flowered here this year. Up in the hills only kanuka has been flowering with the odd valley floor of Manuka putting on a good show. I was wondering if it could have had anything to do with last years drought ? Yep Manuka flower buds form on last year's new growth and plants that were under significant stress during last summer's drought had very little new growth compared to those that had wet feet. The signs were there back in Feb that this year was going to be patchy in places. 1 1 4 Link to post Share on other sites
Stoney 1,584 Posted December 14, 2020 Share Posted December 14, 2020 I’ve got plenty new growth without buds, south facing areas although still very patchy are better than north facing.. a fair bit of energy went into the heavy bloom here last year I recon this year it’s taking a breather. Link to post Share on other sites
john berry 5,636 Posted December 14, 2020 Share Posted December 14, 2020 I have seen fantastic manuka crops the year after a drought and also after very wet years. Manuka certainly flowers better some years and I suspect it has a poor flowering after a heavy seed set the year before but I'm not sure as there are just too many variables. It'snot just how many flowers there are but whether they all come out together and how long they last. Some years around here anyway they come out and then just wither up . Some areas are pretty reliable and can produce a crop nearly every year while others only yield every four or five years or on one apiary I used to have once in 20 years. High country manuka can also be severely affected for many years following bad snow break. And you have to have good weather as well. 3 Link to post Share on other sites
kaihoka 2,976 Posted December 14, 2020 Share Posted December 14, 2020 On 13/12/2020 at 7:44 PM, nikki watts said: Does anyone know what conditions make or wreck the Manuka flower ? Only the Manuka in wet areas has flowered here this year. Up in the hills only kanuka has been flowering with the odd valley floor of Manuka putting on a good show. I was wondering if it could have had anything to do with last years drought ? My dad , who was an orchardist, told me it was autumn weather that determined next yrs flowering on plants that flowered on last yrs wood . That the bud wood was ripened internally in the autumn. Rata and manuka both flower on last yrs wood , kanuka seems to flower on newer shoots , but they were still developing last season. You can see this clearly when you are prunning figs . People often prune them right back and get no crop. Event though they fruit on this yrs wood that wood was formed internally on second yr wood which is normally what is prunned off . 3 Link to post Share on other sites
kaihoka 2,976 Posted December 14, 2020 Share Posted December 14, 2020 2 minutes ago, john berry said: I have seen fantastic manuka crops the year after a drought and also after very wet years. Manuka certainly flowers better some years and I suspect it has a poor flowering after a heavy seed set the year before but I'm not sure as there are just too many variables. It'snot just how many flowers there are but whether they all come out together and how long they last. Some years around here anyway they come out and then just wither up . Some areas are pretty reliable and can produce a crop nearly every year while others only yield every four or five years or on one apiary I used to have once in 20 years. High country manuka can also be severely affected for many years following bad snow break. And you have to have good weather as well. We are having our second in a row decent manuka ,kanuka flowering this yr. Dry autumns seem to make the difference for us . But some bushes are more reliable . I have a bush on my drive that flowers profusely every yr . Link to post Share on other sites
nikki watts 905 Posted December 14, 2020 Author Share Posted December 14, 2020 20 hours ago, Jamo said: Yep Manuka flower buds form on last year's new growth and plants that were under significant stress during last summer's drought had very little new growth compared to those that had wet feet. The signs were there back in Feb that this year was going to be patchy in places. thanks. i’d love to know more about the biology of manuka so we can predict the flow better. we really only have manuka and kanuka in any great quantity so if we miss the manuka it’s a pretty lean season for the bees. it’s better not to stimulate the hives to get them ready for a flow that never turns up. 1 Link to post Share on other sites
nikki watts 905 Posted December 14, 2020 Author Share Posted December 14, 2020 9 hours ago, Stoney said: I’ve got plenty new growth without buds, south facing areas although still very patchy are better than north facing.. a fair bit of energy went into the heavy bloom here last year I recon this year it’s taking a breather. we had a heavy bloom last year too which wouldn’t help. 1 Link to post Share on other sites
nab 86 Posted December 14, 2020 Share Posted December 14, 2020 2 hours ago, nikki watts said: i’d love to know more about the biology of manuka so we can predict the flow better good luck. 1 Link to post Share on other sites
kaihoka 2,976 Posted December 15, 2020 Share Posted December 15, 2020 4 hours ago, nikki watts said: thanks. i’d love to know more about the biology of manuka so we can predict the flow better. we really only have manuka and kanuka in any great quantity so if we miss the manuka it’s a pretty lean season for the bees. it’s better not to stimulate the hives to get them ready for a flow that never turns up. When we were looking to clear land for gardens in the old days we would look for kanuka. If kanuka was growing there there was a chance something else would grow there too. If manuka was growing there there was no chance . 1 1 1 Link to post Share on other sites
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