Sapodilla family plants for bees
Shea, argan, mahua and chiuri — tropical and subtropical trees behind honeys most of Europe has never seen, and behind some of the oldest honey-hunting traditions there are.
Why this family matters
This family is economically enormous and culinarily invisible in the north. Shea butter, argan oil and mahua spirit all come from these trees, and honey is a parallel product of the same flowering. Chiuri is the tree that Nepal's cliff-honey hunters work, and the honey from it carries a genuine cultural weight that no European honey does. Including the family here is a corrective: the honey world is not centred on Europe, and a catalogue that stopped at temperate species would be describing a subset and calling it the whole.
When it flowers
Dry-season flowering in the main — chiuri December to February, shea January to April, mahua March and April, argan April to June. These windows are set by monsoon and drought cycles rather than by temperature, which is why they do not map onto a northern temperate calendar at all.
Which bees it serves
Apis dorsata, the giant honey bee, works chiuri and mahua and builds the open combs on cliffs and tall trees that honey hunting depends on. Apis cerana and stingless bees work the same trees at lower levels. None of this is a hive-based relationship, which is part of why it is poorly recorded.
Sapodilla family plants in the catalogue
- ChiuriDiploknema butyraceaDecember to February. Nectar high, pollen moderate.Minor honey crop
- SheaVitellaria paradoxaJanuary to April. Nectar high, pollen high.Major honey crop
- ArganArgania spinosaApril to June. Nectar high, pollen moderate.Major honey crop
- MahuaMadhuca longifoliaMarch to April. Nectar very high, pollen moderate.Major honey crop
What this group covers
7 of 12 months have something in flower. Nectar and pollen are counted separately and a month counts only where at least one plant offers that resource at moderate value or better — a plant in flower is not the same as a plant worth visiting.
| Month | In flower | Nectar | Pollen |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 2 | Yes | Yes |
| February | 2 | Yes | Yes |
| March | 2 | Yes | Yes |
| April | 3 | Yes | Yes |
| May | 1 | Yes | Yes |
| June | 1 | Yes | Yes |
| July | nothing | No | No |
| August | nothing | No | No |
| September | nothing | No | No |
| October | nothing | No | No |
| November | nothing | No | No |
| December | 1 | Yes | Yes |
What this group does not cover
Nothing in flower: July, August, September, October, November. Planting only from this group would leave those months empty.
Bees these plants are recorded with
Taken from the relationships on each plant record. These are the well-attested associations rather than an exhaustive list of visitors, so treat the number as a floor.
Honeys from these plants
- Chiuri honeyRich and slightly smoky with a nutty depth and a warm caramel base — one of the more distinctive Nepali honeys and considerably less known than the cliff honey.
- Shea honeyWarm and buttery with a nutty depth and a light caramel base — a rounded, approachable honey with a distinct richness.
- Argan honeyWarm and nutty with a distinct roasted note and a light resinous edge — genuinely reminiscent of the oil, which is a rare coincidence between a honey and its tree's other product.
- Mahua honeyHeavy and molasses-like with a fermented dried-fruit note and a faintly smoky finish — one of the more challenging Indian honeys and among the most distinctive.
Other families
- Daisy family
- Mint family
- Rose family
- Pea family
- Honeysuckle family
- Heather family
- Buttercup family
- Myrtle family
- Cabbage family
- Borage family
- Carrot family
- Mallow family
- Onion family
- Buckthorn family
- Maple and horse chestnut family
- Plantain family
- Citrus family
- Protea family
- Primrose family
- Asparagus family
- Currant family
- Elder and viburnum family
- Pine family
- Cashew and mango family
- Palm family
- Ivy family
- Oak and chestnut family
- Leatherwood family
- Spurge family
Plan with these
- Flowering calendar
What should I plant so that something is always in flower for bees?
- Bee-friendly garden planner
What should I plant in the space I actually have?
- Plant recommendation tool
Which plant fills this specific gap?