- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Honey bees have a "choke hold" on artichokes.
They absolutely love flowering artichokes.
Take the artichokes blooming in the Häagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven at the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility at UC Davis.
Sometimes 10 or 15 bees try to gather on a single blossom.
The "beeline" of honey bees, bumble bees and sweat bees turns into a collision course not unlike a NASCAR race.
"Hot spot," said Extension apiculturist Eric Mussen of the UC Davis Department of Entomology faculty. "They're all heading for that hot spot of nectar."
The artichoke (Cynara crdunculus)? It's a thistle, and bees are ravenously fond of thistles.
A rule of thumb: When you're trying to attract bees, don't harvest the artichokes. Let them bloom.
![HONEY BEES head for the flowering artichokes at the Häagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven at UC Davis. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey) HONEY BEES head for the flowering artichokes at the Häagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven at UC Davis. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)](https://ucanr.edu/blogs/bugsquad/blogfiles/4430.jpg)
![HOT SPOT--These bees are all seeking the same nectar hot spot on a flowering artichoke. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey) HOT SPOT--These bees are all seeking the same nectar hot spot on a flowering artichoke. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)](https://ucanr.edu/blogs/bugsquad/blogfiles/4431.jpg)
![CAUCASIAN BEE (left) and an Italian bee try to avoid a collision over a patch of flowering artichokes in the Haagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven at UC Davis. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey) CAUCASIAN BEE (left) and an Italian bee try to avoid a collision over a patch of flowering artichokes in the Haagen-Dazs Honey Bee Haven at UC Davis. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)](https://ucanr.edu/blogs/bugsquad/blogfiles/4433.jpg)