Knapweed pollen

Centaurea nigra

Very pale olive cream, in the cream / white range.

FloweringJune to September

PollenGood

NectarYes

SeasonSummer, Autumn

WhereWaste and verge, Farmland

Meadows and verges right through high summer.

Knapweed (Centaurea nigra) in flower — Photo: Julie Anne Workman, CC BY-SA 3.0. Wikimedia Commons

Easy to mistake for these

Closest pollen colours in our set, measured the same way the pollen identifier scores a match. Colour alone will not settle it, so check the flowering months and what is actually growing near your hives.

MeadowsweetJune to August Japanese knotweedAugust to October HelleboreJanuary to April ElmFebruary to March BluebellApril to May

Out at about the same time

BorageBlue grey BrambleGreenish grey Californian poppyBright orange Common limeYellow to greenish DogwoodPale creamy yellow ElderPale greyish yellow

Saw a load like this going in?

Sample the colour against all 89 plants, then keep a forage record per hive.

Pollen identifier