Sustainable Living > Gardening

Is all Lemon Grass the same?

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Newbee:
I'd heard bee's like lemongrass.
I acquired a few stalks of lemongrass that's used in asian cooking. Put it into water for a couple weeks, and roots sprouted. Put it in dirt, and it's growing and adding leaves (indoors now due to the cold).
It doesn't exhibit much of a smell however? Is all lemongrass the same? These stalks were live, but came from a culinary source, so I'm not sure if it's the same kind of lemongrass that the bee's like?!
Thanks.

- K

neillsayers:
It's the extracted oils that mimic the nasonov pheromone. It's quite concentrated and very potent. I don't know if the grass itself draws bees.

Newbee:
Interesting....
There was a woman at one of the local conferences out here selling it, suggesting all sorts of uses, including as an attractant for wild-bee's/swarms. She suggested taking some of the leaves and pushing them into a Nuc or swarm trap and placing it in your location. The lemongrass would help 'attract' the bee's to that location.
Shrug... I acquired the stems for free, so thought it worth a shot.  ;D

- K

eltalia:

--- Quote from: Newbee on November 02, 2017, 05:02:11 pm ---I'd heard bee's like lemongrass.
(edit)

--- End quote ---

I heard the same... so I tried it.
If you're growing the plant for this purpose good luck to you, I went
the essential (?) oil route.
In times of panic - swarm/disruption/ - a mix of a few drops in a litre of water
appears to have a clustering effect, but the action around the sprayed zone
could be something else.
Other than "smells nice", as an attractant the use of oil in a cottonwool packed
straw -  adjacent the bait entrance -  is yet to prove anything in just on two
weeks. I could update if that changes.

Bill

Lburou:
Lemon balm is the plant that smells like lemongrass oil when you crush it.  Let us know how this turns out, we are interested.  :)

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