Q: I’m a first-time bee keeper and at a Georgia Beekeeping Association event one of the speakers said that jasmine was toxic to bees. This is disappointing because I want to grow Tangerine Dream jasmine vine. What do you think?

A: I believe you’re thinking of ‘Tangerine Beauty’ crossvine, Bignonia capreolata ‘Tangerine Beauty’. It is not a jasmine but a native vine that has no effect one bees to my knowledge. I can find no reference that Confederate jasmine, Trachelospermum jasminoides, is poisonous to bees. I found a couple of anecdotal mentions and one scientific note that Carolina jessamine, Gelsemium sempervirens, can be toxic to honeybees under certain conditions when no other nectar-bearing flowers are present. I’d plant the crossvine and enjoy it and your bees.