THE APIARY.

Otago Witness, Issue 4039, 11 August 1931, Page 11

THE APIARY.

HOW BEES BREATHE. Air is taken into the body of the bee through little holes in the sides of both the thorax and the abdomen. It is retained in air bags or forced through a system of air tubes throughout the body of the bee, much as the blood is caused to circulate. The abdominal rings, together with certain muscles, assist hi forcing the air through the body of the bee. Just notice this breathing motion of the abdomen in a bee after a long flight as it alights at the enti ance of the hive. The heart is located in the abdomen. It forces the blood to every part ol the bee in order that it may come in contact with the air with its vitalising oxygen, and supply the tissues with both f< od and oxygen. HOW BEES BUILD COMB. Al beekeepers should know how their bees fashion the beautiful combs that hold the honey . and provide a nest for the young bees. Perlmps some people contei.-l that the pollen that is often seen adhering to the bees’ legs is later made into honeycomb. It is really marvel’.ms how these little insects can turn honey into comb at will. At the base of the abdomen are wax glands. These glands seem to understand the rules of chemistry, lor, with the stomach to assist, they can turn honey into wax if the bee so desires. And such wax ! There is no other wax like it. It is beeswax. With these tiny scales of pieces of wax the bees fashion their beautiful combs. With honey the bees secrete these small wax scales. They are so thin that dozens of them would not be thicker than a sheet of paper. The combs the bees build during a heavy honey flow are altogether different to those built during a very light flow. A ! poor quality comb is made when a light flow is in evidence: a fine quality comb is made when a heavy flow is experienced. Thus it will be seen if good straight combs are desired they should be built during a good honey flow. If foundation sheets are used medium combs may be secured during a fair honey flow. PRODUCTION AND SALE. (Members of the Honey Producers’ Association met in Sydney on July 17 to discuss the abolition of the Honey Board. One selling agent informed the meeting that his firm was buying 2000 tins of honey from Melbourne and Adelaide as a result of the board’s operations. His firm would not buy the honey blended by the board because it was. inferior, and consequently the beekeepers of New South Wales were losing business. Another member said that buyers had been forced to buy in other States, and £ll,OOO annually had been lost to the beekeepers. There were 29 votes in favour of the abolition of the board and eight against it.

HONEY WEEK.

Honey Week, organised by the Victorian Apiarists' Association, began on July 20. and represented an effort to arouse greater public interest in honey and other products of the hive. The special committee which directed the campaign concentrated on a drive in the suburbs, where attractive window displays of honey in many forms, bees, and hives were made in more than 500 shops (says an exchange). The great value of honej’ as food was emphasised by slogans ami streamers in windows and by screen advertisements in picture theatres. Although the price of honey is now much lower than it has been for many years the demand has not been good, anil apiarists have greatly accumulated stocks. They hoped to dispose of these and greatly increase the consumption as a result of Honey Week. Production of honey this year has been moderately heavy, and. while the quality has been uniformly good, supplies of prime quality have been scarce. Sellers have had no difficulty in disposing of prime yellow box honey, supplies of which have been restricted owing to an unfavourable flowering season for the yellow box tree. Some of the darker coloured honeys, though less attractive, are not deficient in food value or flavour, and should command the attention of consumers at the prices offered. THE CONTINENTAL MARKET. New Zealand honey is too expensive to enjoy much of a market in Germany at present. The European representative of the New Zealand Honey Producers' Board, who recently visited the Continent, reported on h’s return to England that only a limited trade in honey could be done with Germany. He said: “The quality of New Zealand honey is known and appreciated, but slender purses do not permit the general public to purchase at a time when the expending of each penny has to be carefully considered. We have, therefore, to ‘ mark time.’ in the hope of an improvement in the economic position.” THE HONEY INDUSTRY. WELLINGTON, August 7. The establishment of yet another producers’ board is proposed in the Honey (Local Marketing Board) Bill which ie to be introduced in the House by Mr W. J. Jordan (Manukau) on behalf 'of the New Zealand Beekeepers’ Association. Explaining the provisions of the measure, Mr Jordan said the honey producers, already had a satisfactory Export Control Board, but local consumption offered more immediate returns, with the result that many producers were turning their attention to this field. There was, therefore, a danger of unprofitable local competition, and neglect of the overseas market which had been built up at great expense. The Bill proposed to take control of the output of any apiary containing more than 20 hives for the purpose of ensuring payable local marketing and the availability of supplies to meet the overseas demand. The board was to be constituted by proclamation, and was to consist of two or three representatives. ’“ln 1929 New Zealand exported 1056 tons of honey, valued at £82,743. and m 1930 less than 77 tons, valued at £6216,”

added Mr Jordan. “The possibilities of the British market are enormous, as honey is coming into popular use. but at present the demand is not being met. In New Zealand in 1930 we consumed 2500 tons of honey, and Britain consumed only 4600 tons. New Zealand honey finds ready favour, but the establishment of that market has cost the producers and the Government large sums of money, and must be fostered.