BEEKEEPING HISTORY

Taranaki Daily News, 11 September 1934, Page 27 (Supplement)

BEEKEEPING HISTORY

AN ANCIENT HISTORY FIRST HIVES IN TARANAKI. TARANAKI’S SUITABILITY. Beekeeping for the production of honey and beeswax on commercial lines is one of the most ancient industries of which we have any record- It was carried- on extensively in those parts of Asia, Africa and Europe, bordering on the eastern end — the Mediterranean Sea many hundreds of years before the Christian era, and we may conclude that it was in a flourishing condition in Greece 600 years 8.C., when Solon, the great Athenian legislator, instituted laws regarding the keeping ,of bees. The esteem in which the chief product of the honey-bee was held in those days may be judged by its name being used in combination with that of milk, the most universal of all foods, to form,the Oriental metaphor denoting . abundance—“a ■ land flowing with milk and. honey.” , ' , .. Beekeeping in those comparatively early times was carried’ out in a very primitive fashion,' the Asiatic, hives being mostly constructed of. dried, clay, of tubular, form, placed singly or in. groups, while in some parts wickerwork plas- j tered .with mud or dried camel-dung, and also tubes of bark, was in use. Strange to say that after more than 3000 years these primitive hives are still in use by natives in these parts.; To ; Miss Burnby, sister of one of the early :■ missionaries, New Zealand owes a debt of gratitude, for. it was Miss Bumby who brought the first consignment of bees from England to New Zealand in the ship “James,” being , landed at Mangunga, Hokianga, in March, 1839. Forty years ago beekeeping was still tarried on in New Zealand in a primifive manner, bees being, kept in oldfashioned straw skeps, boxes and so forth. In 1906, -however, with the passing of the first ’ Apiaries Act, the industry was gradually placed on a sounder footing, and to-day throughout New Zealand we have many families being engaged in beekeeping as a sole means of livelihood. .. j.. SCOPE IN TARANAKI. Taranaki, with its abundance of native flora and rich dairying pastures offers scope for much beekeeping, and it produces in many districts honey which can be favourably compared with the world’s finest. In Taranaki there are approximately 9000 hives established in 645 apiaries. In a normal season the amount of honey harvested would be within the region of 540,0001 b. Beekeeping can be made an important side-line to dairy farming if the dairy farmer is prepared to “take courage and go ahead,” and give his bees the same amount of care and attention which he devotes to his dairy herd. Without that courage and determination to look after his bees well, they are best left to the commercial beekeeper whose whole occupation is tending to his bees, and by selection, careful breeding and expert manipulation, is able to derive a steady income from this source of farming. Many dairy farmers . make poor beekeepers for the ( reason they have not the time to devote to the bees that is required .in order, to obtain payable returns. Here is where the spirit of co-operation so marked in our early settlers can be brought into action. The dairy farmer leases small] areas of his paddocks to a . commercial ] beekeeper; the dairy farmer runs his, c. vs and the beekeeper runs his bees, the latter paying the dairy farmer usually in honey for the privilege of placing hives of bees on the various farms. The dairy farmer. benefits by receiving the heney and also by the improvement to h" pastures, by the fertilisation of the) clover blooms in the paddocks (carried out by the bees) which seed, more profusely and are automatically distributed, over th'- pastures by the dairy herd. Further, the farmer’s orchards and gardens are visited by the bees, the blossoms of th trees and seed bearing crops are pollinated, which results in bigger and. better crops all round. The beekeeping industry has, like the '

rest of the agricultural occupations, experienced a difficult period during the past few years. Certainly in Taranaki the beekeepers have not lost heart, while the adverse conditions experienced have shown them the need for co-operation, more care in the minor details of honey production, and lastly but most important the necessity of producing only the highest grade article so essential when catering for the overseas market. The procedure with commercial beekeeping is for an apiarist to establish a ‘home apiary’ near his house where his'honey house and extraction plant are located, and then to place out on various farms groups of hives numbering from 20 to 50 according to the nectar bearing flora available in the district. The latter are known as out-apiaries, and are visited during the season every ten days or so, carefully examined, progress or otherwise noted, and defects, where existing, put right. The nectar is stored in the hives and at the end of the season it is removed and carried to the honey house where it is extracted by machinery from the frames containing the combs, carefully strained and then placed in the various containers familiar to us all. A HEALTHY OCCUPATION. Beekeeping must be . regarded as a healthy occupation, for in Taranaki alone we have at least two venerable men in Mr. .W. F. Sandford, of New Plymouth, and Mr. E. G. Betts, of Okaiawa—both well over 80 years of age, and well known in the Taranaki beekeeping circle. Beekeeping is no longer a matter of Jceeping a box of bees in a back yard, destroying the bees with sulphur at the .end of the season, taking out the honey comb and straining the honey through a piece ; of muslin as' was the practice 40 years ago. To-day beekeeping is carried out on scientific lines, the honey house being equipped with up-to-date machinery for extracting and bottling the honey 'in the most hygienic manners. Taraiiaki has as many such up-to-date, fully-, equipped honey houses as any other part of the Dominion. The beekeeping industry and the consumption of honey should receive ill .the assistance the farming community and general public can give. Beekeeping provides a healthy occupation, collects a product given by nature that would otherwise be lost, finds work for many families, thus helping closer setand when carried on extensively, finds much work for many other trades such as engineering, motor mechanics, timber workers, makers of tins, glass jars, papier mache cartons, printers, carriers, railway, etc. The ’-tst general advice to a beekeeper is to “make haste slowly” and not keep more bees than he is capable of looking after thoroughly. He should pay special attention to his queen breeding (breed only from the best queens) and keep none but young queens in his apiaries. 4 ■ Abandon ail apiary sites not producing good quality honey or difficult of access. Keep in the -hives only comb which contains the smallest percentage of drone cells. ’

Keep all hives and appliances in thorough repair so that the bees are comfortably ’mused, i also appliances so that they are ready for use when needed. Make regular visitsto all out apiaries and leave -othing to chance. When packing honey for the market, pay special attenti' to all details and endeavour to keep, a consistent grade in your various packs so as to maintain the confidence of the purchasing public. Take adv mtages,, whenever obtainable, to display your honey in your local A. and P. shows, this being a splendid way of advertising your product. In spite of the inducements offered by the various associations,, this method of advertising is sadly neglected by the average beek'eper. Lastly, and probably one of the most important facts to remember is that you ( are producing one of the finest, foods nature provides, and it behoves you to market it in the. best and most attractive manner possible. Do your best to enlighten ‘he public of the excellent food value of honey and thus stimulate the demand for your product. Honey has always been regarded, and rightly so, as a cheap and complete food. An old . iage illustrating this says:— “Who in his pocket hath no money, “In his mouth he must have honey.” Careful propaganda and attention to the main factors outlined must eventually show results and give you courage to go ahead.