Survey of world honey sources

IBRA has been successful in obtaining funds. from the International Development Research Council, Ottawa, for the compilation and publication of a Directory of important world honey sources. The Directory will include up to 800 plants that are, somewhere in the world, a major source of honey.

The leaflet Source Materials for Apiculture (SAM) No. 3 "Planting for bees in developing countries" gives some idea of what the Directory entries will look like.

A survey of published and unpublished information was started at I5RA in 1979, to make an index of plants producing a honey surplus (and pollen), “honeydew and propolis, with a grant awarded by UNESCO to the International Commission for Bee Botany. A card index of 2500 plants reported as honey sources in 46 countries was built up, which is being drawn upon for entries for the Directory now being prepared.

In a future issue of the Newsletter we will be requesting the help of readers for information on important honey sources in specific countries where we have little or no information.