February 2012 - Victorian Apiarists'Association (VAA)

Cooler than expected
by Bob McDonald - Australian Bee Journal (Feb 2012)

January weather has had a few very hot days interspersed with some cooler days, and a little rain. This month has been generally cooler than what we would expect for January.

Red Gum Eucalytus camaldulensis has finished flowering everywhere, and has yielded surplus honey, with some areas yielding heavily for a short time.

North-West - Christmas Mallee Eucalyptus socialis yielded until late January. Yellow Mallee Eucalyptus dumosa is starting to flower.  Some beekeepers are hopeful of further honey, but Yellow Mallee is unreliable and can be hard on bees – especially if it stays dry, so care needs to be taken.

North Central – Yellow Box, although not a fast flow has yielded honey right through until the end of flowering. Bee hives have gone flat through the shortage of pollen, but bee hives shifted off the Red Gum onto Yellow Box have generally filled with honey.

Elsewhere there appears some areas of Red Stringy Bark Eucalyptus macrorhyncha have sufficient buds left (after serious bud-drop), but at this stage is only yielding pollen.
Brown Stringy Bark Eucalyptus baxteri  in South Western Victoria is starting to flower and also yielding pollen.

Grey Box Eucalyptus microcarpa is budded well on open plains country and in some cases, around the edges of the forests.  In northern areas, scattered trees are flowering (late January) and yielding pollen.  This is 2 to 3 weeks earlier than normal so these are most likely the trees that set bud during November.  However, many trees did not set bud until December after the late November rains, and this budding will most likely extend the flowering well into autumn.

Gippsland – Saw Banksia Banksia serrata is starting to flower and showing good nectar and pollen.  There is a general movement of bee hives into the area.