Honey and Pollen Flora of South-Eastern Australia is a long-awaited publication written by Dr. Doug Somerville, Technical Specialist, Bees with the NSW Department of Primary Industries. This book focuses on the value of key plants to nectar-feeding animals in Australia with particular emphasis on honey bee nutritional requirements. Successful beekeepers understand the biology and value of floral resources which provide critical nectar and pollen to their bee hives, keeping them healthy and profitable. 

(In this video Doug Somerville presents his new publication at the Tocal Beekeepers Field Day at Tocal in October 2019.)

The text distils over 30 years of research undertaken by Somerville and others, scientific knowledge and the real world experience of hundreds of Australian professional beekeepers into a landmark reference work which will contribute to a substantial increase in floral understanding in apiculture. 

From Acacia to Xanthorrhoea species, over 500 plants are photographed and described for identification, mapped, and given a star rating for their value to honey bees either as a source of nectar, pollen or both. Plant species of value to beekeeping from southern Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania are detailed in this book which covers the following:

• What makes an ideal apiary site?
• Hive stocking rate
• Honey bee nutrition
• Star rating
• A note on flowering charts
• What’s in a name?
• Describing plants
• List families – genus/species
• Individual plant profiles

The book is 680 pages full colour, hard cover, weighs 3.1kg and retails at $175 (inc. GST). The book will be available in November 2019 and preorders are now open through Tocal College.