206p., 15 Col. Plts., Abb., App., Gloss., Index, 25 cm.
CONTENTS
CONTENTS:- Introduction; Honey: An Elixir of Life; Bees, Beekeeping and hive products; Nectaries; Overview of Honey plants; Enumeration of honey plants; Honey Plants of the North-West Himalaya; Epilogue; Literature Cited.
DESCRIPTION
Beekeeping in India is still in infancy, offering vast scope for expansion as a prime agri-horti-culture and forest-based industry. In order to make beekeeping a successful enterprise, the first and foremost task is to educate bee-keepers about the bee pasturage availability in different agroclimatic zones. This provides valuable information on availability and abundance of pollen and nectar sources for honeybees during different seasons and helps ultimately in standardizing the seasonal management practices for honeybee colony. This unique compendium brings together much needed information on nectar and pollen potential of 290 promising plant species belonging to 221 genera of the North-West Himalaya. It also aims to familiarise the readers with floral abundance for balanced growth of apiculture. It also provides information on synonyms, vernacular name(s), distribution, flowering and fruiting, botanical description and active constituents to serve as a valuable ready-reckoner for beekeeping management on scientific lines in general and for socio-economic up-liftment of mountain rural communities in particular. It is hoped that this compendium will be of great practical utility to the farmers, beekeepers, scientists, extension workers and entrepreneurs practising beekeeping.
