On Wed, 25 Mar 1998 19:13:40 -0600 Robert Barnett
<[log in to unmask]> writes:
>Hello Anthony:
>These comments are not intended to relate to "Tazmanian" Leatherwood,
>and I
>suspect these plants referenced are very different.  Leatherwood in
>the
>Southeastern USA (southern Virginia down the coastal states,  to and
>including Florida then west to Louisiana, especially in the " Coastal
>Plain"
>areas of these states, have such a plant, more often called Titi,
>which is
>botanically, Cyrilla racemiflora L.  It is a semi-evergreen shrub  or
>small
>tree with gray or reddish spongy bark, and thick leathery glossy
>leaves with
>a netlike venation pattern on the upper surface. Numerous racemes
>4-12
>inches  long are born on second year growth.  The small flowers are
>about
>1/16 inch across, white, with 5 petals bearing glandular tissue on the
>inner
>surface and secreting a nectar that is attractive to bees.  Down this
>far
>south they bloom quite early, and are in fact gone by mid april in
>south
>central Alabama where I maintained a strong colony for 5 or 6 years.
>There, the plant does not produce honey for harvest because of 1)
>insufficient number of plants  2) the bees do not pursue it with
>enthusiasm.
> I have never tasted this honey, but further south near the coast,
>Titi does
>have a role.  Perhaps, someone from that area will comment.   Further,
>it
>has a reputation for contributing to, if not causing    " Purple
>brood", as
>a manifestation of the nectar's poisonous effect  on the brood.   I
>have
>seen my bees working the few plants near my colony, but have not seen
>purple
>brood.  I believe there are other varieties of leatherwood up as far
>as the
>northeastern states and even Maine, where it may be called Black Titi,
>or
>Buckwheat Tree.  Nothing further
>----------
to add to the confusion, let me paraphrase from "florida bee botany", an
extension circular available  from the "FAIRS"(florida agricultural
information retrieval service?) link in m.t.sanford's APIS newsletter web
site's  links page:
"buckwheat tree (cliftonia monophylla),or black titi,often called spring
titi...prolific in the panhandle...blooms from feb. to apr. and often
contributes to a surplus honey crop....white titi(cyrilla racemiflora),
often called summer titi...common small tree or shrub found from central
peninsula northwards...blooms from may to july...usually produces little
nectar...is considered undesirable because nectar/pollen are responsible
for a  condition known as "purple brood"...killing brood,turning it a
rich purple color."
paradoxically, have seen a bluish/purplish honey purported to be titi,
presumably the toxic effects on brood rearing are transitory, and a
strong colony in a titi nectar flow can survive it even producing a
surplus in a  "good" year...then again maybe not, just another of many
mysteries in the miasma of apicultural epistemology...
 
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