Karen Oland said:

> I have been told that Sourwood will only produce enough nectar
> for honey at "high" elevations.

I think it would be more accurate to say that Sourwood tends to grow
more densely at "high elevations", and/or in the larger forests that
are "cut" by loggers, like the US Eastern National Forests.  Therefore,
there simply are not enough good stands of trees at lower elevations to
make the effort of placing hives for a unifloral crop "worthwhile".

But elevation alone is not a real issue.  I planted a few Sourwood
trees along a river that runs along one of my fields, and they clearly
are producing nectar at a mere 902 feet above sea level with a tree
height of only 10 feet or so.  The bees love 'em.  Maybe in a few
years, there will be enough blossoms to fill entire supers.

Sourwood is an "opportunistic plant", one that quick appears after
fires and after clear-cuts.  Therefore, if you want to find a good
stand of Sourwood, you have to ask a Forest Ranger to scribble on a
topo map where clear cuts and fires were 5 to 10 years ago.

Of course, you have to do your legwork, checking out the areas to
find a decent stand of sourwood near a passable fire road.  If the
road is terrible, you can get a permit to "repair" the road at your
own expense (drive a dozer along it to fill in the worst potholes
and ruts), eliminate the area from your consideration, or invest
a better off-road vehicle for hauling your hives, like perhaps an
M1-A1 Abrams Main Battle Tank
http://www.army-technology.com/projects/abrams/images/abram13.jpg

Then comes the permits to put hives in the National Forest, and
the creation of "bear-proof" enclosures for your hives.

Then comes getting keys for the locked gates that block the fire
roads.

About the only positive note is that by the time Sourwood blooms,
those dirt roads are much drier than the muddy tracks and "unfinished
swimming pools" one encounters in spring pollination work

Maybe beekeepers in TN have an easier time of it.


                jim

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