Dear Robert:
        Thank you for a most enjoyable look at OZZIE migratory beekeeping.
I have a couple of questions:
 
> The
>best return I've heard of lately was 650 x 300kg drums from 800 hives in
>one year returning a bulk honey price of AUD$1.75-$1.80/kg.
 
That is a truly stupendous yield.  You say that is the best return.  What
might an average return be, in an average year (weight of honey per hive).
I'm just looking for a very rough guess on your part.  Do you think yields
are similar for migratory beekeepers in other areas of Australia, West
Australia for example?
 
>This channel country is world famous (in Australia) for huge crops of
>Yapunyah honey.  The Yapunyah is a short eucalypt that produces large
>crops of a very light honey having a natural moisture content of around
>15% (try and wipe that off your knife).  It is a truly delicious honey.
> The channel country starts about 1000 km from the coast.  It is mostly
>sheep of beef country with low stocking capacity and very large
>properties.  One of the largest in this region is 3,500 sq miles in
>area.
 
Wow, that one property is about the same size as Prince Edward Island, the
province of Canada I happen to inhabit (admittedly the tiniest province).
When the beekeepers are putting hives in the channel country  how many hives
might they put in one yard, and how far apart would the yards be (assuming
that the area had an average to good density of Yapunyah?  Would the
stocking density vary much in other eucalypts?
 
I was also curious as to the extent to which the beekeepers themselves
followed the hives, and whether they used mobile extracting facilities.
 
Thanks again for a fascinating post.
Regards, Stan