27
NEW ZEALAND BEEKEEPER, JUNE 2017
TREES FOR BEES CORNER
STAR PERFORMERS PART 4: LACEBARKS FOR AUTUMN POLLEN AND NECTAR
Dr Linda Newstrom-Lloyd (Trees for Bees Botanist) and Angus McPherson (Trees for Bees Farm Planting Adviser)
Trees for Bees has produced a series of fact sheets showcasing the ‘best of the best’ bee plants that will maximise nutrition benefits for your bees. In this issue of the journal, the team explains why lacebark is a ‘star performer’. For more information, see www.treesforbeesnz.org.
Bees need a good nectar and pollen supply in autumn to produce robust bees that will survive the winter months, but there are few flowering species available at this time. Several lacebark (Hoheria spp.) species are outstanding star performers because they flower profusely in autumn and are some of the few large flowered native species readily available in the nursery trade. Of the seven native species of Hoheria (lacebarks, houhere, ribbonwood), three are star performers because they flower in autumn during this stark shortage of other flowers. A fourth species is worthy of consideration as it flowers through summer into autumn. The autumn-flowering species are Hoheria populnea, H. sexstylosa and H. glabrata; these are exceptional trees/shrubs with a profusion of showy white scented flowers that contribute abundant pollen and nectar. The fourth species is Hoheria lyallii, which is similar to H. glabrata and flowers from November to March. Although the natural distribution of H. populnea is in the upper North Island only, it has spread and naturalised throughout New Zealand from cultivated garden escapes, so some consider it a ‘native weed’. Hoheria sexstylosa naturally occurs from the middle of the North Island down to the Wellington coast and the Wairarapa. In the South Island there are localised endemic populations in northwest Nelson, Marlborough and Banks Peninsula. However, since it hybridises with H. angustifolia in the South Island, there is concern in some areas such as Canterbury to protect natural populations of H. angustifolia from genetic swamping.
Figure 1. Leaves on a branch of lacebark, Hoheria populnea, with open flowers, new flower buds, and old spent flowers.
Species
Distribution
Flowering
Hoheria populnea Houhere, lacebark
Northland to Waikato and Coromandel Waikato/Coromandel to Wellington/Wairarapa Nelson, Marlborough, Banks Peninsula West South Island and Mt Taranaki
January to March
Hoheria sexstylosa Houhere, long-leaved lacebark
February to May
Hoheria glabrata Mountain lacebark, ribbonwood Hoheria lyallii Mountain lacebark, ribbonwood
February to March
Drier east side Southern Alps November to March
Table 1: Hoheria distribution and flowering.
continued...
Made with FlippingBook - Online catalogs