Vol. III. No. 54. 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



155 



^>/^ 



BEE KEEPING. 



The Cho-cho as a Bee plant. 



In a bulletin issued by the United States Depart- 

 ment of Agriculture, entitled : Tlic chayute : A tropical 

 vefjetahle, there occurs the following account of the 

 value of this plant (Sechiu/in ci/ale), known in the West 

 Indies as Cho-cho or Christophine, as a bee plant : — ■ 



As in other vegetables of the squash family, the stamens 

 and pistils are in separate fiowers, pollination taking place 

 through the agency of insects. To attract these the flowers of 

 both kinds, but especially the pistillate, yield abundant 

 nectar, which is secreted in ten glands, two at the base of 

 each of the lobes of the corolla. In most of the countries 

 into which it has been introduced bee keeping ha.s not been 

 a regular industry, and the value of the chayote as a source of 

 honey has not been noticed, but the reports of experimenters 

 in New South Wales contain very emphatic statements on the 

 subject : — 



' Wher. the plant is in flower I have noticed that the 

 vines were swarmin.g with bees, and as flowers are scarce in 

 the autumn, the plant will no doubt be valuable as a honey 

 producer. 



The plant, which spreads over a large area, commenced 

 flowering at the close of the year, and has been well laden 

 with mellifluous blossoms ever since. The bees are e.\tremely 

 fond of the cho-cho, and with the apiarist the newly 

 introduced plant must become a strong favourite.' 



It will be seen tliat the chayote diff'ers from many 

 Cucurbitaceae in producing numerous flowers on each fertile 

 branch. It has long been known that the flowers of this 

 family are rich in honej', but from the standpoint of the 

 bee keeper they have been considered of little importance 

 because seldom accessible in sufticient amount, though in 

 the United States fields are recognized as good bee pastures. 

 The chayote seems to make up by numbers what the flowers 

 lack in size, so that the yield of honey may be larger than in 

 related plants. In addition to this, there is the fact that 

 Sechium is a perennial bloomer in the tropics and in the 

 sub-tropical regions has a very long season. It is thus 

 possible that in regions like parts of Florida, where bee 

 keeping is already an established industry, the honey- 

 producing qualities of the chayote may be found of practical 

 account in connexion with its other utilities. 



It would be of interest if bee keepers in the West 

 Indies would state their experience with this plant as 

 a source of honey. 



GOMMIER RESIN. 



There are two gommier or resin trees known in 

 the West Indies. The lowland gommier tree, also 

 known as the birch or gum mastic, is Bwrsera gummi- 

 fera. This has a smooth, reddish bark and is a 

 familiar object everywhere in the lowlands in the West 



Indies. A specimen of ' Cachilou ' or 'Incense gum' 

 from this tree was forwarded to the Colonial and 

 Indian Exhibition, 1886, by Di. Nicholls of Dominica; 

 also a 'Carib flambeaux made with gum Cachilou.' 

 Mr. W. H. Porter sent to the same Exhibition a model 

 of a dug-out or passenger canoe or ' jjirouge ' with the 

 shell made from the gonnnier tree {Bur$eva gumnil- 

 fera). 



There is also a mountain gommier tree, with a 

 rough, ash-coloured bark, growing inland at elevations 

 of 1,.500 to 3,000 {eei—Dacryodfi.'i hexandm. This 

 has been met with at Nevis, Dominica, St. Vincent 

 and Grenada, but always in high woods. 



In the Bullet in <if tite Imperial LnstitvAe for 

 March (p. 20), there is published an interesting account 

 of a gommier resin from Dominica forwarded by the 

 Administrator to Mr. Watts who was then in England. 



It is not stated whether this was obtained from 

 the lowland or the nrountain gommier. It is 

 described as 'opaque, whitish and viscous' and obtained 

 from the gommier tree common ' in the forests of 

 Dominica and that the resin is collected b}' the natives 

 and used locally in the preparation of torches and as 

 incense.' The probability is that it was obtained from 

 Dacryodes hexan dra. 



The following particulars are given as to the 

 commercial valuation of gommier resin from Domi- 

 nica : — 



The principal purposes to which elemi resin is applied 

 are the preparation of printing inks and the manufacture of 

 spirit varnishes, although a small quantity is also used in 

 medicine. Specimens of gommier resin were submitted to 

 manufacturers of printing inks and to \-arnish makers, who 

 both reported that the soft gommier resin would answer 

 their purposes as well as elemi. 



Other samples were then submitted to brokers for 

 valuation. They stated tliat the material was somewhat 

 dirty, and would only be worth from 17s. to 18s. per cwt., as 

 compared with 50s. to 55s. per cwt. obtainable for true elemi. 

 This difference in price is probably to be accounted for by 

 the fact that elemi is usually sold in this country in 

 a comparatively fresh and soft condition and that it is 

 generally fairly free from dirt. 



It is probable that gommier resin, if exported in a fresh 

 and clean condition, would realize prices more nearly eipial 

 to those obtained for true elemi. 



DEPARTMENT NEWS. 



With the approval of the Secretary of State for 

 the Colonies, the Imperial Commissioner of Agriculture 

 will proceed to the United Kingdom on duty in 

 connexion with the ■work of the Dejjartment, on June 

 4 next. 



Mr. W. B. Seabrook, the expert cotton ginner 

 from tire Sea Islands, proceeded by last mail on a short 

 visit to the Leeward Islands in order to afford assistance 

 in connexion with cotton ginning. On his return, 

 he will spend a day at St. L\icia. Mr. Seabrook will 

 leave for Jamaica by the mail of May 9 next. 



