16 BULLETIX 489, U. S. DEPARTMENT OE AGRICULTURE. 
NEEDS OF THE BEEKEEPING INDUSTRY IN NORTH CAROLINA. 
The greatest need of Xorth Carolina beekeepers is an insight into 
late and improved methods of beekeeping. The majority of bee- 
keepers in the State have not had the opportunity, either by personal 
contact with efficient beekeepers or from literature, to learn profit- 
able methods of managing bees. Education in managing bees is 
needed to secure the greatest amount of honey and wax in the best 
condition for the market, thus giving the greatest returns to the 
producer. 
SUMMARY. 
A careful study of the situation and interviews, not only with all 
types of beekeepers but with those who are striving to introduce 
methods for greater production and better distribution in other 
branches of agriculture, indicate that the plan which gives most 
promise for meeting these needs is through personal contact of an 
enthusiastic, expert beekeeper. 
Personal contact is necessary, since few beekeepers in the State 
have learned the elementary principles of beekeeping and have a 
foundation on which to build successfully. Therefore it is neces- 
sary, at the beginning, to meet beekeepers personally, to learn their 
difficulties, to discover their errors, and to suggest the proper man- 
agement. There is not the confidence in beekeeping as a source of 
revenue which is necessary for good results; hence enthusiasm must 
be aroused, and this is not done sufficiently through the printed page. 
The manner, then, of supplying this need is through an expert bee- 
keeper who will work largely on the lines followed by the farm 
demonstrators, not hesitating, however, to adopt other methods 
which may present themselves to further the work. 
North Carolina has a large number of bees. The pollen and 
nectar-producing flora of the State is abundant and the honey, when 
properly produced, is of high grade. There is a good market in 
the State for honey. Many more bees profitably could be kept in 
the State, Beekeeping is a business which, when well managed, 
gives quick and excellent returns. The beekeepers of North Caro- 
lina are now in the proper attitude to accept and make the best 
use of information which will enable them to secure good profits 
from the bees. In view of these facts it is highly desirable that ex- 
tension work in beekeeping be inaugurated as quickly and carried 
on as vigorously as circumstances will permit. 
"WASHINGTON : GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE : 1916 
