A colour atlas of the major pollen and nectar sources of the Nelson and Marlborough regions of New Zealand: A thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the qualification of the National Diploma of Agriculture of the Royal New Zealand Institute of Horticulture

Abstract

This work identifies and summarises relevant material concerning the thirteen major pollen and nectar sources of the Nelson and Marlborough regions of the South Island of New Zealand. The sources were identified using an overlap of pollen collected from pollen traps and published reference material. Pollen loads, a honey sample as well as flowers from the thirteen sources were put through standard chemical methods to obtain specimens for microscopic and photographic analysis. Photographs of plants, inflorescences, single flowers and various views of pollen are presented as well as maps showing approximate major locations of each source in the Nelson and Marlborough regions. Suggestions are made that may help beekeepers in their identifications of local sources.