Yes, honey used to be fairly cheap. I had a friend that was a bee keeper and I would get honey from him that came from Fireweed (Pacific Northwest of America and Alaska.) At the time I was making the mead I also made beer and wine. My friends still talking about my "Mango Madness" wine. I may make a batch of Mead next rain season , but for personal use only.

The global craze for manuka products, especially honey, has led to crime and violence in NZ, where hives and bees are being destroyed:
Night raiders destroying hives.

The global craze for manuka, highly valued for its medicinal properties, has created a gold rush in rural New Zealand that some believe is rapidly spiralling out of control.

Last year produced a record haul of nearly 20,000 tonnes of honey, a 15% increase on the year before. In 2010 the top price fetched for bulk manuka honey was NZ$37.50/kg (£22/kg) – today it can command more than NZ$100/kg.

The export to the UK, China and other countries is expected to reach NZ$400m in the next few years...

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/ ... g-beatings

i had 40 hives in north queensland for abt 12 years and averaged 60 kg /hive most years. some do much better than that.
there is a lot of eucalyptus here that could be distilled. Haven't noticed any tea tree- that is melaleuca right?

Yes. Melaleuca. Native to Australasia & highly invasive in the Fl. Glades displacing natural occurring species. Huge islands appear of these in short time. Very fast growing. One tree will eat a couple chain saw blades cutting it into manageable pieces. Many call it Ironwood which it is not.
The wood checks & cracks so badly I could never figure out what to make with them but fire. They burn hot & fast & will pop coals many feet.

I'll look for a Botanical Shop in the PP yellow pages. HA!

"there is a lot of eucalyptus here that could be distilled. "

Hey Frank (or anyone) for us yanks what exactly can be distilled from eucalyptus leaves. I only know blue gum eucalyptus from California coast in the Big Sur area. They are invasive and definitely have oil. Nothing will grow underneath them and in a forest fire they not only burn, they blow up. So are you talking about a different species and what is the oil used for?

taabarang wrote:"there is a lot of eucalyptus here that could be distilled. "

Hey Frank (or anyone) for us yanks what exactly can be distilled from eucalyptus leaves. I only know blue gum eucalyptus from California coast in the Big Sur area. They are invasive and definitely have oil. Nothing will grow underneath them and in a forest fire they not only burn, they blow up. So are you talking about a different species and what is the oil used for?

The reason why the Eucalyptus and the Teatree almost ''blow up'' when on fire, is because of the volatile oil vapours released into the air. One has to have experienced a bush fire to understand just how explosive it can get.


http://ri.search.yahoo.com/_ylt=AwrSbgN ... 1DVuvyzBE-

I understand all that Frank, ! Know from personal experience fighting fires in Big Sur. There were no melaleucas, only blue gums. But you mentioned distilling the oil of eucalyptus leaves.i understand the value of the other tree in question but what is the use of eucalyptus distilled oil?

"Hey Frank (or anyone) for us yanks what exactly can be distilled from eucalyptus leaves."

I think he was referring to making honey from the eucalyptus flowers. And distilling Honey Mead.

And, the eucalyptus oil is used like Tiger Balm.

Actually he mentioned both trees.

"there is a lot of eucalyptus here that could be distilled"

Thanks for the explanation anyway.

many eucalypts produce valuable oils.
pepperment gum ( E, piperita), lemon gum ( E citriodora ) with a high proportion of citral as is found in lemon grass, many others, they all have noticeably different terpene profiles.
bluegum makes good oil.
it is antiseptic, anti fungal, and bacteriostatic; a great solvent, good for insect bites etc, just like tea tree oil.
mostly comes from china now, but easily produced with cheap labor. as usual the chinese product is heavily adulterated: with camphor laurel oil ( cajuput, kayuputih, camphor ) cineoles, so is not "proper: euc oil.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eucalyptus_oil

yes, the flowers are prolific nectar producers, and make top quality honey, also with the same antibiotic properties as manuka.
eucalyptus are invasive weeds that lower the water table, but very useful trees

this industry is highly suitable to Cambodia being very low start up capital, with labor being the only real input along with heat. the botanical rrsources are free for the taking.