Gums for bees
Not all gums are bad for biodiversity and all gums are great for honey bees
In South Africa there are over 85 different species of introduced gums. Because of their mass flowering at various times of the year, they provide a constant and reliable flow of nectar and a source of pollen, making them essential to the beekeeping industry, and agriculture. There are six gum species listed in SA as invaders and you only need to remove them if they are in a ‘sensitive area’ on your land.
You can keep all species, including red listed species of gums in line with the following criteria
If your land is within the Nama Karoo, Succulent Karoo or Desert biomes, then eucalypts are exempt from removal. (NB this includes all 6 invasive species).
If the gums are within cultivated land and are at least 50 metres away from untransformed or natural land (natural land may not be cleared to achieve this) they do not need to be removed.
If the gums are within 50 metres of the main house on a farm, they are exempt from removal.
Gums in urban areas are exempt from removal if their trunk diameter is more than 400mm (at 1000mm height) at the time of publishing of the Regulations (1 October, 2014).
If the gums are on an existing formal plantation, no intervention is required.
All gums in riparian areas must be removed, even if any of the above are true
Eucalyptus trees within a ‘riparian area’ (i.e. within 32m of the edge of a river, lake, dam, wetland or estuary, or within the 1:100 year floodline, whichever is the greater), must be removed. This is necessary to prevent their establishment downstream, and impacts on water, sedimentation and on biodiversity.
Gums in Protected Areas (declared national parks, provincial reserves, mountain catchment areas and private nature reserves) must be removed. Discretion can be applied for non-invading species that add value to a Protected Area – e.g. shade for parking or historical value.
Eucalypts, particularly listed species, must also be removed if they are within a Listed Ecosystem or an ecosystem identified for conservation in terms of Bioregional or Biodiversity Management Plans.
The six invasive gums
River Red Gum
Eucalyptus camaldulensis (and hybrids with E.tereticornis)
Spider Gum
Eucalyptus camaldulensis (and hybrids with E.tereticornis)
Sugar Gum
Eucalyptus cladocalyx
Salinga Gum
Eucalyptus grandis (and hybrids)
Forest Red Gum
Eucalyptus tereticornis
Karri
Eucalyptus diversicolor
When you can keep a tree
If the gum species on your property is a listed invasive or hybrid of it, and cannot be kept because it’s in a bad place on your land or you live in the sensitive biome – but it is used as part of a plantation, woodlot, bee-forage area, wind-row or to line avenues – you can still keep these trees. But you must apply for a permit that ranks them as a Category 2 invasive species under the NEMBA Alien Invasive Species (AIS) Regulations.
Category 2
Category 2 listed invasive species require a permit to carry out a restricted activity. The restricted activities most relevant to landowners include ‘having in possession’; ‘growing, breeding, propagating’; and ‘spreading or allowing the spread of.’
Although the permit will allow you to keep the trees in the demarcated area, you will have to clear them outside of those areas. You will also be accountable should your gum spread into a neighbouring property.
Regulation
Alien and Invasive Species Regulations were promulgated under the National Environmental Management: Biodiversity Act, 2004 (NEMBA), published in the Government Gazette and supplemented by various regulations that are revised and updated regularly.