78 AGRICULTURE CF MAINE. 



tubes of the red clover. Some years ago, I knew of two little 

 brothers who got some honey out of a bumble bees' nest. The 

 older boy cautioned the little one not to go there alone. But 

 a day or two later, the little boy's desire for honey made hitn 

 disregard the caution, and he came to the house crying bitterly, 

 and told his mother, — "I went down to the bumble bees' nest 

 to get some honey, but the old bee was on." 



There are many kinds of bees but none so valuable as the 

 honey bee. People generally think only of the honey which the 

 bees gather for us. But if the bees were destroyed we should 

 lose nearly all of our apples, plums, pears, cherries and small 

 fruits, besides melons, squashes, cucumbers and three-fourths 

 of our flowers. 



Farmers who wish to raise fruit should not depend wholly 

 #n wild bees. Mr. DeCoster tried an experiment one year by 

 enclosing one branch of an apple tree in netting just before 

 blossoming. Although that branch bloomed just as freely as 

 the rest, it bore scarcely any fruit, while the rest of the tree 

 was loaded. What few apples grew on that branch must have 

 been fertilized by the wind. The wind carries the pollen for 

 such blossoms as the catkins of the alders and poplars and 

 for the cone bearing trees as well as many of the deciduous 

 trees. By the way, do you know how interesting our trees 

 can be in winter? A few winters ago I sent here to Augusta 

 for Edgar E. Ring's little booklet on the "Forest Trees af 

 Maine." It is very interesting to learn the kinds of buds and 

 bark and arrangement of branches. It makes the trees fully 

 as interesting as in summer ; and at the same time gives you a 

 chance to study the winter birds and animals. I know many 

 of you orchardists can tell the variety of apple trees in winter, 

 by the size and manner of growth of the branches, buds and 

 bark. 



Life in the country is beautiful to the Nature lover at any 

 season of the year. If our boys and girls once learn to love 

 these little fairies in our wonderland, and can realize the power 

 man has to utilize the mighty forces of Nature in getting a liv- 

 ing from the soil, we should not need to ask how to keep them 

 on the farm. 



Now I have brought a few things here which I wish the 

 children especially to see. I see you all know Robin Red- 



