WHITEWOOD. 



476 



WILLOW. 



expectedly. Now we were at the very sum- 

 mit of the tree, and, oh what a wonderful 

 beauty we saw in those tulip-shaped blos- 

 soms that peeped from the glossy-green foli- 

 age all about us! Xo wonder there was hum- 

 ming. Bumble-bees, gaudy-colored wasps, 

 yellow Italians, and last, but not least, beau- 

 tifully plumaged humming-birds, were all 

 rejoicing in a feast of sweets. Every now 

 and then one of the latter paused before our 

 very face, and, as he swung pendulously in 

 mid air, winked his bright little eyes, as 

 much as to say, "Why, what on earth can 

 you be doing away up here in our domain?" 



AV^e picked off the great orange-colored, 

 mottled blossoms, and looked for the honey. 

 We presume it was the wrong time of day to 

 expect much; but inside, those large petals 

 seemed to be distilling a kind of dark dew 

 that the birds and insects were licking off. 

 It tasted to us more like molasses than 

 honey. In the cut our engraver has tried to 

 show you what we saw in the tree-top. 



As the sun had gone down, we commenced ■■ 

 in a rather undignified way to follow suit, 

 and, after resting a little, limped home. Al- 

 though stiff and sore, we carried an armful 

 of whitewood blossoms to surprise the good 

 folks who, probably, had never dreamed of 

 the beauties to be seen only in the tree-tops 



Our friends in the South have a great deal 

 to say about what they call " poplar honey;" 

 and, if we are correct, the poplar is the same 

 tree which we call whitewood. It blossoms 

 with them in April and May. We know what 

 time it blossoms here, for we thought about 

 its being the 27th of May, when sliding 

 down out of that tree. Shortly after, we 

 received some bees from G. W. Gates, of 

 Bartlett, Tenn. The combs were filled, even 

 bulged out with a dark honey, such as we 

 have described, and the bees had built fins 

 of snow-white comb on the cover of their 

 shipping-box. From this we infer the honey 

 must be yielded in great abundance in those 

 localities. We have seen it stated that the 

 large fiowers sometimes yield a spoonful of 

 honey each. As the tree is often used for 

 ornament, we make the following extract 

 from Fuller's Forest-Tree Ctdturist: 



LiRioDENDRON TULiPiFERA fTuUp-tree, WfiitewoodJ. 



Leaves smooth, on slender petioles, partially 

 three-lobed, the middle one appearing as though 

 cut off ; flowers about two inches broad, bell-shaped, 

 greenish yellow, marked with orange; seeds winged, 

 in a large cone-shape cluster which falls apart in 

 autumn. The figure shows a single seed as it ap- 

 pears when separated from the mass. It blooms in 

 May and June, and the seeds ripen in late summer 

 or early autumn, and should be sown as soon as 



ripe, in good, moderately dry soil. They may re- 

 main in the seed - bed two years if desirable, but 

 should receive a slight protection the first winter; 

 tree of large size, sometimes 130 feet high, with a 

 very straight stem; wood light color, greenish 

 white, soft and light, not hard enough to receive a 

 polish. It is much used in cabinet work, and for 

 making panels for carriages, and for any inside 

 work where toughness or a hard surface 

 is not required. There is perhaps no 

 native wood that will shrink more in 

 seasoning than whitewood, for it not 

 only shrinks sidewise but endwise as 

 well; yet when once thoroughly sea- 

 soned it remains fixed, and does not 

 warp or iwist like many of the hard and 

 tough kinds of wood. There is also 

 much difference in the character of the 

 wood coming from different sections 

 of the country, and mechanics who 

 are conversant with the various kinds and local- 

 ities will readily tell whether specimens came 

 from the West or East. The latter is of a light 

 greenish color, grain not so smooth and soft, and 

 sometimes rather tough. The wood is but little 

 used, except for the purposes mentioned above, 

 and consequently it is only large trees that are of 

 much value. It is one of the most beautiful 

 ornamental trees we possess, growing in a conical 

 form, and producing an abundance of beautiful 

 tulip-shaped flowers in spring. The roots are soft 

 and sponge-like, and it requires great care in re- 

 moving to insure success. 



The question is often asked, "Is white- 

 wood good for bee-hivesV" It may do for 

 sections and brood-frames, but it is very un- 

 satisfactory for hives, for the reasons given 

 in this extract. 



WIIiLOW [Salix.) We have had little 

 or no experience with this shrub. It does 

 yield honey and pollen in some localities, 

 and we can do no better than to copy an ar- 

 ticle with engravings, from the pen of G. M. 

 Doolittle, as given in Gleanings in Bee Cul- 

 ture, p. 4SG,yol. X^'IL: 



Among the pollen-bearers we have several kinds 

 of what is known here as "pussy willow" {Salix) 

 which put out their blossoms quite irregularly. 

 Some are a month earlier than others, and some of 

 the buds on the same bush are ten days later than 

 others. The kinds which seem to attract the bees 

 most are the black willow, upon which the kilm.ir- 

 nock is budded, and those which produce a long 

 cone-like flower similar to the black willow. Tlie i;c 

 companying cut gives a fair representation of the 

 latter, a week or so after it is through blossoming 

 and has partially gone to seed. From these two 

 kinds the bees obtain large quantifies of pollen, but, 

 so far as I can ascertain, no lioney. As this pollen 

 comes the flrst of any which we have which amounts 

 to any thing, I esteem it of great value to the bees. 

 Skunk-cabbage gives pollen a little earlier, but we 

 do not have enough of it to amount to much, com- 

 pared with what these willows give. The flowers are 

 of a rich or;int;e color, having a center out of 

 which spring hui.dredsof little thread-like filaments, 

 upon which the pollen is supported. It is very in- 



