158 AMERICAN HONEY PLANTS 



the difference cannot be laid to a mixture of honey from different sources. 

 The quality of mesquite honey is good. It is reported to yield more regu- 

 larly on sandy land than on heavy soil. 



There are two blooming periods, the first in spring, usually in April, 

 and the second in July. If 'there has been plenty of moisture previously 

 the mesquite blooms profusely, due to the fact that it roots very deeply 

 and can reach anj- moisture that is available in the soil. 



MEXICAN CLOVER (Richardia scabra). 



The name clover is a misnomer, for this plant does not belong to the 

 clovers but to an entirely different group. It is a luxuriant annual weed 

 growing to a height of two feet or more. The bees are reported as work- 

 ing upon it quite late in 'the season. 



The plant was introduced from the tropics and has become natural- 

 ized in Georgia. Florida, Alabama and Mississippi. 



MICHIGAN— Honey Sources of. 



While Alichigan is within the clover belt, there are a greater variety 

 of sources of surplus honey than in most nearby States. In spring, wil- 

 lows, maples, fruit bloom and dandelion have the usual importance. Both 

 white and alsike clover yield surplus in Alichigan. To 'these may be added 

 wild raspberry, fireweed or willow herb and milkweeds, all of which are 

 important sources of surplus honey in the northern part of the State. Bass- 

 wood was formerly important and still produces surplus in some sections, 

 though many of 'the basswood forests have been cut. Buckwheat is also a 

 source of surplus in some parts of Michigan, though according to E. D. 

 Townsend surplus from buckwheat is only to be expected on "a rather 

 poor quality of sandy soil." Townsend says, further, that alsike is worth 

 all other sources put together in the southern two-thirds of the lower 

 peninsula, and that aster yields surplus in Sanilac County. — Gleanings, 

 page 1184, 1908. 



MIGNONETTE (Reseda odorata). COMMON MIGNONETTE. 



The mignonette of our gardens is a native of Egypt which came to 

 America by way of Europe. It is frequently mentioned as a honey plant, 

 especially in older literature. Some extravagant claims have been made 

 for it, but perhaps it has never been given a fair test on a sufficiently 

 large scale to demonstrate fully its value. The following extract from an 

 article which appeared in the American Bee Journal, Page 47, 1878, is of 

 interest in this connection : 



"After being started under diligent cultivation it was astonishing 

 to see the rapid progress which they made. The plants soon covered 

 the ground, where soil was good, and were out in blossom in a short 

 time, and from that time forward the bees were working on them by 

 the thousand from morning till late afternoon. I have seen them 

 thick on it by 8 o'clock. It yields pollen as well as honey. * * * 



"I have found tha't on account of the spikes of the blossom being 

 so much longer, the bees must work on the larger varieties. I have 



