AMERICAN HONEY PLANTS 



207 



larvae, and is stored in large quantity in the open cells of the brood combs. 

 Without an abundance of pollen available for food for the developing 

 brood, the colony cannot prosper. Pollen is second only in importance to 

 surplus honey to the beekeeper, and an abundant supply of plants which 

 yield pollen during the brood-rearing season is very desirable. 



POLLINATION. 



Pollination is the fertilization of the blossom of a plant, resulting in 

 the development of seed. As ordinarily used among the beekeepers, pol- 

 lination refers to the transfer of the pollen grains from the stamens of 

 one plant to the pistils of another. Since many plants are self-sterile, it 

 is necessary that pollen from other plants and sometimes from other va- 

 rieties be brought to them to insure fruitage. As already stated under 

 "Pollen," the honeybee is the principal agent in the pollination of many 

 of the edible fruits. 



So important is the bee regarded by horticulturists that cucumber 

 growlers contract for colonies of bees to be placed in their greenhouses, 

 cherry growers often lease apiaries to be moved to their orchards at the 

 beginning of the blooming period, and apple orchardists contract with bee- 

 keepers to furnish sufficient bees to insure fertilization of their orchards. 



Darwin was among the first to realize the importance of cross pollina- 

 tion. He showed that continued self-fertilization resulted in inferior fruit, 

 while cross fertilization increased the vigor of the offspring. Beach has 

 shown that many varieties of grapes are self-sterile, and at the California 



Fig. 113. The California poppy is a gorgeous flower. 



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