Uilo 



(iLKAXlX(;s IX liKK crLTriiK 



and many a time a lai-k of fruit during; 

 some i)artifular season is ascribed to the 

 tact lliat frosts kill the blossoms, when, 

 as a matter of fact, the weather lias been 

 such that the lioney-bees were 

 unable to get out, and thus car- 

 ry <in the work of cross-fertili- 

 zation. 



In Fig. s we have the case 

 of an a])i)le that was imperfect- 

 ly fertilized. There is i)erfect 

 seed and perfect fruit forma- 

 tion except on the side that 

 has an indention. The state- 

 ment has been made l)y some 

 prominent growers of api)les 

 that it is such fruit as this that 

 rarely hangs long enough to 

 ripen. The first severe storm 

 that comes along causes it to 

 drop prematurely. One fruit- 

 grower told us there were thou- 

 sands and thousands of bushels 

 of api)les every year that are 

 nothing more nor less than 

 windfalls liecause of imj)erfect 

 fertilization. This same fruit- 

 grower went on to say that if 

 the bees could get in their work 

 properly, and the trees were 

 spra^'eci VielVtre an<l after blos- 

 soming, the number of windfalls would 

 very considerably reduced. 



In connection with this matter, the reader 

 will be interested in referring to the suljject 

 of fruit-blossoms, elsewhere in this work, 

 where limbs of trees and whole trees have 

 l)een covered with netting while they were 

 in bloom. The fact that almost no fruit de- 

 velops under these nets shows that fertiliza- 

 tion brought about by the agency of the 

 wind is insignificant as compared with that 



accomplished by insects, and that, of course, 

 means the bees, for almost no other insects 

 are flying in the early si)ring when fruit 

 trees come into bloom. 



I'k;. 9.— Iti.i 



be 



l'"I(i. 10.— .JKCHID M )r(lei- < ircliiihiri' !■• 

 — C'liesJiire. 



ISi.ossoMs AND Details. 



1 OK SAI.\IA uFFlciNAl.Is. ( Hilel- I. ihUit'V — Chesh'.rf. 



In Fig. H we have a remarkable exam])le 

 of the liower of the sal\ ias. amongwhich we 

 may mention the celebrated white mountain 

 sage of California. X'otice how X'ature has 

 made a convenient doorstej) on which tiie 

 V)ee may alight. JJut the more remarkable 

 part of it all is, how the filament for the an- 

 thers is jointed. Turn to ('. and it will be 

 observed there is a si)ur or projection; nan.e- 

 ly. r(c. The bee stejjs on the doorstep at /. 

 Its liead bunts against the jirojection. (n-, 

 causing the hinge-like move- 

 ment to Ijend the anther. <i. 

 down upon its back, dustii.g 

 it all over with pollen. The 

 act can i)e seen a little more 

 l)erfectly at I). X'^otice how 

 the jointed anther is i)aint- 

 ing the back of the bee all 

 over with pollen dust. In 

 this i)articular flower, as at 

 I), the stigma, for the time 

 being, is sterile to the ])oIlcn 

 of that flower, but the Ijee 

 goes over to another speci- 

 men of the same sjiecies. as 

 at B. It alights upon the 

 doorstep, and. with its back 

 all covered with dust, the 

 stigma projecting out from 

 its little canopy above brush- 

 es over the back of the bee. 

 picking u]) the i)ollen. thus 

 securing the fertilizing ele- 

 ment from some other flov.er 

 of the same sjjecies. When 

 we rememl)er that large 

 ([uantities of beautiful hon- 

 ey are secured from what is 

 known as the white moun- 



