1908 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



27 



the Austrian bee- journal from the ollice of 

 which this book is published. The book is 

 somewhat on the style of Mr. Cowan's, but 

 goes over more ground, and goes deeper 

 into the subject. One of the features of this 

 work are the illustrations drawn by Dr. 

 Fleischman himself. There are nearly sixty 

 in this part alone, which deals with the hair, 

 legs, wings, mouth-parts, and various parts 

 of the body. The cell theory as applied to 

 honey-bees is graphically displayed so as to 

 be readily understood. It will be some time 

 before all the parts are out, as it is being 

 issued from time to time. To those who 

 understand the German language thorough- 

 ly, we can highly recommend this book. 

 Each part costs 25 cents; but any one wish- 

 ing to obtain copies must subscribe for the 

 whole book, which, we understand, will con- 

 sist of six parts. 



.& 



THE HONEY-BEARING TREES OF VTEST AUS- 

 TRALIA; THE EUCALYPTUS. 



Mr. John Craigie has kindly furnished me 

 with a list of the principal honey-bearing 

 trees of West Australia, which may be con- 

 sidered a model, and hence it is appended 

 here. It will be noted that the common 

 names of the eucalypti differ in some cases 

 from those in other parts of Australia. 



Mybtac^. Systematic Name. 



Myrtaca;. Eucalyptus Calophylla. 



Myrtaca3. Eucalyptus Marginata. 



Myrtacae, Eucalyptus Toxophylla. 



Myrtacas. Eucalyptus Redunca. 



Myrtaca3. Eucalyptus Gomphocephala. 



Myrtacee. Eucalyptus Patens. 



Myrtacaj. Eucalyptus Rostrata. 



MyrtacEe. Eucalyptus Rudis. 



Myrtacje. Eucalyptus Megacarpa. 



Myrtacas. Eucalyptus Agonis Flexuosa. 



MyrtacEe. E. Melaleuca Leucadendron. 



Proteacea. Banksia Verticillata. 



Proteacea. Banksia Littoralis. 



Proteacea. Banksia Attenuata. 



Proteacea. Banksia Menziesii. 



Proteacea. Banksia Ilicifolia. 



Proteacea. Banksia Grandis. 



Proteacea. Banksia Dentata. 



Leguminosa. Acacia Saligna 



Leguminosa. Acacia Acuminata. 



Leguminosa. Acacia Microbotyra. 



LiBcinthaceaj. Nuytpsia Floribunda. 



For good or ill, the eucalyptus-trees are 

 being extensively planted on the Pacific 

 slope, and the more we know about them 

 the better. It is pretty certain that, in many 

 cases, the wrong species has been planted, 

 and an error of this kind is difficult to recti- 

 fy. For example, the blue gum of Tasmania 

 {Eucalyptus globulus) has oeen quite exten- 

 sively planted, whereas it is much inferior 

 to some others for the same purpose. Curi- 

 ously enough, California has great virgin 

 forests of fine redwood and pine trees, and 

 yet it is planting eucalypti by the millions. 



THE HONEY FLORA OF SPAIN. 



Seiior Miguel Pons-Fabregues, of Barce- 

 lona, Spain, has sent me a copy of his "Api- 

 cultural Flora of Spain," a book of nearly 

 200 pages. As indicated by its name it deals 

 with the honey-plants of Spain, or, rather, 

 the Iberian peninsula. It enumerates 652 

 species of plants which the bees fi'equent. 



Of course, these are not all natives, some be- 

 ing exotics; but the fact that some parts of 

 Spain are very cold, while other parts are 

 quite tropical, growing oranges, lemons, 

 dates, etc., accounts for the long list. Sefior 

 Pons-Fabreques has made quite a study of 

 the bee flora of Spain, and has succeeded in 

 compiling a very interesting list. 



Some of the plants he mentions might with 

 great propriety be introduced into the Unit- 

 ed States; for example, chick-peas, sulla, es- 

 parcette, lentils, St. John's bread, and fenu- 

 greek, all belonging to the order of legumes. 

 In Spain these plants have been regularly 

 cultivated for hundreds of years. 



This Spanish writer regards the "sweet 

 clover," or "Bokara clover," of this coun- 

 try, as a sub-species or variety of Melotus al- 

 ba, which he terms Melotus leticafitha. He 

 mentions, also, Melotus parviflora, M. nea- 

 2^olitana, M. ynacrorhiza, and M. arvensis. 

 He does not mention the dark-blue or purple 

 sweet clover. 



He mentions the hardy yellow alfalfa 

 {Medicago Uqndina). He says it sometimes 

 bears violet flowers. He also states there are 

 many other species of Medicago in Spain. 



THE DANDELION IN SPAIN. 



In regard to the much maligned dandelion 

 he rightly remarks that it is an excellent sal- 

 ad plant, and that it is an ex- 

 cellent forage plant for cattle. 

 It may interest many to know 

 that heather grows well on the 

 mountain tablelands of old 

 Spain. He quietly remarks, 

 however, that, while the quan- 

 tity of the honey obtained from 

 it is very great, the quality is 

 inferior. If he ever goes to 

 Germany or Scotland he stands 

 a chance of being lynched. 



He mentions the olive-tree as 

 a honey-plant, in deference, 

 probably, to the opinion of 

 some other bee-keepers who 

 have reported it as such. He 

 seems inclined to doubt it. I 

 have observed olives for years, and, so far, 

 have yet to see a bee near its flowers. Possi- 

 bly it yields honey-dew. He mentions the 

 grape in his list, for the I'eason that, after 

 other insects have bitten open the skin, the 

 bees manage to get a quantity of sweet nec- 

 tar therefrom. Altogether the book is a very 

 creditable production, more particularly as 

 it emanates from a country which some are 

 inclined to regard as behind the age. It is 

 very well printed on good paper, and isells 

 for 50 cents. 



BEE-KEEPING IN SPAIN; A COMPARISON OF 

 PRICES ON HONEY IN THE VARIOUS EU- 

 ROPEAN COUNTRIES, FROM EL 

 COLMENERO ESPANOL. 



On vai'ious occasions we have shown how 

 abundantly blessed is our native country 

 with appropriate conditions for successful 

 apiculture — a beniga climate, and a rich and 

 abundant flora rendering it possible to se- 



Vernaculab N'e, 

 Red gum. 

 Jarrah.— 

 York gum. 

 Wandoo. 

 Tuart. 

 Blackbutt. 

 Flooded gum. 

 Flooded gum. 

 Blue gum. 

 Peppermint-tree. 

 Paper-bark. 

 River Banksia. 

 Seaside Banksia. 

 Narrow-leaf Ban'a. 

 Menzies Banksia. 

 Hollyleaf Banksia. 

 Great flowering B. 

 Toothed Banksia. 

 Wattle bark. 

 Raspberry jam. 

 Wattle gum. 

 Christmas-tree. 



