1909 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



79 





,*-*.-■ .>■ 



B. W. BAKER, 

 Secretary and Treasurer. 



OFFICERS OF THE MARITIME BEE-KEEPERS ASSOCIATION, N. S. , CANADA. 

 See " Notes from Canada " in this issue. 



A BOTANY OF HONEY FLOWERS. 



BY GRANT STANLEY. 



One of the foremost questions a beginner is liice- 

 ly to ask is, "When shall I put on supers?" and 

 he is generally told to do so when he sees the first 

 white-clover bloom. I hardly think this is al- 

 ways a definite reply to the question. The be- 

 ginner may not have any white clover in his lo- 

 cality, or his bees may possibly need the supers 

 somewhat in advance of the white-clover bloom. 

 We also notice inquiries as to the source of cer- 

 tain pollen or honey the bees are gathering. We 

 see so many questions asked along similar lines 

 that I have often wondered why some one has not 

 undertaken the task of writing a book on the sub- 

 ject of flowers which are visited by the honey- 

 bees. We have many books devoted to bees and 

 honey production, but not a single volume has 

 come to my notice on honey flowers. A book 

 devoted to such flowers, and properly arranged, 

 would be of fully as much value to the bee-keep- 

 er as one treating on bees and honey. In fact, 

 the two belong together. Such a work would 

 certainly be indispensable to the beginner. He 

 could find out just what flowers to look for in his 

 locality; tell when they bloom, and whether they 

 yield honey or pollen. He could also ascertain 

 what kind of soil the various plants prefer, and 

 whether to look for them along the roadside, or 

 in field or forest. He could also find the nr.me of 

 a flower from the illustration shown in the hook, 

 and any other information that would likely be 

 of interest to bee-keepers. 



Such a work would be of great value to the 

 bee-keeper desiring to move into a new locality 

 or another Stale, as he could find out in advance 

 just what plants abound in the new locality. The 

 book should contain every possible known honey 

 ey and pollen producing plant in America. It 

 •hould be durably bound, and of convenient size 

 to carry in the pocket. 



THE EFFECT OF THE NATIONAL PURE-FOOD LAW 

 ON PRICES OF HONEY. 



Just about the time of the passage of the pure- 

 food law, the editors of the various bee-journals 

 were extolling the merits of such a law so strong- 

 ly that I thought if only a portion of what was 

 being mentioned should turn out a reality, it 

 would certainly be a great boon for bee-keepers 

 everywhere. The editor of Gleanings seemed 

 to be in the lead in making reference to the value 

 of such a law. Scarcely an issue of the journal 

 came out without more or less reference being 

 made as to what we could expect or hope for 

 should the bill pass After watching the result 

 since the passage of this bill, I must confess that 

 it has done even more than was predicted. It 

 has worked wonders for bee-keepers, and will do 

 a great deal more. There is no doubt whatever 

 that it is the greatest law in the history of this 

 country, enacted in the interest of bee-keeping. 

 Since the passage of this bill, honey has been 

 steadily advancing in price, and the demand for 

 it the past season was greater than I have ever 

 seen it before. I notice that the merchants are 

 eager to buy in almost any quantity, and they do 

 not hesitate to pay an advanced price over that of 

 former years. They seem to have much more 

 confidence in honey than formerly, and upon in- 

 quiry as to whether the consumer had any suspi- 

 cion as to adulteration since the passage of the 

 law one merchant remarked that this had nearly 

 disappeared. I was also told there was an increas- 

 ing demand for honey since the passage of the 

 law. The passage of this bill has done more to 

 remove the suspicion of adulteration in honey 

 than years of advertising. Since the law became 

 effective we scarcely hear any thing mentioned 

 relative to adulteration. The passage of the law 

 has been the means of placing honey in the very 

 top notch of food luxuries. It has a market all 

 its own, and has no competition, and this is just 

 as it should be. 



Now that we have such a law, it is the duty of 



