72 BEGINNER'S BEE BOOK 



introducer has 170 acres of it on his 400-acre 

 farm. He also has 300 colonies of bees, and 

 more than a carload of the finest white honey 

 is shipped from his apiary some seasons. 



Since it is not profitable to grow crops espe- 

 cially for bee pasturage, the beekeeper must 

 have land enough for a large acreage of some 

 crop valuable for honey production and for 

 forage for livestock, or he must select a loca- 

 tion where suitable plants are grown. Unless 

 he is surrounded with suitable flora he will find 

 it difficult to grow a sufficient acreage of any 

 plant to make his apiary profitable. 



Bees fly over an area from one to three miles 

 in every direction from the hive. It is evident 

 that considerable territory is required to grow 

 a sufficient amount of bee pasturage to support 

 even a moderate- sized apiary. Five to ten 

 acres of any special crop will help, of course, 

 but no very appreciable increase of honey will 

 be noticed from such a small area, except under 

 unusual circumstances. 



