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THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



}<lov. 12, 



at the farther side of somethiag. This, then, is what the 

 nectar is for ; it is the bait to attract the insects. And so far 

 as the bee Is concerned, a bait to attract the bee. 



Now, color, and odor, and the presence of pollen, per- 

 haps, have something to do with the bee, also. These are ac- 

 cessories, now speaking from the standpoint of the bee. Now, 

 why are flowers colored ? I thinlf this is a point which the 

 bee-lfeeper has rarely thought of. Certainly the insect is not 

 attracted primarily by color. Insects will not waste their 

 time standing off and admiring the gaudy colors of flowers. 

 But the flowers that have something in the way of nectar to 

 offer — the flowers that are of most service to insects — are col- 

 ored flowers. There is a relation, then, between color and 

 the insect visitation. We must not overlook the fact that 

 color is a part of this apparatus in which the bait is put. We 

 must not overlook it or ignore it in our practice. 



It is true that many flowers which have much color have 

 little honey. Other flowers have marked color. Other things 

 being equal, then, the botanist will say to you that the flower 

 with color is an advantageous flower for you to use for your 

 bees to feed upon. Why ? We have found that the color of 

 the flower, as Dr. Gray used to say, is a flag or banner put up 

 over the place where there is this treasure that the bees are 

 seeking. There is an iDdication that the bees pay some atten- 

 tion to the things that they see. Not like the artist does, but 

 in the way the school-boy does. When he goes along the road 

 and sees an orchard, the bright color of the fruit tells him that 

 it is ready to be eaten. It is attractive in that way. Let us 

 not Ignore the fact that the color is an advertisement, other 

 things being equal. Odor in like manner. Insects are at- 

 tracted by odor merely because they have learned that odor 

 goes frequently with the presence of nectar. 



So let us put it this way : The bait is the nectar. It is 

 placed always in the back part of the flower. The color and 

 the odor are accessory. And, other things being equal, that 

 flower is best, which, having nectar, has color to serve as 

 guide, and odor to serve as a still further guide. 



There is another considerable reason why white clover is 

 an excellent plant for furnishing honey. The white flowers 

 stand out so prominently that even a half-blind bee might find 

 the flower. Added to tliem Is a delicate and delightful odor 

 which goes with it. This, then, is one part of what the 

 botanist has to say. Don't overlook the tact that color is 

 worth something and odor a good deal. They enable the bees 

 to quickly find what they want. 



Now, I have another point. Flowers are not all alike in 

 shape. Some flowers are what I have called elsewhere " flat 

 flowers." That is, they open out flat. Every petal stands 

 out away from every other petal. The Germans sometimes 

 call them "star flowers." I prefer to call them flat flowers. 

 They have the general shape, when open, of a saucer. A 

 good example is the buttercup, strawberry and poppy. The 

 basswood has a flower of this form. 



Now many of these flat flowers, which are rather primi- 

 tive — they probably are the kinds of flowers which came into 

 existence away back in early times — have a good deal of 

 honey. You can't hide the honey very effectually in the flat 

 saucer. It is put as far down as possible among the stamens 

 before it can be hidden. 



Then there are some flowers like the cherry, plum, etc. 

 There the upper part of the flower Is flat, but the little calyx 

 of the flower is dished out into a little cup at the bottom. In 

 that cup the honey is found. So that if you compare the 

 flower of the strawberry with that of the plum or cherry, the 

 honey is dropped down into a deep little cup. Not a very nar- 

 row cup ; rather flaring, but still affording more protection 

 for the honey. 



Then pass over to such as the clover. Here you do not 

 have a flat flower at all. I presume it is generally understood 

 that the clover head is made of many flowers. Take out one 

 of these little flowers. You will find that it has the same 

 number of parts practically that you have in the cherry, or 

 buttercup, or strawberry. But instead of being flat, its parts 

 are brought together so that they form a tube ; the parts are 

 still separate, but there is a tubular arrangement, and the 

 honey is away down at the bottom. 



Now take the flower of a verbena — not a very good honey- 

 flower, but very gaudy. You have these parts of the flower 

 brought together in the form of a tube, and even grown to- 

 gether. This tube, with the leaves that make it up, protects 

 the honey better than the flowers. The point to which I wish 

 to direct your attention is this : That, as you look at flowers, 

 the honey in some is not much protected. There may be a great 

 deal or it, but it is open — in an open cup or saucer. In others, 

 it is farther, and farther down, and more and more protected. 

 In the white clover you have an additional protection, namely, 

 that these little flowers are crowded together . side by side, so 



that you have a lot of these little tubes, and at the bottom, 

 where they furnish the best protection, there the honey is 

 kept. 



Now, what is the significance of this? Take some water 

 and put a little in a saucer, some more in a cup, some more in 

 a tube. Or, take some honey and do the same. You will find 

 that the evaporation is much greater in the saucer, less in the 

 cup, and still less in the tube. The same thing occurs in 

 flowers. The nectar is something that evaporates very 

 readily. When you have good weather, and suddenly there 

 come on several days of dry air, the honey-flow is checked 

 completely. Now, here is something to which attention has 

 not been directed as it should be. And here I think the 

 botanist may offer some suggestions. In the selection of 

 honey-producing plants, other things being equal, again give 

 preference to those in which the honey is placed at the bot- 

 tom of a tube instead of in an open flower. Now, I know this 

 is hard on the basswood. But the basswood does not cut any 

 figure here on the plains. The further west you go, the more 

 this is true. But in the great forests, the dry days do not 

 come as frequently as they do here in the West. Where the 

 dry air is likely to check the flow of honey, by drying up the 

 nectar, we must look to it that we select flowers for nectar 

 that have the deep cups or tubes. In the case of the white 

 clover we have almost — not quite — an ideal plant. And while 

 they are crowded together, they protect the honey so that 

 there is practically no evaporation. 



My time is up. Let me then repeat. My method is this, 

 as a botanist malting merely suggestions: Don't ignore color 

 and odor in honey-producing plants, because, while you don't 

 store up color and odor, they are advantageous in leading bees 

 more quickly to come to their place of wor1{. If you doubt 

 this, you need simply to go and run over the plant kingdom. 

 You will find that whenever plants need insects most, they 

 develop color and odor more. Now, bees, being more intelli- 

 gent, will be drawn to these more than other insects. 



Second : Other things being equal, give preference to 

 those in which the nectar is stored down in tubes. Of course, 

 these tubes must not be too long for the tongues of the bees ; 

 but where the storage is down in the tubes, where the dry 

 air will not take up the moisture of the nectar and carry it 

 away. If we had a list of the honey-producing plants with 

 the nectar stored in deep tubes, we would find that the bee- 

 keeper would complain less and less of the sudden stoppage in 

 the honey-flow. "The list I have prepared will doubtless be 

 suggestive to those who come from other parts of the State, 

 as to the richness of the honey-flora of this part of the State. 



I am very glad to be able to meet with you. I am sorry 

 that my duties to my students, which are many, are such that 

 I cannot take more part in your discussions. 



Chakles E. Bessey. 



Dr. Miller — I very seriously doubt if any feature of our 

 convention will prove more helpful to us than the address of 

 Prof. Bessey. I believe that we will live better in the future 

 for the talk that we have heard. I move that a rising vote of 

 thanks be tendered Prof. Bessey for this address. (Motion 

 carried.) 



Prof. Bessey — Gentlemen, I am very much obliged to you 

 for this expression of kindness on your part. 



At 11 o'clock the convention adjourned to go on a trip 

 around the city, to assemble again at 3 in the afternoon. 

 (Continued on page 737.) 



A Ne'W Binder for holding a year's numbers of the 

 American Bee Journal, we propose to mail, postpaid, to every 

 subscriber who sends us 20 cents. It is called "The Wood 

 Binder," is patented, and is an entirely new and very simple 

 arrangement. Full printed directions accompany each Binder. 

 Every reader should get it, and preserve the copies of the Bee 

 Journal as fast as they are received. They are invaluable for 

 reference, and at the low price of the Binder you can afford to 

 get it yearly. 



'*-*-*■ 



The Xanies and Addresses of all your bee- 

 friends, who are not now taking the Bee Journal, are wanted 

 at this office. Send them in, please, when sample copies will 

 be mailed to them. Then you can secure their subscriptions, 

 and earn some of the premiums we have offered. The 

 next few months will be just the time to easily get new sub- 

 scribers. Try it earnestly, at least. 



No'w is tlie Xime to work for new subscribers. 

 Why not take advantage of the offer made on page 734 ? 



