CHAPTER XII 

 POLLEN-FLOWERS 



NOT long ago a popular youths' periodical published on 

 its children's page a large picture of a climbing-rose 

 bush from which a swarm of honey-bees was repre- 

 sented as gathering nectar. Beneath the bush was a still- 

 house from which ran tubes to every flower. After the nectar 

 had passed through a refining apparatus the bees were depicted 

 as bottling and carting the honey away. It was an ingenious 

 and amusing conceit, but unfortunately the roses do not yield 

 nectar, and, alas ! there is no such thing as rose-honey. The 

 rose has proven a veritable thorn in the flesh to both artists and 

 poets. 



One of our popular poets sings of the honey-bee: 



"He harries the ports of the hollyhocks, 

 And levies on poor sweetbrier; 

 And drinks the whitest wine of phlox, 

 And the rose is his desire." 



Not at all. "He" (the worker-bee is an undeveloped fe- 

 male, and the drones do not visit flowers) does nothing of the 

 kind, for the rose is nectarless and the phlox is a butterfly- 

 flower. Before describing flowers the poet would do well to 

 study them more closely. 



Even bee-keepers, who should know better, very generally 

 believe that bees gather nectar from the wild roses. "There 

 has been some discussion of late," writes one of them, "as to 

 whether bees get any honey from roses. I believe that I have 

 seen them working very freely on wild roses, and I see no good 

 reason why roses should not yield honey, as they belong to the 



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