BEES 



591 



suggested as very probable that the black 

 belt of Alabama. Mississippi, Louisiana. 

 and Texas would be well adapted to it. 

 the lands of this region being exceedingly 

 strong in lime. In portions of Southern 

 Europe sulla clover is a 'most important 

 forage crop for farm stock as well as for 

 honey bees. 



Serradella. — Is an annual leguminous 

 plant which will grow on sandy land, and 

 which yields, besides good forage, clear 

 honey of good quality in June and July. 



Chestnut. — Valuable for timber, orna- 

 ment, shade, and nuts, yields honey and 

 pollen in June or July. 



Linden. Sourioood, and Catalpa. — Fine 

 shade, ornamental, and timber trees, 

 yield great quantities of first quality 

 honey in June and July. 



Cotton. — In the South cotton blossoms. 

 appearing as they do in succession dur- 

 ing the whole summer, often yield con- 

 siderable honey. It would appear, how- 

 ever, that when the plants are very rank 

 in growth the blossoms — being corre- 

 spondently large — are too deep for the 

 bees to reach the nectar. 



Chicory. — Raised for salad and for its 

 roots, is, whenever permitted to blossom, 

 eagerly visited for honey in July and 

 August. 



Sweet, MedicinaJ, and Pot Herbs. — Such 

 as marjoram, savory, lavender, catnip, 

 balm, sage, thyme, etc., when allowed to 

 blossom, nearly all yield honey in June, 

 July, or August. Where fields of them are 

 grown for the seed the honey yield may 

 be considerable from this source. 



Alfalfa. — Furnishes in the West a large 

 amount of very fine honey during June 

 and July. Its importance there as a for- 

 age crop is well known, but how far 

 eastward its cultivation may be profitably 

 extended is still a question, and even 

 should it prove of value in the East as a 

 forage plant, its honey-producing quali- 

 ties there would be still uncertain. 



Parsnips. — When left for seed, blossom 



freely from June to August, inclusive, 



and are much frequented by honey bees. 



Peppermint. — Raised for its foliage, 



from which oil is distilled, is most fre- 



quently cut before the bees derive much 

 benefit from it. but whenever allowed to 

 blossom it is eagerly sought after by 

 them, and yields honey freely during 

 July and August. 



Bokhara, or Sweet Clover.— Is in some 

 sections of the country considered a val- 

 uable forage crop. Animals can be taught 

 to like it, and it is very valuable as a 

 restorer of exhausted lime soils, while in 

 regions lacking in bee pasturage during 

 the summer months it is a very important 

 addition. It withstands drought remark- 

 ably well and yields a large quantity of 

 fine honey. 



Cucumber, Squash. Pumpkin and Melon. 

 — Blossoms furnish honey and some pol- 

 len to the bees in July and August. 



Eucalypti. — Valuable for their timber 

 and as ornaments to lawn and roadside, 

 are quick-growing trees adapted to the 

 southern portions of the United States. 

 They yield much honey between July and 

 October. 



Carob Tree. — The cultivation of which 

 has been commenced in the Southwest, is 

 an excellent honey ylelder in late sum- 

 mer. It is an ornamental tree and gives, 

 in addition to honey, another valuable 

 product — the carob bean of commerce. 



Sacaline. — A forage and ornamental 

 plant of recent introduction, is a great 

 favorite with bees. It blossoms profusely 

 during August, is a hardy perennial, and 

 thrives in wet and also fairly in dry situ- 

 ations, withstanding the ordinary sum- 

 mer drought of the Eastern states be- 

 cause of its deeply penetrating roots. 



Buckivheat. — Is an important honey 

 and pollen producer. Its blossoms ap- 

 pear about four weeks after the seed is 

 sown, hence it may be made to fill in a 

 summer dearth of honey plants. 



How to Obtain Snrplus Honey and Wax 



Good wintering, followed by careful 

 conservation of the natural warmth of 

 the colony, the presence of a prolific 

 queen — preferably a young one — with 

 abundant stores for brood rearing, are, 

 together with the prevention, in so far 

 as possible, of swarming, the prime con- 

 ditions necessary to bring a colony of 



