THE BEB.] 



THE BEE, AND 



[the BEB 



time to call persons who bave been desirous 

 of seeiug her." These are human rather than 

 insect cliaraeteristics ; although similar anec- 

 dotes are well attested by other authorities. 



THE PASTURAGE OF THE BEE. 



Eor the pliysiohgy of the bee, we must refer 

 the reader to such works as specially treat 

 upon that branch of the subject, our space 

 being insufficient to enter upon it at length : 

 we must, therefore, confine ourselves to the 

 more practical management of the bee, and 

 such portions of the subject as may be sup- 

 posed to be more desired to be known by the 

 common keeper of a hive or an apiary. In 

 noticing what is necessary to the nourishment 

 of bees, we may observe that their food con- 

 sists chiefly of two kinds — the fluid secretions 

 of vegetables contained in the nectarea of the 

 flowers, and the dust of the autherse, which 

 has been designated by botanists, the pollen ; 

 but which, when collected by the bees, has 

 received a variety of names, such as farina, 

 raw wax, bee-bread, and others. Occasionally, 

 however, we find bees feeding upon other sac- 

 charine substances besides honey, such as 

 honey-dew, treacle, syrup, &e. A large quan- 

 tity of ink has been consumed by writers who 

 have treated of the poisonous eff'ects of some 

 plants, not only upon the honey, but sometimes 

 upon the bees themselves. Every classic 

 schoolboy will be able to recall the narrative 

 which Xenophon gives of the effects produced 

 upon the Ten Thousand, by the honey of which 

 they partook in the neighbourhood of Trebi- 

 zond. The soldiers were affected in propor- 

 tion to the quantities they had taken. Some 

 seemed drunk; some mad; and some even died 

 the same day. This quality in the honey has 

 been referred by Pliny, and some others, to 

 the poisonous nature of the rhododendron, of 

 which there is an abundant crop in those 

 parts. But this is not to be believed ; for it 

 has been found that the honey in this country 

 is not aftVcted in districts whepe the rhodo- 

 dendron abounds ; nor, indeed, is the common 

 bee ever observed to settle on its flowers. 



If we are to nourish or cherish bees, of 

 course the pasturage on which they are to 

 fi!cd ought to be one of our first considerations. 

 Yet we have heard of a man who kept bees on 

 the top of his house in Ilolborn ; and wishiu'^ 

 9Uy ° 



to find out where they pastured, he sprinkled 

 them all with a red powder as they came forth 

 from the hive in the morning. He then set 

 off to Hampstead, deeming it the nearest as 

 well as the best bee-pasture in the neighbour- 

 hood of London; and what was his delight 

 at beholding, amongst the crowds of other bees 

 some of his own, carrying upon their indus- 

 trious persons the marTcs of his own ingenuity, 

 by which they were to be singled out from 

 the others. The apiary of Bonner, a great bee 

 observer, was placed in a garret, in the centre 

 of the city of Glasgow ; and that of Mr. 

 Payne, the author of The Bee-Jceepei-'' s Guide, 

 was placed in the middle of a large town. It 

 is conclusive, then, that the industrial popula- 

 tions of these hives would have to fly over the 

 chimney-tops in order to get to the fields ; 

 and if there was plenty of Dutch clover (some- 

 times called honeysuckle) in them, they would 

 be sure of making a good honey year. This 

 is one of their favourite flowers, the red clover 

 being too deep ; for the proboscis of the com- 

 mon bee is not so useful to it aa it is 

 generally thought to be. There have been 

 made many lists of bee-flowers, and of such 

 as are deemed suitable for planting round the 

 apiary. It has been suggested that mig- 

 nonette, borage, bugloss, rosemary, lavender, 

 the crocus for the early spring, and the ivy 

 flowers for the late autumn, might assist in 

 making up a pretty bee-garden. Pliny recom- 

 mends thyme, apiaster, violets, roses, and lilies. 

 There is no doubt that the prevalent flower 

 of a district will flavour the honey. The fine 

 honey of the Isle of Bourbon will taste for 

 years of the orange-blossoms, from which, we 

 understand, it is gathered ; and, on opening 

 a bottle of it, the room will be filled with the 

 perfume. The same is the case with the honey 

 of Malta. Corsican honey is said to be 

 flavoured by the box-tree ; and honey has 

 been pronounced utterly valueless, from its 

 having been gathered in the neighbourhood 

 of onion-fields. Dr. Bevan suggests that 

 lemon-thyme should be used as an edging for 

 garden-walks and flower-beds, instead of box, 

 thrift, or daisies ; but we think, on the whole, 

 it little matters to the bee what flowers 

 are placed in the garden, as it is too much of 

 a wanderer to confine itself to such an arti- 

 ficial spot. It is in the wild tracta of heath 



