636 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Sept. 



cuttinj? out all otlier cells there were no second 

 swarms. If the bees decide to swarm alter the 

 prime swarm, they kec]) tlie first queen from 

 hatching when she wishes to; and then she begins 

 to call, and the other queens in cells old enough 

 answer her; and when they are about ready to 

 leave they allow one queen to hatch; or if they in- 

 tend to send out only one second swarm, they let 

 all queens old enough hatch and go with the 

 swarm. If they decide not to send out a second 

 Bwarm they allow the oldest cell to hatch as soon 

 as the queen is ready to come out, and then de- 

 stroy the other cells, and you hear no calling of 

 queens. 9— John C. Gilliland, 15—34. 



Bloomfleld, Ind., Aug., 18S6. 



SWEET CLOVER, OR MELILOT. 



FRIEND OIIEEN GIVES US SOME NEW AND IMPOR- 

 TANT SUGGESTIONS IN REGARD TO THE 

 PLANT AND ITS HABITS. 



fHERE is a great deal of sweet clover in this 

 locality, growing along the river-banks and 

 other waste places, as well as along the roads, 

 which in some places are lined with it for 

 miles. 1 find that most persons arc apt to re- 

 gard it as a nuisance along the roadside, and many 

 land-owners wage war on it with more or less per- 

 sistency and success. Some of the objections 

 which they make to it are well founded, while oth- 

 ers are unfounded or unimportant. 



The jirincipal reason why it is objected to, 1 think, 

 is the fear that it may i)rove a noxious weed. It is 

 a sttong, rapid grower, readilj^ becoming establish- 

 ed, usuallj' holding its own tenaciously when once 

 it gets a start, killing out other plants, and spread- 

 ing from year to year. These are the recognized 

 qualities of the woi-st weeds; and the farmer who 

 sees it march along the highway and settle down in 

 front of Wis place, as though it had come to stay, is 

 apt to bo alarmed at the thought that some day it 

 may take a notion to invade his fields in just that 

 way. His fears are groundless, though. Its seed 

 will not start in a close sod; cultivation readily kills 

 it; and even after it has taken complete possession 

 of the soil, close mowing, so as to prevent any seed 

 from maturing for two successive seasons, will erad- 

 icate it completely. 



I have ridden for miles along a road where all the 

 space between the fences, except a narrow wagon- 

 track, was thickly covered wilh»swcct clover, yet 

 not a single plant was to be seen inside the fields. 

 I have occasionally seen sweet clover growing in- 

 side the fence along the roadside; but it is a sug- 

 gestive fact, tliMt it is almost always the old tumble- 

 down fence that lets the sweet clover through, 

 while a good fence keeps it from the well-tilled 

 fields beyond, as completely as it repels stray stock. 

 There is a moral here, if you go deep enough. 



The most reasonable objection to sweet clover 

 along the country road lies in the fact that its tall 

 rank growth often makes a close hedge four or five 

 feet high along each side of the narrow wagon- 

 track, thus cutting ott' all breeze from the horses. 

 This close hedge, too, sometimes makes it difficult 

 to turn out far enough to allow a team to pass. In 

 this locality farmers frequently herd their cattle 

 along the roadside when pasture is short, and these 

 complain that sweet clover occupies the land to the 

 ej[clusioii of grass. Cattle will not cat it except 



when it is young and tender. Other objections are 

 sometimes heard, most of which will apply quite as 

 well to any other weed. 



Now, what can we say in favor of sweet clover to 

 the man who cares nothing about its value to the 

 bee-keeper a" a honey-producing plant? I can only 

 say tliMt it often takes the place of less desirable 

 plants, and that its mod'st blossoms with their 

 grateful perfume combine to render the highway 

 beautiful and fragrant. Can we say any thing more 

 7)ractical? I hope some one can give us reasons 

 more convincing to the average farmer, why this 

 valuable honey-|)lant should be allowed to grow on 

 the roadside. 



INlany who object to the rapid spread of melilot 

 on the highway, accuse the bee-keeper of planting- 

 it, when they themselves not only cultivate the 

 ground but i-ow its seed. Sweet clover, unaided, 

 can do little to extend itself. Its seed is too heavy 

 to be carried far by the wind, and it is not provided 

 with any means of attaching itself to passing 

 objects. The most efficient agent in distributing its 

 seed is the nian who leaves the ordinary track for 

 the roadside when the roads are muddy in the 

 spring. In this way the surface of the ground is 

 broken up and prepared for the seed, while the 

 wheels of his wagon and the feet of his horses, sink- 

 ing into the ground where seed fell the autumn be- 

 fore, pick up portions of the soil filled with the seed 

 and carry it along for rods and sometimes for miles, 

 and there drop them to form a new nucleus of 

 growth. Sweet clover is apt to spring up wherever 

 any grading of roads is done; and the man who 

 plow.s tlw roadside for the purpose of scouring his 

 plows, though an enemy to humanity in general, is 

 a friend to the bee-keeper in a swoet-clo\er district. 



While under favorable circumstances the seed 

 Avill grow and do well if sown at any time of the 

 year, it will be much more apt to grow on un- 

 cultivated ground if sown in the fall, so the snows 

 and rains of winter and spring nuiy beat it into the 

 gn)nnd. 



You are probably right as to the cause of the 

 sooty color of the honey sent you by friend Muth. 

 The swcct-clover honey gathered here is nearly if 

 not (luile as light colored as that from white clover, 

 while the fiavor is, in my opinion, superior. When 

 the honey is unnn.\ed it requires no , expert to tell 

 that it was gathered from sweet clover, especially 

 if freshly gathered. In extracting newly gathered 

 sweet-clover honey, the current of air coming up 

 out of the extractor is laden with a perfume as dis- 

 tinct and unmistakable as that experienced by 

 holding a bunch of the blossoms to the nose. We 

 had ])romise of a good yield from sweet clover, and 

 indeed it started out well; but the long drought has 

 checked its yield so that what honey we get is con- 

 siderably mixed with that from other sources. If it 

 were not for this I would send you a sample of the 

 honey, which I think would compare favorably 

 with any j^ou have ever seen or tasted. 



Dayton, III., Aug. 10, 1886. J. A. Green. 



Thanks for the additional facts you have 

 given us in this matter, friend Cireen. I be- 

 lieve you are riglit in regard to its propaga- 

 tion and extension along the roadsides, by 

 its being carried along by vehicles in the 

 way you suggest. I am glad to have my 

 opinion corroborated in regard to the quali- 

 ty of the honey. I should like to know if 

 anybody has been successful iu raising the 



