44 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Jan. 15. 



RAMBLE i8i. 



California ; its Vast Honey Resources from which 



300 Cars are sent in one good Season ; where 



the Honey is Produced, and what Kind. 



BY RAMBIvEJR. 



with the rains that have fallen so bountiful- 

 ly upon our charming western country there 

 is a marked revival of the hopes of our bee- 

 keepers ; and this hopeful influence must be 

 exerting an influence upon the fraternity in 

 the far East ; for letters are dropping down 

 upon us making all sorts of inquiries about 

 this country, and just as though we had never 

 had a drouth. 



It was naturally supposable that Cuba and 

 the other islands that have been thrown open 

 to the enterprise of our people would be the 

 magnet to draw bee-keepers into new and un- 

 tried fields ; but it seems that, in spite of new 

 domains and our dry seasons, California still 



has a magnetic influence ; and as the aspects 

 in the honey business are rapidly changing in 

 this State it is no more than fair that we de- 

 vote a little time and space to it. 



I believe the boast has been made that Cali- 

 fornia produces the largest honey crop of any 

 State in the Union. I believe I have made 

 some such remarks in the past myself. 



We can estimate quite closely, perhaps bet- 

 ter than almost any other State, as to the an- 

 nual product. Our honey is shipped over a 

 few transportation lines, and all we have to do 

 is to look into the books of said lines ; and 

 when the grand total figures up to three hun- 



dred, carloads, and in addition to this a large 

 home consumption, perhaps we are justified 

 in our boast for largest production, and may be 

 further pardoned if we sail our hats a little 

 when we reflect upon the long trains of honey 

 that are leaving our State. But this exuber- 

 ance is all the result of a good season, and we 

 have to use this qualifying term, for we have 

 our poor as well as good seasons. During the 

 nine years I have been in Southern California, 

 four of them have been total failures in honey 

 production, while two others have been a par- 

 tial success, leaving three good years in nine. 

 Therefore, taking the average production dur- 

 ing these nine years I have come to the con- 

 clusion that in a series of years California will 

 make no better showing than some of the 

 Eastern States. There is not much comfort 

 in that for those who wish to come here to 

 embark in the bee business ; but let us look 

 at the map of California, and make a few 

 comparisons, review a little of the past, look 

 at the present, and deal a little in futures. 



For nearly 800 milfes the western side of 

 California is white with the spray of the Pa- 

 cific Ocean. Measure off 800 miles on the 

 Atlantic side of the continent, and it would 

 include all the coast from Maine to Georgia. 

 In area it equals the ten far Eastern States, as 

 shown in the accompanying cut. 

 Thus far the honey production in 

 this vast area has been confined to 

 a few favored localities, and there 

 are wide stretches of country where 

 a bee could not live ; but the pros- 

 pects are bright for these desert 

 places becoming our most reliable 

 honey districts. 



The history of the bee industry in 

 California is decidedly interesting, 

 and shows many marked changes in 

 the area of production ; and those 

 changes so favorably begun will go 

 along with rapid strides. That the 

 seeker for a good honey location in 

 this State may know just where to 

 look, refer again to the maps. I 

 have divided the State into three 

 parts — Northern, Central, and South- 

 ern. 



The production of honey in Cali- 

 fornia commenced in the Sacramento 

 Valley, in the northern portion of the 

 State. As the resources of the 

 State became more generally known 

 it was found that the southern end 

 was far the best for honey, both in 

 quality and quantity, and in that portion the 

 industry has reached its greatest development, 

 and the honey produced in the seven south- 

 ernmost counties will ever hold the reputa- 

 tion gained for quality ; for in no portion of 

 the State is there the amount of various sages 

 that are found, here ; and while the valleys 

 have been put under cultivation, and the 

 sages destroyed, the canyons and mountain 

 sides are still its home, and there will always 

 be very good pasturage, for the land can be 

 used for no other purpose. 



It is in this portion of the State where those 

 phenomenally large yields have been produced; 



