110 



GLEA.NINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



Febeuaey, 1920 



In fact, the load was so heavy that the tree 

 would soon have tipped over with the roots 

 up in the air, and I was obliged to drive 

 down three stakes to keep it on its feet. 

 How about the " seedless" ? I am glad to 

 tell you we have had two small melons with- 

 out even a single seed, and one -containing 

 only one seed. Most of the larger fruits 

 have about the usual number of seeds, 

 some perhaps as many as a himdred. We 

 have one or more ripe melons almost every 

 day and everybody, so far as I know, calls 

 them " delicious." Let me digress a little. 

 I often, yes very often, thank God for the 

 many kind friends I have found. They 

 seem to be scattered all over the face of the 

 earth ; and what is more, they are real 

 "' honest to goodness " friends. The mis- 

 sionary' who sent the papaya seeds is one 

 of them, and our colored friend " Wesley," 

 (Wesley Welch) is another. 



You see when the photographer {another 

 "friend") was all ready he wanted some 

 one to hold the leaves away so as to ex- 

 pose the ripening yellow fruit. Wesley 

 was spadmg near and I asked him to do 

 this; but, as he had just been making con- 

 crete for the new windmill piers, and was 

 pretty well covered with cement and mortar, 

 he was reluctant to have his picture taken. 

 However, I told him I would explain to our 

 readers when I introduced him. I some- 

 times think among the great list of friends 

 I have mentioned, there are few more de- 

 voted ones than my humble friend and 

 helper, Wesley. 



A few seeds from this plant will be mail- 

 ed to any one who sends an addressed and 

 stamped envelope to The A. I. Root Com- 

 pany, Medina, Ohio. 



THE NEW ANNUAL WHITE SWEET CLOVER. 



See what is said about this clover on 

 page 693, October, aside from what men- 

 tion has been made in different issues dur- 

 ing the past year. Here is something more 

 in regard to it which we clip from Field's 

 Seed Sense for October: 



A GIANT ANNUAL SWEET CLOVER. 



Prof. Hughes, head of the farm crops department 

 of the Iowa State College, Ames, Iowa, has develop- 

 ed something alsolutcly new in a quick growin? an- 

 nual form of the big whit« sweet clbveir, Melilotus 

 Alba. 



He firfet found it as a sport, a single plant, in a 

 field of the biennial white sweet clover, which bloom- 

 ed the first year. He saved the se«d of this and 

 planted it separately and by continual selection got 

 it to come true to type. 



He .sent me just a little package of 50 seeds last 

 year which I planted in our trial grounds and raised 

 over a pound of seed. 



This year I planted that pound of seed on about 

 an acre of our trial grounds and altho we were late 

 getting it planted we got a good yield of seed and 

 will have quite a bit to spare now. 



It is in every way identical in appearance with 

 the big biennial type and grows to the same size, 

 say 5 to 8 feet high, but does it all in about 4 

 months. I took a photograph the other day of a 

 plant that stood over 7 feet high and full of bloom 

 and seed, in only 130 days from seeding, but did 

 not get a cut made in time for this issue of Seed 

 Sense. Will try to show it next month. 



Ours was planted May 9 and the photograph was 

 made Sept. 19, at which time most of the plants had 

 ripened a large quantity of seed and were still 

 blooming and making more seed and will probably 

 keep on until frost. 



The first blooms appeared at about 80 days from 

 seeding and the bloom has been continuous from 

 then on. 



It is going to be a great crop for early pasture, 

 as you can get action the first year and if seeded 

 early the bloom should be continuous from about 

 July 1 on until frost. 



Its greatest value, however, will be as a regular 

 farm crop for pasture, hay, or plowing under. It 

 grows very fast and makes an enormous growth. 

 In fact, it makes as much growth in four months 

 as the regular biennial type makes in fifteen months 

 and seems to be in every way identical except for 

 its annual habit of growth. In fact, at first glance 

 you could not tell a field of annual from a second 

 year field of the biennial. 



Prof. Hughes is anxious that this new annual 

 white sweet clover should be given as wide distribu- 

 tion as possible; so I am going to put it out entirely 

 in trial packages at $1.00 each. Anyone can afford 

 to try it at this price and we will continue filling or- 

 ders in this way as long as our supply lasts, except 

 that of course we are going to save a good big lot 

 for our own planting. 



Price: trial package, $1.00 by mail, postpaid. 



You will see by the above the price of a 

 trial packet is $1.00; but in our October 

 number I have it 50 cents. Well, friend 

 Field (I suppose in consideration of the 

 advertising Gleanings has given him) 

 writes that readers of Gleanings can have 

 the one-dollar packet for fifty cents. 



TWO EEPORTS FROM THE NEW ANNUAL 

 WHITE SWEET CLOVER. 



I enclose herewith a photograph of a single plant 

 of Prof. Hughes' big annual white sweet clover, 

 showing the remarkable growth it makes. 



This plant is from seed planted May 9th and was 

 photographed Sept. 19, or at a little over four 

 months of age. It has been blooming and ripening 

 seed for some time, but you notice it is still in 

 bloom. This is one peculiar characteristic of this 

 plant. It seems to be practically ever-blooming from 

 the time it starts in June or early July until frost. 



Henry Field. 



Shenandoah, Iowa, Oct. 17, 1919. 



Dear Mr. Root : — I am enclosing herewith a photo 

 of the annual sweet clover which I grew from the 

 seed you so kindly sent me. These plants stand 8 

 feet, 4 inche-s high and commenced to bloom on Aug. 

 16— just what we want. They are still blooming, 

 and bees are working some today. 



Yours sincerely, 



M. Y. Calcutt. 

 Seattle, Wash., Oct. 10, 1919. 



Dear Mr. Root. : — I wrote you for a few seeds 

 of the new sweet clover. I planted, I think, in 

 September and transplanted this spring and culti- 

 vated in my garden. Some of the plants are near 

 8 feet high and the bees are still at work on them 

 every dav. Thank vou for same. 



St. Joseph. La., July 12. W. R. Baicee. 



