300 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



May, 1920 



to the time the experiment was started. Compleite 

 fertilizers containing none, 1 per cemt, 2 per cent, 

 and 5 per cent potash, respectively, were used. The 

 fertilizer was applied at the rate of 1,700 pounds 

 per acre. 



The e.xperiment was begun in the spring of 1918. 

 The average yield per acre for all plats that were 

 given ammonia and phosphoric acid, but no potash, 

 was 12.7 barrels in 1918, and 27.8 IJarrels in 1919; 

 that for the plats receiving ammonia, phosphoric 

 acid, and potash, irrespective of amount, was 23.4 

 barrels in 1918 and 43.5 barrels in 1919. 



The following table shows the yields in barrels 

 per acre obtained in 1918 and 1919 where the vari- 

 ous amounts of potash were used: 



1918 1919 



No Potash 12 . 7 27.8 



1 Per Cent Potash 20.2 35.5 



3 Per Cent Potash 24 . 7 41.6 



5 Per Cent Potash 25.2 53.5 



In 1918 the field was new, the land having been 

 cleared less than a year previous. No crop had 

 been grown on the land previous to the time the 

 potatoes were planted. During the summer of 

 1919, following the potatoes, a crop of cowpeas 

 was planted on the land. The covvpea.s made a uni- 

 form growth over the whole field. No diflference in 

 growth was noted between the parts where no pot- 

 ash had been used and the parts where potash ferti- 

 lizers had been applied. The cowpeas were cut and 

 plowed under as a soil improver. 



After reading the above I felt still a lit- 

 tle uncertainty about it; so I submitted the 

 clipping' to Director Tliorne, of the Ohio 

 Experiment Station. Below is his replj' : 



Mr. A. I. Root: — In regard to the use of potash, 

 I enclose a leaflet from a bulletin which is now in 

 press, which will be sent you as soon as completed, 

 and call your attention to the way potash has been 

 behaving on our potatoes. Taking the 12-year pe- 

 riod, 1894-1905, you will notice that acid phosphate 

 has given 18 bushels of potatoes in increase and 

 potash only 4 bushels, while during the next period 

 the acid phosphate gave a minus of 2 bushels, while 

 the potash has increased to 26 bushels. You no- 

 tice further down the middle column that acid phos- 

 phate and potash combined gave 211/^ bushels dur- 

 ing the first period and 46 14 bushels during tlie 

 next, showing that acid phosphate was not without 

 effect, provided it had the help of potash ; but that 

 the chief role had shifted during these 25 years 

 from phosphorus to potassium. Turning over this 

 sheet and taking the wheat figures, you will see that 

 acid phosphate has remained consistently in the lead 

 thruout the entire 25 years. It is one of the queer 

 things in our work, but supports the commonly ac- 

 cepted belief that potatoes are peculiarly responsive 

 to potash. You will notice that it took more than 

 12 years, however, for this condition to manifest 

 itself in this work of ours. Yours cordially, 



Chas. E. Thorne. 



Woostcr, O., .July 9, 1919. 



A REPORT FROM WHERE SUNFLOWER SEED IS 

 GROWN BY THE THOUSANDS OF TONS. 



SEE PAGE 612, SEPTEMBER ISSUE. 

 Dear Mr. Root: — I am sorry, but I am afraid 1 

 am not able to give you the information you wish, 

 and I don't know of any one who can give it. I 

 keep about as nuiny colonies of bees as any one per- 

 son in this locality, and attend to my bees as well 

 as any one. We know that the honey from sun- 

 flower.? is light yellow in color and in quality is 

 good, but the amount from that source alone I can 

 not tell. There are niiiny other .sources now, as 

 this region raises considerable alfalfa (sweet clover 



has quite a start) and all kinds of melons; in fact 

 a little of everything in the garden line. So the 

 honey is mixed. I extracted some while sunflowers 

 were at their best, and got the nearest pure sun- 

 flower honey that we have secured for several years. 

 More sunflowers were raised this year than for sev- 

 eral years be^fore, and as they bring a good price, 

 more will likely be raised next year. They are 

 surely a good honey plant, as bees are at work on 

 them all the time they are in bloom. On ditch banks 

 and similar places there are lots of wild .sunflowers 

 which bloom until killed by frost. While cultivated 

 sunflowers were in bloom, I noticed there were very 

 few bees working on the wild varieties, but now 

 there are many working on the wild. This is just 

 the time for harvesting the sunflowers. The buy- 

 ers are offering for seed 7 and TV2 cents a pound. 

 Ernest E. Warrex. 

 Manteca, Calif., Sept. 7, 1919. 



The new sunflower referred to on page 

 612, September Gleanings, which was origi- 

 nated by Burba nk, is now growing in our 

 garden. We have about 50 plants. While 

 the greater part of them are only three or 

 four feet high, and have only one large 

 blossom, there are perhaps five per cent 

 of the plants that run up tall and send out 

 side branches with small heads. From this 

 we judge the type is not yet fixed. 



The bees are hovering over the blossoms 

 more or less all day long. I do not know 

 how much honey they get; but most of 

 them carry away good-sized loads of pollen. 

 There is also a sticky substance, not only 

 on the blossoms but on the leaves near the 

 stem. The bees work on this, even before 

 any bloom aj^pears. Some of the leaves 

 are 18 inches across, and as long as that 

 from the stem to tip. 



Later. — Since the above was written we 

 have received the following from friend 

 Warren : 



Dear Mr. Root : — I sent you a sample of as near 

 the pure sunflower honey as I could, as I said in 

 my other letter. It is almost impossible to get it 

 pure now, as so many other flowers are in bloom at 

 the same time. The honey I sent you was only to 

 give you a better idea of the sunflower honey than 

 I could tell you. Please accept it with my compli- 

 ments. We have a good market for all we can pro- 

 duce. A few colonies produced a little over 100 

 pounds each of that kind of honey, but most of them 

 about 50 pounds. Our fall honey is quite dark. I 

 keep only about 70 colonies. 



Ernest E. Warren. 



Manteca, CaliT., Sept. 23, 1919. 



STILL Later: suni'lowers for rabbits and 

 sunflowt';rs for " h. c. l." 



Kind Friend: — I have just met one of your 

 " happy surprises." Last evening I was getting out 

 some sunflower seed, and after I had gotten the 

 seed out I sliced one of the heads for my rabbits, 

 and it looked so good that I had my wife fry some 

 of it for breakfast this morning. It was ftilly as 

 good as eggplant or mushrooms; and was the best 

 substitute for meat I have ever fotmd. I ate quite 

 freely of it and have experienced no ill effects fro-n 

 it yet. Maybe you know if it has been used for 

 human food and if it is perfectly wholesonie. 



A. L. I',i:.\i,s. 



Kt. ;!, Cicero, hid.. Oct. .'>, 1919. 



