GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



April, 1921 



no white man would be able to live iii this 

 swamp country. 



The very best honey found on this coastal 

 plain is undoubtedly the gallberry when it 

 is free from titi or honey from an_y other 

 source. A pure gallberry honey, say those 



Fia 



-A fine specimen of highland black sum in 

 North Carolina. 



who ought to know, is almost an exact dupli- 

 cate in body, color, and flavor of white 

 clover; V)ut, unfortunately, a pure gallberry 

 honey rarely reaches the northern markets. 

 Other honey sources are so mixed with it 

 that its quality is greatly impaired. Those 

 who ought to know, again, say it is yiossible 

 in juost of the sections where it grows to 

 produce a pure gallberry honey for the 

 northern markets, and such honey could be 

 used by the bottlers and canners in place of 

 white clover. If the contents of the bottle 

 or can are labeled "Honey" the northern 

 honey-eating public will accept gallberry as 

 readily as white clover, because it has a 

 flavor they are accustomed to, and therefore 

 they like it. 



Next in order of quality are the black 

 gums and tupelos. While these are beautiful 

 white honeys they have just enough "differ- 

 ence" so that the hoiisewife of the North 

 does not accept them as she does the gall- 

 berry or the white clover. Then comes titi, 

 which has an oflP flavor, and should never be 

 allowed to be mixed with gallberry. It should 

 be sold to bakers and manufacturers. The 

 same might be said of blackberry bouey, 



which is decidedly dark-colored, and of me- 

 dium flavor. 



One of the very best sources of honey is 

 the partridge pea of northern Florida. This 

 is a good honey, but it does not begin to 

 compare with gallberry. 



Another important source of honey in 

 northern Florida is the "summer farewell," 

 and some seasons along the i-ivers and bays 

 the mangroves. Saw palmetto and scrub 

 palmetto yield a very fine-flavored honey; 

 but it seldom reaches the North, as most of 

 it appears to be consumed in the South. 



Thru the central portions of the southern 

 tier of States, or what is usually called the 

 Piedmont section, are cotton, a little clover, 

 some crimson clover, and fruit bloom. In 

 the mountain section will be found the pop- 

 lars, sourwood, and other tree honeys, as well 

 as fruit bloom. 



"While the coastal-plain country is not de- 

 veloped, it is unquestionably the portion in 

 the southeastern States that is the best for 

 bees; and any one desiring a milder climate 

 and a good bee country, and can stand the 

 swamps and mosquitoes, will find this the 

 place to which he may go. 



One will find a market for practically all 

 the honey he can produce in the South. If 

 climate or health is a matter of considera- 

 tion one should make up his mind that his 

 bees will have to gather from 200 to 250 

 pounds of honey for colony maintenance be- 

 fore he can get a surplus. So much honey is 



Fig. 0. — .V typical whitetupelo wood with one fine 

 specimen in the foreground. This is on swamp land, 



