ALFALFA AND BEES 1/7 



plant should go unfertilized if it could be fertilized only 

 by the pollen of its own blossom. Provision, however, is 

 made for cross fertilization, that is, fertilization from the 

 pollen of another flower. 



"The color of the flower itself, its fragrance, and 

 finally the sip of nectar secreted at the base of the flower, 

 are all intended to attract flower-frequenting insects. 

 Chief among these is the honey bee. The fragrance of 

 the flower draws the insect from afar. The color of the 

 flower reveals its exact location to the insect and when 

 the tongue of the bee is inserted into the flower, in quest 

 of the coveted nectar, the stamens and pistil spring up, 

 striking the under part of the hairy-covered head. These 

 hairs are barbed and readily retain the pollen, so that the 

 flower both discharges its own pollen and also takes from 

 the head and breast of the bee pollen previously collected 

 from other flowers. Obviously, the first flower which 

 the insect visits is not cross-fertilized. Practical obser- 

 vations upon the relations existing between the honey 

 bee and the alfalfa plant are of value in illustrating the 

 effects of the bees upon alfalfa. 



*A case in point : A hundred well matured pods were 

 collected upon an alfalfa field less than one-half mile 

 away from a large apiary. A similar number were taken 

 from another field. The two fields were as nearly identi- 

 cal as possible in the matter of soil, culture, and condi- 

 tions governing the vegetable growth of the alfalfa plant. 

 The second field, however, was about twenty-five miles 

 away from a colony of bees. No bees were observed in 

 the field and since there was no timber, nor other place 

 of shelter where bees might possibly live, it seemed reason- 



