As there are very few insects flying in early spring except the 

 bees, it is clear that the bees do practically all the work. 



As many farmers within the reach of my voice have buck- 

 wheat or some of the clovers, and as many others are growing 

 some fruit, a few specific instances that have come under my 

 observation may not come amiss at this time to show how 

 bees make more seed and more and better fruit. 



In the vicinity of Glassboro, New Jersey, there are some- 

 thing like 5,000 acres of apple, peach and pear orchards. The 

 fruit growers in that vicinity have learned that it pays them 

 to give a bonus to the local beekeepers at the rate of $5 a 

 colony for putting bees in their orchards only during the time 

 the trees are in bloom. Albert Repp (one of the most ex- 

 tensive growers in the vicinity) in the "Country Gentleman" 

 about two years ago said: "I would no more think of trying 

 to grow apples, peaches and pears without bees than I would 

 think of trying to get along without spraying or pruning." 



South of Boston, cranberries are grown in a large way. 

 When the cultivated bogs were small it was observed that good 

 yields of the berries could be secured; but when the acreage 

 had been increased the crop kept getting smaller and smaller 

 per acre. It was finally discovered that there were too few 

 bees in the vicinity of these large bogs. When enough bees 

 were put around the bogs, the yield of cranberries became 

 normal again. 



There is a 50-acre apple orchard about 10 miles north of 

 my home in Medina, Ohio. For years this orchard was neg- 

 lected, and yielded scarcely 500 bushels per year. It finally 

 came into the possession of a practical fruit grower. He began 

 spraying and pruning, and then he said he wanted me to put 

 some bees on his place. I did so, furnishing one colony to the 

 acre. What were the results? The first year he secured 16,000 

 bushels of apples, all of them perfect. The next year he se- 

 cured 12,000 bushels. Owing to the help of the bees he had 

 from 5,000 bushels during the poorest year up to 16,000 during 

 the best. 



At a large cherry orchard just east of INIedina, we put some 

 bees. The spring of 1917 was quite chilly and backward. 

 There was only an hour or two when the bees could fly during 



