84 SOURCES OF NECTAR 



has become established in a locality that produces good yields, 

 others will locate within a short distance of his apiaries, and 

 the number of colonies brought in will so reduce the surplus 

 secured that no one will get satisfactory returns. This is not 

 only short-sighted business policy on the part of the newcomer, 

 but very unjust as well. While a bee-keeper has no way to estab- 

 lish a legal right to the bee pasturage, it would seem that the first 

 man on the ground should have some moral rights that should be 

 respected. Indeed, there has come to be an unwritten law among 

 bee-keepers that does respect the rights of the man already 

 located. Unfortunately this unwritten law is not always recog- 

 nized, and much friction sometimes develops as a result. The 

 only remedy is to move to a new locality, or be patient until the 

 newcomer will realize that there is not room enough for two, and 

 move on in search of richer fields. 



THE BEE AS A POLLENIZING AGENT 



The value of the honey-bee in the pollenation of blossoms has 

 come to be so generally recognized that commercial fruit growers 

 and gardeners are anxious to secure the location of an apiary 

 near their plantings. Since Darwin laid down the law that 

 nature abhors self-fertilization, there has been much study of 

 the problems of cross-fertilization and the agents that serve to 

 accomplish nature's purpose in the distribution of pollen. While 

 there arc numerous butterflies, wasps, wild bees and other in- 

 sects that assist in the work, the honey-bee, because of its greater 

 abundance, and because it can bo readily controlled, has come to 

 be recognized as the most valuable agent for certain plants. 



In this connection a quotation from Dr. Burton N. Gates, of 

 the Massachusetts Agricultural College, will serve to show the 

 present recognition of this fact by well-known authorities.^ 



The value of the honcy-bce in cranberry cultivation has but recently 

 been recognized. The cranberry industry of Massachusetts, for instance, is 



^ " Tlic Value of Bees in Horticulture," by Burton X. Gates, in 3rd 

 Annual Report, State Bee Inspector of Iowa, l'J14. 



