1918 



AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL 



409 



weak, it is always the same, when 

 the bees work on the cabbage trees, 

 as the common palm tree of Florida 

 is called. The name comes from the 

 fact that the bud in the head at the 

 top is eaten in lieu of cabbage. 



"The saw palmetto is decidedly 

 different in the nectar it yields. Saw 

 palmetto honey, even unsealed, may 

 be called a good honey, and it is, too. 

 When ripened it is a honey that 

 makes a name for itself when enough 

 care is taken by the producer to have 

 it unmixed with other nectars. 



"I write from personal experience 

 on the east coast of Florida." — L. K. 

 Smith, Gleanings, page 39, 1909. 

 The Saw Palmetto 



The saw palmetto (Sercnoa serru- 

 lata), often called scrub palmetto, is a 

 low growing, little palm, found on 

 dry soils in the Gulf Coast region. In 

 the southern portion of its range, in 

 peninsular Florida, it attains the pro- 

 portions of a small tree. There it 

 sometimes reaches a height of 20 feet, 

 with erect or inclined trunk,. Further 

 north the stem is almost invariably 

 underground. Large areas of pine 

 lands are covered with it. 



The blooming period is April and 

 May. O. O. Poppleton wrote con- 



Saw palmetto 



cerning his calendar of the year: 



"April — Saw palmetto flow corn- 

 commences early in the month and 

 continues until last of May. Our 

 apiary work these two months is ex- 

 tracting, building up all colonies and 

 replacing poor queens." — Beekeepers' 

 Review, page 11, 1893. 



Concerning the honey from saw 

 palmetto, we quote E. G. Baldwin as 

 follows : 



"The honey from saw palmetto is 

 lemon-yellow in color, thick and 

 waxy and of pronounced but delicious 

 flavor. It is not quite so transparent 

 as pure orange honey, but seldom 

 candies, and makes a choice table 

 article. Mr. O. O. Poppleton pro- 

 nounces it the best honey in Florida, 

 with the possible exception of tupelo. 

 It is liked by almost everyone at first 

 taste; is a trifle milder, even, than 

 orange."— Gleanings, page 177, 1911. 



Forest fires frequently destroy 

 many square miles of the saw pal- 

 metto, thus removing this source of 

 nectar for one year. However, ac- 

 cording to Baldwin, the burned-over 

 portions usually produce the most 

 honey the following year. 



Concerning the flow from palmetto, 

 E. B. Rood, of Bradentown, writes 

 as follows : 



"We have been having the heaviest 

 honeyflow from palmetto for ten 

 years. One colony on scales brought 

 in SO pounds in four days, and 80 

 pounds in ten days. I expect 20,000 

 to 30,000 pounds. I have extracted 

 13,000 pounds now and am just start- 

 ing on another round." — Gleanings, 

 page 703, 1908. 



Cabbage palmetto in bloon 



The Chicago Northwestern Bee- 

 keepers' Association 



will hold their annual convention at 

 the Great Northern Hotel, Chicago, 

 December 10-11. A good program is 

 being prepared and will be sent to 

 anyone interested as soon as com- 

 pleted. JOHN C. BULL. Sec.-Treas. 

 Valparaiso, Ind. 



