POLLINATION 417 



Furthermore, although a variety may be able to set an abundance 

 of fruit with its own pollen, this fruit will often be smaller than if 

 other pollen were supplied. 



Pollen-carriers. The pollen of one variety is carried to the 

 pistils of another in two natural ways — by the wind and by in- 

 sects. There are many kinds of insects, such as bees, wasps, and 

 flies, which aid in the cross-pollination of orchard fruits, and of 

 these the wild bees of several species are probably the most impor- 

 tant. But few of the wild bees can live in a large orchard, espe- 

 cially if it is well tilled ; therefore, as the extent and thoroughness 

 of cultivation increases, the number of these natural aids to cross- 

 pollination decreases and it becomes necessary to keep domestic 

 honey bees for this purpose. 



Every large orchard where the trees are numbered by the thou- 

 sands should have near by a bee yard of at least fifty swarms to 

 help in thoroughly pollinating the blossoms and obtaining the best 

 results. Bees will not be poisoned by the spraying of fruit trees with 

 poisoned substances if the work is done at the right time, which is 

 just after the blossoms fall. No sensible orchardist will spray his 

 trees when in full bloom and thus poison one of his best friends 

 — the bees. 



Pollination by hand. In the West some attention has been 

 given to pollinating the blossoms by hand. Large numbers of buds 

 have been gathered from the trees and forced in either greenhouses 

 or dwellings, and the pollen collected and later applied to the trees 

 with camel's-hair brushes. The results have been quite satisfactory, 

 particularly on trees that were more or less self-sterile. 



