CHilPTER XIII, 



SOURCES OF HONEY. 



jHE sources from which bees collect honey are 

 ^ various and almost innumerable. Almost 

 every flower, tree, plant, shrub and vine, in 

 field, forest, pasture and garden yield honey to some 

 extent. White clover is, perhaps, the greatest source 

 of honey in the New England and Middle States, it 

 being found in a greater or less extent in almost 

 every field and pasture. South and West there is, 

 in many localities, a profusion of wild flowers, pro- 

 ducing considerable quantities of honey. In some 

 sections buckwheat affords a rich harvest. Bass- 

 wood yields a very nice quality of honey, and in sec- 

 tions where it abounds, great quantities are collected 

 from it. Fruit blossoms — apple, pear, peach and 

 all the different varieties of plums, cherries, etc., 

 are very important sources of honey. 



Pollen is the first material gathered by the bees in 

 early spring. Several varieties of alder, willow, red 

 maple, etc., produce pollen in great abundance. 

 Raspberry, blackberry, catnip, dandelion, etc., all 

 contribute largely of honey in their season. Corn 

 and most kinds of grain furnish pollen in abundance 

 late in the season. Mustard and sweet clover are 

 great favorites with the busy bee, yielding the most 



