BITTER AND POISONOUS HONEYS 81 
sometimes to be found on the corn plant, and it may be that 
honey-dew is sometimes gathered from this source. 
The list might be extended indefinitely, but it is only neces- 
sary to mention a few of the common plants, such as roses, 
sorghum, hops and ragweed. Many brightly colored flowers pro- 
duce pollen but no nectar. 
Bitter and Poisonous Honeys.—There are several plants that 
yield honey of such a disagreeable taste that it is of no value, 
except to feed back to the bees. The bitterweed, or sneezeweed of 
the Ozark region, blooms after the close of the clover harvest, and 
a good crop of white clover honey is frequently spoiled by mixing 
with the bitter honey. In such a locality, it is important that 
the beekeeper be familiar with the time of blooming of such 
plants, and remove all good honey from the hive before the bees 
begin to store from them. The author has found this honey to be 
so bitter as to be absolutely unpalatable. Scholl says of the 
bitterweed of Texas (/elenitum tenuifolium) : “Honey yield good 
in favorable seasons; pollen; honey golden yellow, heavy body 
but very bitter, as if 50 per cent quinine and some pepper were 
added. June to October.” 
The honey from snow-on-the-mountain (Huphorbia mar- 
ginatt) is said to be bitter and disagreeable, and possibly pois- 
onous. 
Pammel, in his “ Manual of Poisonous Plants,” cites a num- 
ber of plants which are supposed to produce poisonous honey. 
Among them may be mentioned mountain laurel (Kalmia lati- 
folta), which is said to be common in the mountains of Virginia 
and nearby States. The honey from rhododendron is said to be 
poisonous also. 
In choosing a location it is desirable to avoid the sources 
of these undesirable honeys as much as possible, and if they are 
present in the locality where one is operating, to use care to pre- 
vent them from being stored in the same comb with honey of good 
quality. 
Cases of poisoning from honey in New Jersey are described 
6 
