June Hants. 273 



hard by our apiary is lined with these sweet-smelling herbs, 

 and we would like even more. 



Black mustard, Sinapis nigra (Fig. 143), white mustard, 

 Sinapis alba, and rape, Brassica eampestris (Fig. 144), all look 

 much alike, and are all admirable bee plants , as they furnish 

 much and beautiful honey. The first , if self-sown, blooms with 

 us July 1s t, the others June 1s t ; the first about eight weeks after 

 sowing, the others about four. The mustards bloom for four 

 weeks, rape for three. These are all specially commendable, 

 as they may be made to bloom during the honey dearth of 

 July and August, and are valuable plants to raise for seed. 

 Rape seems to be very attractive to insects, as the flea beetles 

 and the blister beetles are often quite too much for it, though 

 they do not usually destroy the plants till after they have 

 blossomed. I have several times purchased what purported 



Fig. 144. 



to be Chinese mustard, dwarf and tall, but Prof. Beal, than 

 whom there is no better authority, tells me they are only the 

 white and black, and certainly they are no whit better as bee> 

 plants. These plants, with buckwhgat, t he mints , borage, 

 and mignonett e, are specially interesting, as they cover ,~or may 

 be made to cover, the honey dearth from about July 20th to 

 AugJftt 20th. 



