AT WORK. 47 



It was not best to begin transferring to my new 

 hives until there was sufficient bloom for the bees 

 to be busily at work. The alders and willows had 

 been giving a little pollen, to the bees which were 

 in the open air, by the last of March. Soft maple 

 and silver maple, were very abundant. They 

 began to open in profusion two days after the 

 hives were taken from the cellar. 



Everything was now prepared, and I had time to 

 study again the situation. 



From what my father had said, and from my own 

 observation, I had reason to think the location a 

 good one for bee-keeping. Our farm contained 80 

 acres, somewhat rolling, sloping gradually to the 

 east and south. At the west and north lay an ex- 

 tensive tract of sugar-maple woodland. A few rods 

 south of the house ran the road on the section line. 

 Beyond the road was a small stream, one of the 

 branches of the Muskegon river. The stream was 

 bordered on both sides far away in both directions 

 with woods, in which were numerous linn or bass- 

 wood trees, and not a few willows of different 

 species, and many soft and silver maples. Further 

 east and south were many farms, already pretty well 

 under cultivation. Some of these farms had or- 

 chards just coming into bearing ; all of them had 

 young trees set out, which would be fruiting in a 

 few years. Everywhere in meadows and pastures, 



