262 



BEES AND BEE-KEEPING. 



wasted, gives an excess, of which the bees take 

 advantage ; and often, in the early spring, the stocks 

 are greatly helped by the catkins, not only of the 

 hazel and other nuts, but also of the beech, the 

 poplar, and the willow (of which the two catkins 

 are represented in Fig. 52). It is curious that, in 

 the case of the weeping willow, notwithstanding its 

 wide distribution, only pistillate (female) trees are in 



Fig. 52.— Catkins of White Willow (Salix alba). 

 A, Staminate (Male) Catkin ; B, Pistillate (Female) Catkin. 



cultivation, which must have all originated from a 

 single parent. The blossoms just mentioned are wind- 

 fertilised (except the willow, whose position is inter- 

 mediate), and form a few examples of those called 

 anemophilous ; while those depending on insects are 

 denominated entomophilous. 



Before proceeding to examine the various remark- 

 able modifications made in flowers, in order that the 

 pollen produced by their anthers, in the closest proxi- 



