420 
GOLDENROD 
ferred by many persons to white honey. 
In other sections, as the South and West, 
it is of less importance; but it comes at a 
time of the year when it helps to keep the 
bees busy, and at the same time serves to 
make up the loss in stores during the lat¬ 
ter part of the summer. 
The species most common and valuable 
to Eastern beekeepers are sweet-scented 
goldenrod (S. odora ), early goldenrod ( S. 
juncea), field goldenrod (S. nemoralis ), 
Canada goldenrod ( S. canadensis), late 
goldenrod (S. serotina) , tall hairy golden¬ 
rod (S. rugosa ), and in great abundance in 
salt marshes and along sea-beaches, the sea¬ 
side goldenrod ( 8 . sempervirens). Unlike 
most of the other species the inflorescence 
of the common bushy goldenrod ( S . gram- 
ini folia) is in large flat-topped clusters or 
corymbs. It is one of the best nectar-yield- 
ers, and a favorite with honeybees. Once 
in a woodland pasture largely overgrown 
with the hairy goldenrod (S. rugosa) a 
dozen or more plants of the bushy golden¬ 
rod were found. Honeybees were the only 
insects present, and they showed a marked 
preference for the bushy goldenrod. They 
were repeatedly seen to leave the latter 
species; and after flying about, but not 
resting on the flowers of the hairy golden¬ 
rod, return to the plants they had left a 
few moments before. A plant of each of 
the above species was bent over so that 
their blossoms were intermingled, appear¬ 
ing as a single cluster; a honeybee alight¬ 
ed on the bushy goldenrod, and it seemed 
very probable that it would pass over to 
the flowers of the hairy goldenrod, but 
such was not the case, for presently it 
flew away to another plant of the former. 
The flowers have a sweet fragrance, and 
are visited by over a hundred different 
species of insects. All the goldenrods in 
New England yield nectar, altho the early 
goldemmd ( S . juncea) seems to be of less 
value than some of the later kinds; but, 
singularly enough, at Marengo, Illinois, 
they are of little importance to the bee¬ 
keeper. 
The quantity of nectar secreted by the 
goldenrods varies greatly in different local¬ 
ities. They are most valuable as honey 
plants in New England and Canada. In a 
large part of New England beekeeping is 
chiefly dependent on this genus of plant 
and the clovers, and in the absence of eith¬ 
er group would yield little profit. The 
goldenrods are also abundant in Nova Sco¬ 
tia and New Brunswick and in parts of 
Quebec, Ontario, and Manitoba. They 
yield nectar freely, and 40 or more pounds 
of honey per colony from this source may 
be obtained, but usually it is mixed with 
aster honey. This genus is also listed among 
the honey plants of British Columbia, 
Michigan, and Tennessee, and is widely 
distributed in New York, New Jersey, and 
