LIMA BEANS 
tons. Of the various varieties of beans 
raised in California only the Lima bean is 
of value to the beekeeper, altho the black- 
eyed bean has been erroneously stated to 
yield an amber-colored honey. 
The crop of Lima beans in southern Cali¬ 
fornia in 1918 was 1,505,000 bags; in 1919, 
it was 810,000 bags; and in 1920 900,000 
bags. It is estimated that in 1920 there 
was under cultivation 149,837 acres. Cali¬ 
fornia produces 85 per cent of all the Lima 
beans grown in the world. The only other 
place where they are planted on a commer¬ 
cial scale is on the island of Madagascar. 
The Lima bean is adapted to a coastal strip 
20 miles in width, extending from Santa 
Barbara County southward to San Diego 
County, which is subject to heavy ocean 
fogs. Cool sea fogs and the absence of 
protracted hot spells are required for the 
maturing of the plant, otherwise it is apt 
to blight; but the dense fogs often retard 
the flight of bees. 
This species is a twin-ing vine with ra¬ 
cemes of small white flowers, and com¬ 
pound leaves of three-pointed, ovate, entire 
leaflets. The pod is scimitar-shaped with 
a few large flat seeds. A bush variety of 
the Lima bean has been very extensively 
planted during the past few years. It is 
grown a little farther away from the ocean 
and is irrigated. In 1920 thousands of 
acres of this bean were planted in the San 
Fernando Valley which was the haven of 
many a migratory beekeeper. Nectar was 
yielded in abundance. by irrigated bush- 
Lima bean fields, while bees dependent on 
the older variety of pole Limas were starv¬ 
ing. The vines bloom in July and August 
and yield a heavy, white, mild honey which 
has an agreeable flavor. Most of the honey 
is secured during the first two weeks of 
bloom. It granulates quickly. The honey 
crop from this source is rather uncertain 
as it is influenced by weather conditions. 
If there are many days of hot sunshine 
little nectar is secreted, and too much fog 
prevents the flight of the bees. 
Ventura County leads the world in the 
production of beans, the larger portion of 
the acreage being devoted to Lima beans. 
There are rows of Lima beans a mile in 
length. In this county the crop of bean 
honey is usually fairly reliable, and an av¬ 
erage of 50 pounds per colony is secured 
567 
in a good season. But as much as 150 
pounds per colony has been obtained. Twice 
the crop has been a failure. Some years 
ago a hot wind literally withered the bloom, 
and again in 1920 the bloom was reported 
as nectarless. After the honey flow from 
the sages is over many beekeepers move 
their colonies to the bean fields. There have 
been as many as 2,000 colonies in a radius 
of three miles, and it has been estimated 
that nearly 500 beekeepers migrate to the 
bean fields. 
As a rule the beans never receive a drop 
of rain from the time of planting to har¬ 
vesting. The ground water and the ocean 
fogs furnish all the moisture they receive. 
The beans are planted in drills about 3 
feet apart, and 10 inches apart in the row, 
by a machine planting three or four rows 
at a time. All weeds are destroyed by cul¬ 
tivation and hand-weeding. As there is no 
rain the vines do not require poles, but can 
lie on the ground without rotting. The 
beans are harvested by a machine with two 
knives, each knife cutting one row. After 
threshing the beans are sacked and trans¬ 
ported to great warehouses 300 feet long 
by 100 feet wide. The crop ranges from 
1,000 to 2,000 pounds per acre. After the 
bean crop is removed the fields are so bare 
that a sheep would starve on a hundred 
acres, and there is no pasturage for bees. 
Bean farming in California is conducted 
on a very extensive scale. On the Irving 
ranch in Orange County, which is one of 
the largest single tracts of land in the 
West, 25,000 acres of beans are planted 
each year. Between Los Angeles and the 
Palms there are several ranches which con¬ 
tain 2,000 to 3,500 acres. Probably not 
less than a dozen bean ranches in southern 
California contain 10,000 acres of land. 
The land is plowed and harrowed by trac¬ 
tors working day and night. Modern bean 
farmers are beginning to practice irriga¬ 
tion and intensive cultivation on tracts of 
40 to 300 acres in extent, as the result of 
the high rentals paid for the use of the 
land. 
LINDEN. — See Basswood. 
LIVE-BEE DEMONSTRATION. — See 
Honey Exhibits. 
LOCALITY. —No one should enter ex¬ 
tensively on the production of honey until 
