In the first volume of American Bee Journal, published in 1861, appears a plea for the publication of a volume devoted to the honey flora of America. In numerous instances since that time, writers have mentioned the great need of a work of this kind. In common with other students of beekeeping, the author came to feel this lack in our beekeeping literature. This book is an attempt to fill that need. It is to be expected that the first work on this great subject will overlook many things which should have been included and that numerous errors should creep in. In an attempt to gather the desired material, the author has visited the important beekeeping regions from the Atlantic Coast to California and from Canada to Florida and Texas. Careful notes have been made of the honey plants of each section as indicated by the many beekeepers with whom the author has come in contact. To this multitude of beekeepers who have thus assisted by furnishing notes of this kind the author is greatly indebted.

The literature of beekeeping has been carefully examined for references to honey plants, and hundreds of quotations appear in the text. The few bulletins which have appeared on the subject have been quoted freely, as well as similar material appearing in the bee magazines.

The illustrations are for the most part from the author’s original photographs, although a number have been borrowed from the American Bee Journal, which appeared in that publication, from John H. Lovell, Homer Mathewson, J. M. Buchanan, M. C. Richter, C. D. Stuart, Florida Photographic Concern, Wesley Foster, W. A. Pryal, and some others, the identity of the originator of which are lost.

Since most of the readers of this book will be men who are not accustomed to botanical classification, it has been thought best to treat each plant under the name by which it is most widely known, giving other names as cross references, and to treat all in alphabetical order. Numerous related subjects which seemed to have a place in a book of this kind, such as nectar and nectar secretion, poisonous honey, propolis, pollination, weather and honey production, etc., have been likewise included in proper alphabetical order.

No one is likely to be more conscious of the shortcomings of the volume than is the author. As it is his hope to expand the scope of the work in a later edition, he will be grateful for notes on additions and corrections from all parts of America.

FRANK C. PELLETT.

Hamilton, Ill. November 18, 1919.

AMERICAN HONEY PLANTS

The late Prof. A. J. Cook estimated that there are nearly eighteen hundred species of plants on which bees work in America. Most of these are minor sources, which the bees visit incidentally for the minute quantity of nectar that may be available, or for pollen. There are some plants rich in nectar which can never be important to the beekeeper because they are not sufficiently plentiful.

Honey production, as a business enterprise, is dependent upon a few species which yield nectar abundantly and which are sufficiently common to enable the bees to secure honey in large quantity. In order to make the most of his business, the beekeeper should have a thorough knowledge of the honey plants in all the country surrounding his apiaries. It often happens that a distance of but a few miles makes a great difference with the available honey sources. Many a man by moving an apiary a few miles has greatly increased the yield. It sometimes happens that the plant which is the main dependence will fail, and that by moving to some other source, a crop may be harvested. To know fully the honey plants of his region, their time of blooming and habit of nectar secretion under his particular conditions, is of fundamental importance to the man who would succeed as a beekeeper.

In many places the presence or absence of a single plant determines whether or not beekeeping is worth while. Over a large portion of the Middle West, the beekeepers depend almost entirely upon white clover for surplus, and in seasons when this plant fails they get no honey to sell.

Likewise, in many localities in the irrigated regions of the Rocky Mountain States, when alfalfa fails to yield, there is no surplus honey. Yet in all these sections, beekeeping would be impossible if there were no other plants. There are localities where tremendous honeyflows occur for a short period of time, where beekeeping is not practical because there is insufficient forage to support the bees the rest of the year. In such places beekeepers often take advantage of the flows by moving the bees away as soon as the plants cease to yield nectar, and returning them the following year at blooming time. This applies to some parts of the valley of the Appalachicola River in Florida. While the flow from Tupelo is sometimes remarkable, there is a shortage of pollen throughout the summer months.

The ideal situation for beekeeping is one where there are at least three plants which yield surplus honey in considerable quantity, and which bloom at different periods. Beside the main sources, there should be a great variety of minor plants yielding both pollen and honey throughout the season to support the bees between the main flows. In such a situation, there is seldom an entire failure of the honey crop; and, in good years, the beekeeper fares well, indeed.

There are many localities where the bees suffer seriously for lack of pollen at some seasons of the year. An available source of pollen is second only in importance to an abundant honeyflow. This being the case, the plants which are generally regarded as valuable for pollen, especially those blooming at seasons when pollen is not abundant generally, are included in this book.

HONEY PLANT REGIONS

Several attempts have been made to outline the principal regions of the United States. A careful examination of all these outlines brings out serious discrepancies. There are too many small regions within larger ones to permit of anything like accuracy with the present data and the present knowledge of the honey plants. In general, white clover may be said to be the principal honey plant of all the region from Nova Scotia west to eastern Dakota and south to Tennessee and Arkansas. Yet within that large area, there are many places where white clover is unimportant, and where other plants furnish the principal surplus. In much of Michigan white clover is of first importance, yet in the cut-over districts of the northern part of the State, raspberry, fireweed and milkweed furnish nearly all the honey that goes to market. It is good clover territory, and with the ultimate development of the region, clover will predominate.

In the irrigated regions of the Rocky Mountain States, alfalfa is the principal source of surplus, but sweet clover is rapidly crowding it for first place.

Basswood was once a very important source of honey over all the Northeastern States. The cutting of the basswood forests has gradually reduced the basswood area until there are now few localities, in Ohio, Indiana, Illinois or Iowa, where it is really an important honey source. In parts of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan and Ontario, basswood is still sufficiently plentiful to yield large quantities of honey, but there it is being rapidly reduced.

In the cotton belt, where cotton would naturally be expected to be the principal source, the area would be divided into many small regions. Cotton may yield much honey in a locality where the soil is heavy and rich, while a few miles distant, where soils are light and sandy, there is little honey from cotton, although the plant is just as commonly cultivated. In the cotton region there would be a great many sub-divisions. In parts of Texas, mesquite is the principal source, in others catsclaw and huajilla (wa-he-ya), while in eastern Texas basswood yields heavily. Buckwheat is important principally in the region about the Great Lakes and south in the higher elevations to Virginia and Tennessee. Goldenrod is one of the most important sources of nectar in New England, while it is seldom of much value west of the Mississippi River, although growing abundantly.

In California and Florida there are several entirely different regions within the State. There is no one plant of major importance over all parts of either State. A large amount of work still remains to be done before the honey resources of America can be mapped out with anything like accuracy. Changing conditions are rapidly removing one plant and substituting another in many sections. When the author visited west Texas he was told by the beekeepers there that the clearing of the land and planting it to cultivated crops was rapidly curtailing the bee range, as no cultivated crops being planted were equal to the desert flora which was being removed.

In other sections, the planting of forage crops which are good sources of nectar, like alfalfa and sweet clover, is greatly increasing the available bee pasturage. In parts of California, the extensive growing of garden seeds is providing pasture sufficient for producing surplus honey of a kind seldom heard of in the markets a few years ago. Parsnip and celery honey are examples.

THE MINOR PLANTS

Although only a few dozen plants are important sources of surplus honey, there are hundreds of minor plants which are of value for the support they give the bees when no major plant is in bloom. The number and variety of these plants will largely determine the value of the locality, and whether it will be necessary for the beekeeper to resort to migratory beekeeping at times.

Catnip is famous as a bee plant, yet it is doubtful whether a single pound of catnip honey was ever stored in America, unmixed with honey from other sources. If catnip could be grown in large fields like clover, it is probable that catnip honey would appear in the markets.

If the beekeeper is familiar with the minor plants, he will often be able to locate outyards where the bees will be able to gather enough nectar from such sources to keep his colonies in the best possible condition for the surplus flows. It is a well-known fact that it is only the big colonies which produce large crops of surplus honey. A little nectar coming to the hive for some time in advance of the main flow, is the best possible stimulant for brood rearing. It often happens that bees will be poorly prepared for the harvest in one yard, while others only two or three miles distant will be in the best possible condition, because of the presence of some minor plants not within reach of the first.

A

ACACIA.

The acacias are shrubs or small trees which are widely distributed throughout the warmer portions of the world. There are said to be 450 species, of which nearly 300 are native to Australia and Polynesia. We also find reference to them in India, Africa and South America. The different species are known by various local names. In Europe some are known as mimosa trees. As sources of honey they are important in Texas, Arizona, New Mexico and California.

The sweet acacia (=Acacia farnesiana=), in Texas called huisache, is found along the gulf coast in Alabama and as far east as South Carolina. In Texas the huajilla (=Acacia berlandiera=), is an important source of nectar. In fact, according to the Texas bulletin on honey plants, it is the main source in southwest Texas. It grows abundantly on dry and rocky hills which often are not suited to growing agricultural crops. The honey is white and of fine quality.

The catsclaw, or paradise flower (=Acacia greggii=), is another very important source of honey in the southwest. It is one of the principal sources of dependence in Texas, where it is reported as yielding in April. Arizona reports a later yield, blooming here in May and June. Like the huajilla, the honey is light colored and of very fine quality.

Figure 4 shows the black wattle of California (=A. decurrens mollis=), which is largely grown as an ornamental in the gardens and along the roadsides of that State. It blooms from February to June and produces some honey and an abundance of pollen. Fig. 3 is the Sydney golden wattle (=Acacia longifolia=), another widely-grown California shrub. A third California species, =A. melanoxylon=, is shown at Fig. 2.

The huisache (=A. farnesiana=), Fig. 1, already mentioned, is a common plant in south Texas, from San Antonio to the lower Rio Grande valley. It is of special importance for early pollen, though Scholl reports it as yielding honey also.

mollis_).]

The huajilla (pronounced “wa-he-ya”) grows abundantly over a wide territory in southwest Texas and, as it requires but a small amount of moisture, makes beekeeping profitable where it would otherwise be a precarious business. Large quantities of white honey of mild flavor and fine quality are stored from this source. In a journey of several hundred miles among the beekeepers of Texas, the author found this plant, together with catsclaw and mesquite, to be the principal source of surplus south and west of San Antonio. Various sources were reported, but in nearly every case these three plants were mentioned as heading the list. Huajilla ranks high in both quantity and quality of nectar produced.

The catsclaw (=Acacia greggii=), known in some localities as paradise flower or devil’s claw, is a low spreading, bushy shrub or small tree with curved thorns, hence the name, “catsclaw.” This is a close rival of huajilla for first place as the source of white honey in much of southwest Texas. The far-famed Uvalde honey is largely huajilla and catsclaw. In many places the yield of surplus honey is being reduced through the clearing of the land for farming purposes. Both these plants grow in very dry sections, on land which until recently was thought to be of little value for any purpose without irrigation.

Scholl lists the round-flowered catsclaw (=Acacia roemeriana Schlect=) as a heavy yielder of honey of good quality, but plants are not abundant. He also lists =Acacia amentacea= as a source of pollen and some honey, but not in sufficient quantity to be important.

ACER, see Maple.

ADAM’S NEEDLE, see Yucca.

AESCULUS, see Buckeye.

AGARITES, see Barberry.

AGAVE, see Century Plant.

ALABAMA--Honey Sources of.

There is a large district in Alabama where sweet clover is the principal source of surplus honey. In this region good crops are the rule, since it yields from early June till late in August. In addition, rattan, tulip-poplar, black gum, hawthorne, field peas, privet, locust, redbud, cotton, bitterweed, asters and occasionally white clover, yield honey. There is the usual spring stimulation from fruit blossoms and willows in Alabama and a large number of minor sources which add something to the total yield, but which alone are unimportant.

ALASKA--Honey Sources of.

By the accounts given in Bancroft’s History of Alaska and in translations made for me by Rev. George Kotteometinoff from the records of the Orthodox Russo-Greek Church at Sitka, the honeybee was first introduced into Alaska in 1809 by a monk named Cherepenin. These bees came from the Department of Kazan, in Siberia, and were brought that honey might be added to the scanty food supply of the pioneer teachers of the Faith as well as to supply the candles for the church services. By decree of Church, only beeswax candles can be used, and it is recorded that at Sitka, in 1816, no services could be held for six months because the supply of wax ran out. As early as 1819 apiculture was taught in the church school and was continued up to 1894. It would appear that the bees never flourished and seldom swarmed. There are a number of records of new importations to take the place of dead colonies. Very early a white clover was introduced to help out the honey supply. About 1830 bees were taken from Sitka to Fort Ross in California. As late as 1905 there were about 30 colonies at the Russian school at Sitka. These bees were in straw skeps and were kept on shelves under the eaves of the house. In winter they were kept within the same projecting eaves. In 1906 the Experiment Farm at Sitka made an unsuccessful attempt to keep bees in Langstroth hives. It is not probable that beekeeping will ever be a commercial project in Alaska. References to beekeeping at Sitka by Dr. Sheldon Jackson are to be found in the Report on Education in Alaska, Bureau of Education. Prof. C. C. Georgeson, in the reports on work done at the Experiment Station in Alaska also mentions beekeeping. Bees were observed collecting nectar and pollen from plants given below during the years 1905 to 1912. It should be observed that a majority of these plants have pendulous flowers. In a climate such as at Sitka, where the normal precipitation is 120 inches, only pendulous flowers could protect the nectar:

Willow (=Salix speciosa=). Crab Apple (=Pyrus rivularis=). Salmon Berry (=Rubus spectabilis=). Salmon Berry (=Rubus nutkonus noctino=). Cloud Berry (=Rubus Chamaemorus=). Nahgoon Berry (=Rubus stellatin=). Wild Red Raspberry (=Rubus strigosus=). Blue Berries (=Vaccinium uliginosum=). Blue Berries (=Vaccinium ovalifolium=). Blue Berries (=Vaccinium vitis Idaea=). Seaside Portulaca (=Claytonia sp.=). White Clover (=Trifolium sp.=). Wild Tansey (=Achillea borealis=). Yellow Water Lily (=Nymphaca advena=). Water Smart Weed (=Polygonum sp.=). Elder (=Sambucus racemosa=). Cow Parsnip (=Heracleum lanatum=).

--H. B. Parks.

ALBERTA--Honey Sources of.

In the southern part of the province alfalfa is of first importance. Fireweed, white clover and alsike are the chief sources elsewhere. Willows and maples stimulate early brood rearing and some honey is gathered from prairie flowers.--F. W. L. Sladen.

ALDER (Alnus).

The alders are a group of shrubs or trees common from New England and Canada west to Michigan and south to Texas. The bark is sometimes used for tanning and as a dyestuff, and to some extent in medicine. The blossoms appear early in spring, and are the source of an abundant supply of pollen at a season when it is often much needed by the bees.

ALFALFA (Medicago sativa).

Alfalfa is the most important honey plant west of the Missouri river. It is also the most valuable forage plant in the same region. Once established, a field of alfalfa continues to return valuable crops year after year. From two to five cuttings are secured each season, depending upon the available moisture and the length of the growing period. It thrives best in the irrigated regions with its roots in the rich soil supplied with abundant, but not excessive, moisture. It is an old-world plant which has contributed much to the prosperity of western farmers since its introduction to this country.

The honey from alfalfa varies in color and quality in different localities. In Colorado and Idaho it is of very light color and with a spicy, mild flavor of excellent quality. In the Imperial Valley of California it is much darker in color and of poorer quality. Alfalfa honey granulates readily, but is generally regarded as a high quality of honey. The tendency to early granulation makes it more desirable to market in the extracted state than in the sections.

The yield varies greatly, according to season, but the heaviest yields come when there is a vigorous growth of the plant. Where grown without irrigation a much greater variation in yield can be expected. In Nebraska and Kansas, alfalfa often yields good crops of nectar without irrigation, while east of the Missouri River it is seldom of much value to the beekeeper. The author had a small field of alfalfa in western Iowa for several years. Only one season did the bees pay much attention to it. That season was very wet in the early part of the summer, thus promoting a vigorous plant growth. Later the weather turned very hot and dry. Conditions similar to those of the irrigated sections of the west were approximated. The roots of the plants were supplied with an abundance of moisture, while the air was hot and dry. Under such conditions alfalfa is at its best as a honey producer.

Alfalfa is reported as the source of considerable surplus honey in northeastern Louisiana, which is the farthest east of any locality where it is important, with which the author is familiar. While it is largely grown as a field crop in parts of Iowa, Illinois, New York and other eastern States, beekeepers all report but little honey from it. It seldom yields to any extent in humid climates. Given sufficient moisture at the roots, the hotter and dryer the atmosphere, the better seems to be the yield of nectar. The conditions which most favor nectar secretion are also favorable to seed production.

Field Culture

Alfalfa is a long-lived plant and very deep-rooted. The long tap root penetrates deep into the soil, thus securing all available moisture and making the plant drought-resistant when once well established. The plant is very tender when young, and great care is necessary in the preparation of the soil when starting a new planting of this crop. The seed bed should be thoroughly stirred, all lumps fully pulverized, and the surface soil as smooth as an onion bed. It is important that the ground be prepared some time in advance of seeding and frequently stirred to start any weed seeds that may be present, and destroy them before the alfalfa is sowed. On old land it is advisable to prepare the seed bed in the spring and stir it at frequent intervals until August before sowing the alfalfa seed.

Alfalfa does not do well on sour land, or land that is wet or weed-infested. It does best on rich, well drained soil, well supplied with lime. Lime is essential, and if the soil is lacking in lime it must be supplied.

In many localities it is the practice to grow a crop of sweet clover in advance of seeding to alfalfa.

From seven to twenty pounds of seed are required per acre. If good seed is used and put in with a drill, ten to fifteen pounds should be ample.

In cutting alfalfa it is important that some care be used to select the proper time. When the new shoots are well started is usually regarded as the safest time, if the plant is cut for hay. The leaves constitute the greatest portion of the feeding value, and much care is necessary in handling the crop to avoid shattering.

In localities where the plant is grown for seed, a much longer blooming period results and the beekeeper profits accordingly. Where cut for hay, alfalfa loses much of its possible value through the cutting just when it is reaching its period of greatest nectar secretion.

Harry K. Hill, of Willows, California, states that he gets three distinct shades of pure alfalfa honey in the same year. The honey from first extracting is much darker than later extractings.--Western Honeybee, April, 1913.

ALFILARIA, see Pin Clover.

ALGAROBA, see Mesquite.

ALLIGATOR PEAR, see Red Bay.

ALLIUM, see Onion.

ALMOND (Prunus amygdalus).

The cultivated almond is closely related to the peach and is native to Southern Europe, where it has been grown for centuries for its nuts.

The tree is extremely early in its blooming period and more tender than the peach. It is grown in large orchards in parts of California, and to some extent in Arizona. It grows on higher and dryer lands than any other fruit trees in California. The tree will not thrive on wet lands.

Bees gather both honey and pollen from the flowers and in the almond belt of California it is of great value for early brood-rearing. There it blooms in February, and beekeepers sometimes move their bees from a distance to the almond orchards to build them up for the orange flow.

ALSIKE CLOVER (Trifolium hybridum). Hybrid or Swedish Clover.

Alsike clover is one of the very best honey plants of America. The beekeeper who lives within reach of large fields of this crop is fortunate, for there is no better honey, and under favorable conditions the crops harvested from alsike are such as to give little ground for dissatisfaction. Some beekeepers have estimated that alsike will produce 500 pounds of honey per acre in a good season.--American Bee Journal, page 409, 1886.

Alsike thrives on clay soil, or lands inclined to be wet, where the other clovers do not succeed. It is sown very generally in a meadow mixture with timothy or red-top. In localities where grown for seed there is a long period of bloom, which is greatly to the advantage of the beekeeper. It is good for either pasture or hay, and although by itself alsike does not yield as many tons of hay per acre as red clover, when mixed with red clover the two together make more and better hay than red clover does alone.

Alsike is intermediate in size between white and red clover. The blossom looks like that of white clover, except it has a pinkish tinge of color not found in the white clover. The stem is upright and branched and on land with sufficient moisture reaches a height of two feet or more.

While alsike will grow nearly everywhere that red clover will grow, it thrives best in the northern part of the country. Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Ontario and New York all report alsike as especially valuable to the beekeeper.

The honey is white in color, mild in flavor and is regarded as one of the best for table use. At times the yield is very heavy. In American Bee Journal, Nov. 2, 1899, are given several instances of large yields from this source. In one case a single colony of bees gathered 72 pounds in four days, or 18 pounds per day. Another report was of 251 pounds in 21 days, or 25 pounds per day, from alsike.

In number two of the first volume of the “Review,” Editor Hutchinson states that ten colonies of bees gathered 300 pounds of extracted honey from alsike, with only two acres within reach. This, of course, takes no account of the honey consumed by the bees, but indicates that the yield is good for the acreage within reach. In the following number of the same journal an Ontario beekeeper reports that he had not known a failure from alsike in eight years.

See also Clover.

ALTHEA, see Hollyhock.

ANDROMEDA.

“Andromeda (a scraggy shrub of the heath family) blooms in the central northwestern part of Florida for about four weeks in March and early April; yielding but little, three years out of four. The honey, too, is reddish yellow, thick and pungent, not very valuable as a surplus honey plant.”--E. G. Baldwin, Gleanings, March 15, 1911.

AMERICAN ALOE, see Century Plant.

AMERICAN CRAB APPLE, see Crab Apple.

AMERICAN IVY, see Virginia Creeper.

ANAQUA, see Knockaway.

ANGLEPOD, see Bluevine.

APPLE (Malus).

America’s best and most widely used fruit is the apple. It is a native of Asia, but as a cultivated fruit is grown in most of the temperate regions of the world. Hundreds of varieties have been developed by plant breeders until there are few horticulturists who are familiar with them all. They range in size from the small cultivated crab-apples not more than an inch in diameter to the big Wolf River, often five or more inches in diameter. Some varieties are hard and sour and suitable for little else than making cider, while others are of the finest quality.

There is no more beautiful sight than an orchard in bloom in spring. The blossoms secrete nectar freely and in favorable weather the bees fairly swarm over them. The honey is light amber in color and of good quality. The trees bloom so early that it is of greatest value to stimulate spring brood-rearing, though strong colonies easily store surplus when the weather is suitable for the bees to fly freely during the period of bloom. Large orchardists often offer inducements to beekeepers to locate near their orchards for the better pollination of the fruit blossoms which results from the presence of large numbers of bees. In orchard districts there is frequently complaint on the part of the beekeepers that the bees are killed by the application of poisonous spray while the trees are in bloom. When American beekeepers learn to winter their colonies in such a manner as to maintain a reasonable strength in early spring, surplus honey in quantity may be expected from the orchard districts in favorable seasons. The weather is often too wet or too cold for the bees to fly during apple blossom, and this condition the apiarist can never overcome.

APOCYNUM, see Dogbane.

APRICOT (Prunus armeniaca).

The apricot is a well known cultivated fruit, somewhat intermediate between the plum and peach. It blooms very early in spring and is valuable as a source of early nectar and pollen. It is grown in large acreage in some portions of California, where it is regarded as valuable, by the beekeepers.

ARBUTUS (Epigaea repens). Trailing Arbutus or Ground Laurel.

A trailing plant with evergreen leaves. The rose colored flowers, in small clusters, appear in early spring. They are fragrant and attractive to the bees. There is an occasional report to the effect that arbutus is valuable to the bees as a source of early nectar.

ARCTOSTAPHYLOS, see Manzanita.

ARIZONA BUCKTHORN, see Gum Elastic.

ARIZONA--Honey Sources of.

The sources of our honey are the desert flora and cultivated crops, chiefly alfalfa. A few of the principal producing plants and their seasons are as follows:

Time of Blooming. Mesquite (=Prosopia velutina=) April-July Screw Bean (=Prosopis pubescens=) April-July Catsclaw (=Acacia greggii=) May-June Acacia (=Acacia constricta=) June Paloverde (=Parkinsonia torreyana=) May Desert flora (=Miscellaneous=) Depending upon rainfall Alfalfa (=Medicago sativa=) April-September

The wild honey plants, because of grazing animals and of wood-cutters, have greatly decreased within recent years. The area in alfalfa, on the other hand, is constantly increasing; but without a corresponding increase in honey-producing power. This is due to two principal causes: Farmers are now cutting alfalfa for hay at a much earlier stage in its growth than formerly, not allowing the plant to come into full bloom; and the alfalfa butterfly (=Colias eurytheme=), has so increased in numbers since 1895, that the honeyflow, which used to continue well into September, is now cut short in July. It is difficult to state the net effect of these changes upon the producing power of the country as a whole; but in Salt River Valley, under present conditions, judging from the shipments made during the last few years, our present irrigated areas, with adjoining desert tracts, are pretty fully stocked with bees. Other parts of the territory are as yet less thoroughly occupied.--R. H. Forbes, University of Arizona. “Timely Hints for Farmers,” No. 46.

ARKANSAS--Honey Sources of.

White clover is the source of some surplus in Arkansas, although it is too far south for such heavy yields as occur in the northern part of the range of this plant. Sweet clover is valuable in some localities. Tupelo, holly, blackgum, redbud, locust, tulip-poplar, blackberry, heartsease and asters are the important sources of nectar. Cotton yields in some sections of the State. Fruit bloom is valuable in spring, and where colonies are sufficiently strong some surplus may be expected.

ARTICHOKE, see Sunflower.

ASCLEPIAS, see Milkweed.

ASPARAGUS.

The garden asparagus is an introduced plant widely cultivated. It is very attractive to the bees and yields pollen plentifully. As a source of nectar it is unimportant.

ASH (Fraxinus).

There are more than twenty species of ash trees common to various sections of America. Some are well known timber trees, furnishing lumber for furniture and for interior finishing. The flowers are small, inconspicuous and of a greenish color. Their principal value to the beekeeper is as a source of pollen, although Richter lists the Oregon ash (=Fraxinus oregona=) as a source of honey also.

ASH LEAVED MAPLE, see Box Elder.

=ASPEN (Populus).= Poplar or Cottonwood.

There are several species of poplars. It is a widely distributed group, some species being found in most all sections of the country. They are important for pollen, though some honeydew is reported from them also. They thrive especially well on the low lands along streams and are the most common trees of the plains region from Dakota south to Oklahoma and western Texas. This group should not be confused with the tulip-poplar, which see.

ASTER.

The aster family is very widely distributed, being common in Europe, Asia and South Africa, as well as America. There are more than 200 recognized species, of which at least 125 are found in the United States. They are extremely common in the Eastern and Southern States, although some kinds are to be found in every State in the Union, and from Canada to Mexico. Every American beekeeper may be sure that his bees are within reach of at least one species of aster, and, in most localities, there are several species. Some species produce nectar much more abundantly than others, and it is probable that the flow from all kinds is more or less affected by soil or climatic conditions. So few beekeepers differentiate between the species that it is very difficult to secure satisfactory information regarding their comparative value.

Asters are very seldom mentioned as sources of nectar in the southwest. Yet twenty-one species are listed as occurring in New Mexico. They seem to be of importance principally in the Eastern States. There are numerous reports of honey from asters in the Southeastern States of Georgia, Alabama and Mississippi, the amount of surplus increasing northward.

In most localities, the aster honey is mixed with that from goldenrod, and the two sources are usually spoken of together. In the September, 1917, issue of the American Bee Journal, appeared an extended article on goldenrods. Like the asters, they are of wide distribution, and, like them, they seem to produce nectar more abundantly in the moist climate of the Eastern States. Both bloom late in autumn, the crop often being cut short by frost.

According to Lovell, the asters are never common enough to yield a surplus in Maine, and the honey is always mixed with goldenrod.

As to the quality of the honey, there are many conflicting reports. Many reports are to the effect that the quality is poor and not suitable for table use. The fact that the honey is seldom unmixed with that of other fall flowers, may be responsible for this impression. C. P. Dadant had one year, in Illinois, a crop of about six barrels which was almost pure aster honey. This honey was secured late in the season, after other plants had ceased to yield, and was almost white, and of very fine quality.

There are numerous reports that a strong odor is apparent in the apiary when asters are yielding. We quote some of these:

“We had a fall flow from wild asters that filled the hives with honey for wintering, and gave a few gallons of extracted honey. The honey is of good color and weight, but rather strong for table use. It also granulates very quickly. When the bees are gathering this honey the hives give off a rank and somewhat sickening odor, which can be detected for quite a distance away. * * * This odor disappears as the honey ripens and the flow ceases, but the strong taste never entirely disappears. It is as strong as basswood and not nearly so pleasant.”--D. E. Andrews, Bloomington, Ind., page 98, American Bee Journal, 1907.

“The odor is not unpleasant, but is very noticeable when the bees are bringing much of it in, and it can be distinguished a considerable distance from the hives. The amount of ‘smell’ is such a good criterion as to the amount of honey that one can tell the quantity he is getting from these indications alone.”--W. H. Reed, Herrodsburg, Ky., page 228, Gleanings, 1911.

“In the Shenandoah Valley, in Virginia, where I lived for fourteen years, there were many acres of white aster. There were several years when the bloom was in sheets, affording a good yield of surplus. The honey was very light amber, of fine quality, and was considered next to white clover. At such times a strong odor, which was distinctly sour, could be noticed.”--Burdet Hassett. Page 257, Gleanings, 1911.

Much has been written concerning the danger of aster honey for winter stores. So many reports of disastrous results from wintering on aster honey have been published, that it is generally understood not to be safe for winter stores. However, it is probable that the trouble comes from honey gathered too late to be properly ripened, rather than because the honey is of poor quality. The fact that the honey granulates readily also probably accounts for the trouble in some cases.

In some localities, asters seem to be a dependable source of surplus, while in others they yield in appreciable quantity only in rare seasons. Kentucky seems to be in the heart of the territory where asters are important. The following are typical reports:

“We have never failed to get a good crop of surplus honey, and plenty left for the bees, from aster for more than twenty years, till this year.”--H. C. Clemons, Boyd, Ky. Page 90, Gleanings, 1909.

“In this section the asters are invaluable as fall forage for bees. Let the season be cold or hot, we are certain to have a continuous bloom from early in September until a really hard frost occurs. My Italian bees have never failed to secure enough honey from aster to carry them through the winter, even when there was hardly a pound of honey in the hives at the end of August--Daniel M. Worthington, Elkridge, Md., American Bee Journal, page 125, 1869.

“Blue aster (=Aster azureus=), known among farmers as blue devil, or stickweed, in my judgment, is one of the best we have, from the fact that it produces honey in the fall of the year. It is usually in full bloom until about the middle of October, and if the weather is warm enough for the bees to fly, they get plenty of honey to winter on from this flower.”--West Virginia. Page 869, American Bee Journal, 1906.

It is probable that most of the species are of more or less value for honey under favorable conditions. The writer has seen bees working on arrow-leaf (=Aster sagittifolius=) on sunny days in Cass County, Iowa, the first week in November, after everything else had been killed by frost. Figure 13 shows this species, which occurs in dry, open woods, from New Brunswick to Ontario, and west to Dakota, and from New York to the Ohio valley, and along the mountains to Georgia and Alabama.

Generally speaking, the small-flowered species with willow-shaped leaves, are best for honey. =Aster tradescanti= is probably first in the list as a source of surplus. It is found from Ontario to Saskatchewan, and throughout the States east of the Mississippi, south to the Gulf States. =Aster salicifolius= is probably one of the best in Iowa and Illinois, being common on low ground.

In a private letter, F. W. L. Sladen writes concerning the asters in Canada, as follows:

“I have this year had confirmation that =Aster cordifolius= is a useful source of surplus honey in favorable seasons in the Gatineau valley in September. During a period of very fine weather between September 11 and 22, a crop of 12,000 pounds of honey, principally from this source, and from the late flowering species of goldenrod, was obtained by Joseph Martineau, at Montcerf, Quebec, from 300 colonies. The honey was light amber color, and a pleasant flavor, and not unwholesome for wintering, not granulating in the combs. (See Experimental Farms report 1914-15, page 996). Other valuable species of aster in Canada for honey production are =A. lateriflorus= (Maritime provinces to Ontario); =Aster umbellatus= (Maritime provinces to Eastern Manitoba), and =Aster puniceus=, Fig. 11 (Maritime provinces to Ontario).”--Ottawa, October 2, 1917.

=Aster puniceus=, the purple-stemmed aster, Fig. 11, is found from Nova Scotia to the Rocky Mountains and south to Northern Alabama. It is one of the most attractive of the asters, growing on wet land and in the borders of swamps. Lovell writes that in Maine he has seen the bees on this species in large numbers on September 17.

The white field aster, or frost flower (=Aster vimineus=), Fig. 10, is common from Eastern Canada to Minnesota, and south to Arkansas and Florida. It grows in dry, open fields, along roadsides, and in waste places. It is a late bloomer, belonging to the group of field asters which are important for nectar. Some other species, however, yield more freely.

The swamp aster (=Aster acuminatus=) occurs on wet land, but as far as available information goes is not valuable for honey.

The large-leaved =Aster macrophyllus=, Fig. 12, is a northern species, found in open woodlands. Graenicher observed ninety-five species of insects on the flowers of this species in Wisconsin, which indicates nectar in abundance in that State.

Several other species are known to produce nectar freely, =A. multiflorus=, =A. lateriflorus=, =A. dumosus=, =A. paniculatus= and =A. vimineus= being reported from various localities. =A. ericoides= is reported as valuable in Missouri.

“There is an abundance of =Aster ericoides= now in full bloom. The bees are working on it more vigorously than they have on white clover or any other bloom.”--George E. Wilkins, Wright County, Mo. Page 699, American Bee Journal, 1904.

So far, we have been unable to find any records of surplus honey from asters west of the Missouri River.

ASTRAGALUS, see Loco Weed.

AZALEA (Rhododendron).

The azaleas are closely related to the mountain laurel and are likewise sometimes reported as poisonous. (See Laurel; also Poisonous Honey). The flame-colored azalea is common in the mountains of the Eastern States from Pennsylvania to Georgia. It has a profusion of showy, flame-colored blossoms coming just when the leaves appear. Probably several of the group yield nectar in quantity to be important wherever they are sufficiently plentiful.

B

BALLOON VINE (Cardiospermum halicacabum).

The balloon vine is a herbaceous climber with alternate leaves and clusters of small white flowers, followed by a three-celled inflated pod. This species is common along streams in south Texas. =C. molle=, a Mexican species, is also found to some extent in the mountains west of the Pecos River, according to Coulter.

Balloon vine is reported as the source of considerable honey in Texas. Scholl lists it is a fair yielder, but plants not abundant. Other reports indicate that it is the source of considerable surplus along the Gulf Coast of that State.

BALSAM APPLE, see Wild Cucumber.

BANANA (Musa sapientum).

Since the banana plant is little grown in the United States, it is seldom mentioned as a honey plant, yet it secretes nectar very abundantly, and in countries where bananas are grown on a large scale it must be important to the beekeeper. We are showing herewith two illustrations, one of the plant in fruit and one showing the opening of the bloom.

The following description of the possibilities of this plant is reprinted from page 83 of the American Bee Journal for 1880, and was written by a correspondent in Clifton Springs, Florida:

“Recently noticing bees working upon blossoms, I concluded to examine them. To my surprise, I found that each blossom had a sack on its under side, which contained several drops of nectar of the consistency and sweetness of thin syrup. This sack gradually opens, allowing the contents to escape, unless appropriated by some insect. The blossom hangs in a position that rain cannot enter to dilute or wash out the nectar. Procuring a teaspoon, I emptied into it the contents of a dozen blossoms, which filled it full. Each stalk, on good land, will produce a head having a hundred hands or divisions of blossoms, and each hand averages six blossoms, giving 600 blossoms to the stalk. Estimating 100 teaspoonfuls to the pint (88 of the one used filled a pint measure) we have 50 spoonfuls, or half a pint to the stalk. Planted in checks 8×8 feet, there will be 680 plants to the acre, yielding, according to the above estimate, 421⁄2 gallons of nectar. But usually more than one stalk in a hill blossoms and matures fruit annually. The blossoms used were below those that produce fruit, which later, I am told, are much richer in honey.

“The first blossoms which open mature fruit. These vary in number from 25 to 100, according to quality of land, cultivation, etc. They sell here at from 11⁄2 to 2 cents per finger or pod. Estimating fruit at 25 fingers per bunch and the bunches at 25 cents each--which, you see, is a low estimate for both, the result will be a barrel of nectar, or $170 worth of fruit per acre. How does this showing compare with other cultivated plants as combined honey and money crop?”

BARBERRY (Berberis).

The common barberry, introduced from Europe, has become naturalized in the Northern States and occurs in thickets and woodlands from the Atlantic Coast to Iowa and southward. It blooms in May and June and is well known as an attractive plant to the bees, though seldom sufficiently abundant to be important. It is much cultivated for ornament.

In Texas, the triple-leaved barberry (=Berberis trifoliata=) is known as agarites, the Mexican name, and as wild currant. It is common over a large part of the southern portion of the State and is an important source of early nectar. It is a shrub 4 to 6 feet high, with stiff leaves and bright yellow flowers that grow in dense clusters along the stem. The red berries ripen in May and are often called currants. They are used for jelly or sauce, as well as for barberry wine. The plants are to be found in thickets, in open woodlands and along roadsides, in fence corners and other waste places where the seeds have been scattered by birds.

“As a honey plant it is one of much value to me. It blooms here early in February, and the bloom continues for several weeks, some bushes blooming later than others. The pollen yield is abundant, bright yellow in color. It is the second bloomer of the year on my list of Texas honey plants, coming after mistletoe and before our main fruit bloom.”--Louis Scholl, Gleanings, Feb., 1907.

Richter reports the California barberry (=Berberis pinnata=) yields surplus in Monterey County after manzanita has bloomed. The honey is amber in color. The plant is rather common from Berkely Hills south to Monterey, blooming in March and April, according to Jepson. (See also Oregon grape).

BARNABY’S THISTLE, see Star Thistle.

BASIL or MOUNTAIN MINT (Pycananthemum virginianum).

Basil is common from New England to the Missouri River and southward. There are numerous reports from beekeepers to the effect that bees work upon it very eagerly from morning till night. It is probably nowhere of much importance, though it would be if sufficiently common.

BASSWOOD (Tilia americana).

The basswood, also known as linden, whitewood, and sometimes as limetree, is one of the best known sources of honey in the Eastern States. There are other species closely related which also produce nectar, and which, perhaps, would not be distinguished by the casual observer. The natural range of the basswood is from Canada to Florida and west to Nebraska and Texas. It is also grown as a shade tree in other Western States and is mentioned by Richter in the bulletin on “Honey Plants of California,” as an introduced species of value. Fig. 18 shows the trees in bloom, and Fig. 19 a close view of the blossom and leaf.

The tree thrives on rich lands, and in the cooler regions of the country reaches a large size. The wood is soft and white and much in demand for making sections, separators and other bee supplies requiring a soft wood cut in thin sheets. For such purposes basswood has no superior. The wood is also sought for use in the manufacture of furniture, packing boxes, etc.; as well as for paper making.

The blooming period is short, seldom yielding to exceed ten days or two weeks, and often for a much shorter period. The honeyflows from basswood are irregular and only to be depended upon about two or three years out of every five. A heavy flow from this source occurs only occasionally, but when it does come it is worth waiting for, for enormous yields are sometimes secured. The honey is white in color, with rather a strong flavor, but is usually regarded as high quality. Good basswood locations are no longer plentiful, as the cutting of the forests over the entire country has resulted in a large reduction of this along with other trees.

The European linden (=Tilia europaea=) has been planted in many places and, according to Sladen, is the source of surplus honey at Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island.

BASTARD-PENNYROYAL, see Blue Curls.

BATCHELOR’S BUTTON, see Centaurea.

BAY, see Magnolia.

BEAN (Phaseolus).

There are two varieties of the garden bean which are the source of nectar in quantity. Surplus honey from beans is seldom reported except in Southern California. Ventura County is said to produce as high as 72 per cent of the lima beans raised in the entire United States; 800,000 sacks is the reported output for 1910. The honey from lima beans is almost water white in color and of fine flavor, according to M. H. Mendleson, of Ventura, California, who has produced many tons of this honey. The black-eyed beans yield a dark amber honey, but of good quality. A peculiarity of honey from lima beans is that it will sometimes sweat and ferment when left too long on the hives of weak colonies, near the coast. This, according to Mendleson, seldom happens with strong colonies, nor does it happen in any case in the interior. Honey from beans granulates very readily.

The honeyflow from beans is regarded as very dependable. Occasionally the blossoms are blasted by hot east winds, but not frequently. In Ventura County the average from this source is reported as 50 pounds per colony per year, with as high as 140 pounds in an exceptional season. The beans bloom through a long season, beginning in July and continuing till September, with the principal crop of nectar harvested in July. The bloom is prolonged by irrigation.

The principal counties of California where beans are important are: Ventura, Orange, Santa Barbara, Los Angeles and San Diego.

BEARBERRY, see Manzanita.

BEAVER TREE, see Magnolia.

BEE BALM (Melissa officinalis).

A sweet perennial herb, cultivated in gardens, from Southern Europe and North Africa. Sometimes escaped; flowers yellow or whitish, several in each auxiliary cluster. Plant erect and branching, with broad opposite leaves. Attractive to the bees, but not sufficiently abundant to be important.

BEECH (Fagus grandifolia).

The beech is a large tree common to Eastern America. It is known from Nova Scotia to Ontario and southward, sometimes in extensive forests. Its principal value to the beekeeper is as a source of pollen, though honeydew is sometimes secured from the leaves.

BEEWEED, see Rocky Mountain Bee Plant.

BEGGAR TICK, see Spanish Needle.

BINDWEED (Polygonum convolvulus).

The black bindweed is a common weed throughout the Eastern States. It is of European origin, introduced into this country. It belongs to a family of plants which produce honey in quantity, but, is itself, of little value. The first indication that reached the author that this plant was sometimes of value to the bees, was the receipt of a specimen, by mail, with the information that the bees were working upon it. Careful watch was then kept for several years, before they were seen to seek it in his locality. Since that time there have been a few occasions when the bees have sought it freely and when it seemed to yield some nectar. It is doubtful whether it is ever of much importance as a source of honey.

The seed has been widely distributed with grain seeds and is very troublesome in fields of small grain. The vine closely resembles the wild morning glory, to the casual observer, but the blossom is small and inconspicuous, followed with a seed somewhat like buckwheat, hence it is often called wild buckwheat.

BIRCH (Betula).

There are several species of birch trees and shrubs common to Eastern America. They are partial to low, rich woodlands, and some occur in the far north. In some localities they are valuable for pollen.

BITTERSWEET (Celastrus scandens). Waxwork, or Climbing Bittersweet.

A well-known climbing shrub common in woodlands. The orange-colored pods displaying the scarlet covered seeds are often gathered for winter bouquets. The flowers are small and greenish in raceme-like clusters at the termination of the branches.

“The bees work freely on bittersweet.”--Miss Mitchell, Keokuk, Iowa.

BITTERWEED (Helenium tenuifolium).

The author’s first experience with bitterweed honey was in south Missouri in 1904 or 1905. There had been a good flow from white clover, followed by a dearth for a time, and the unfinished sections were filled out with bitterweed honey. The sections looked very nice and a northern beekeeper who had recently settled near the town of Salem, innocently sold his honey to the townspeople. The next time he came to town there were numerous persons looking for him, and he found it necessary to take back most of the honey he had marketed on his previous visit. The honey from this source is so bitter that a very little of it will spoil a fine crop of the best white honey. A few cells are sufficient to make a whole section absolutely unpalatable.

On a visit to Tennessee the author was very much interested in this plant, which grows freely along roadsides, in barnyards and similar places, much as dogfennel or mayweed does in the Northern States. The range of the plant is given as from Arkansas and Texas to North Carolina. It probably does not appear to any extent north of Tennessee.

Chas. Mohr says of it (Plant Life of Alabama, page 54):

“The bitterweed, originally from the sunny plains west of the Mississippi River south of the Arkansas Valley, was first observed in Mobile in 1866. It has spread along the embankments of the railroads to the mouth of the Ohio River, literally covering in many places the waste and uncultivated grounds, and reaching out along byroads and borders of fields and woodlands. It its northward spread it has largely taken the place of the mayweed (=Anthemis cotula=), a European weed of early introduction.”

Regarding honey from this source J. J. Wilder says (American Bee Journal, Vol. 54, page 410):

“It is truly a nectar-laden plant. Though it does not grow in great fields as yet, bees will store from 30 to 35 pounds of surplus from it. Its flowers are of a deep yellow; the honey, light yellow, heavy body, soon granulates when extracted. It is bitter; in fact it is about as offensive to the palate as quinine. In most sections of the South the cotton plant begins yielding two or three weeks before the bitterweed, and if it were not for the well-established fact that bees do not desert a honey plant for another as long as it yields well, nearly all the summer and fall honey would be unfit for market on account of the bitterweed. In sections where the cotton does not yield much, the honey is all bitter, and a small amount of it will ruin a tank of good honey. Bitterweed is also a great pollen plant, furnishing abundance of bright yellow pollen throughout its blooming period. Even the stems and foliage of this plant are intensely bitter, and no animals eat it.”

Pammel cites a quotation which states that it has been reported as fatal to horses and mules in several of the Gulf States. It is said to contain a narcotic poison and to be the cause of bitter milk.

A relative of this plant, the northern sneezeweed (=Helenium automnale=) is also a good honey plant, and probably less bitter than the southern or narrow-leaved sneezeweed just described. Neither, however, can be said to be a desirable addition to the honey-producing flora, because of spoiling good honey from mixing with it. The northern sneezeweed is found in various localities from Connecticut to the Dakotas and southward. It is also found in places in the Rocky Mountain States.

The bitter honey seems to be as good as any for brood-rearing and, where present, the beekeeper should use care to avoid mixing it with his marketable produce, and use it for feeding the bees. The bitterness is said to come from the pollen grains present in the honey, which improves greatly with age, as the pollen grains settle to the bottom of the container.

BLACKBERRY (Rubus).

The blackberries, dewberries and raspberries are closely related plants, all of which are good honey sources. The blackberry is especially well known in the Southeastern States, where it thrives in fence corners and moist woodland borders. In north Georgia it is one of the principal sources of surplus honey. Farther north the nectar yield is apparently not as good, and in some localities the bees apparently do not get much honey from this source. Lovell states that in New England there is very little nectar available from either wild or cultivated blackberries. Richter states that the Himalaya variety of blackberry yields some honey in Yuba County, California. John W. Cash reports an average of 25 pounds per colony of surplus at Bogart, Georgia. The honey is amber, very thick, and does not granulate.

There are parts of California where the dewberry is reported to be very important and to yield surplus. The honey is of good flavor and a light amber color.

The raspberry is the most important of the group. (See Raspberry).

BLACK BINDWEED, see Bindweed.

BLACK GUM, see Tupelo.

BLACK HAW (Viburnum prunifolium).

The black haw belongs to a group containing several valuable honey plants. It occurs from Connecticut to Michigan and south to Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas. (In the South it is given a varietal name.) It is a shrub or small tree, blooming in the North in May and June and in the South in April and May. Its principal value lies in stimulating early brood-rearing, since in few localities it is of sufficient abundance to be important as a source of surplus.

Scholl lists it as yielding well, early, in Texas.

BLACK LOCUST, see Locust.

BLACK MEDIC (Medicago lupulina).

Black medic is a widely distributed plant in California, but not very common. It blooms from April to June. It is the source of some nectar, but is probably not of much importance, except possibly in a few limited localities.

BLACK MANGROVE (Avicennia nitida).

Black mangrove (=Avicennia nitida=) is also known as blackwood, or blacktree. It is an evergreen tree, growing along the seashores of the coast of Florida. It is said also to occur to some extent along the gulf coast to Texas and throughout the coasts of Tropical America. It varies from a bushy shrub to a tall tree 60 or more feet in height in tropical regions. The wood is coarse-grained, hard and very durable in contact with the soil. The tree is to be found only in the vicinity of salt water.

The honey from the mangrove is light in color, mild in flavor, and is generally regarded as of first quality. According to E. G. Baldwin it was the heaviest yielder of nectar known in the south prior to the big freeze of 1895. In one year he reports Harry Mitchell, of Hawk’s Park, as having secured an average of 380 pounds per colony from mangrove alone. Following the freeze it failed to yield nectar in surplus quantity for about fifteen years, and reports since that time have indicated that it is not up to its former importance.

The blooming period opens about the middle of June and usually includes the entire month of July. The flow usually lasts from six to eight weeks.

BLACK TREE, see Black Mangrove.

BLACKWOOD, see Black Mangrove.

BLOODROOT (Sanguinaria canadensis).

The bloodroot is a common wild flower in the moist woods of all our Northern States. It blooms early in April, and is eagerly sought by the bees for pollen. The plant is shown at Fig. 24.

BLUEBERRY (Vaccinium).

There are at least four species of blueberry which give surplus honey in localities where they are abundant. According to Sladen, the dwarf or early sweet blueberry, (=Vaccinium pennsylvanicum=), and the sour-top or velvet-leaf blueberry (=Vaccinium canadense=), often give surplus in northern Ontario, northern Quebec and eastern Manitoba.

Blueberry honey is frequently reported from New England. W. J. Sheppard reports that =Vaccinium ovalifolium= is of importance in British Columbia.

There are several other species in the Northeastern States that probably yield some nectar. Sladen reports blueberry as important in Nova Scotia.

According to Lovell =Vaccinium corymbosum=, the high bush blueberry, is important in southeastern Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut, in some localities beekeepers being principally dependent upon it. The flow comes late in May or early June and lasts for about ten days. Strong colonies store as high as 50 to 90 pounds of surplus from it. He reports =V. pennsylvanicum=, the low bush blueberry already mentioned, as common throughout northern New England, in pastures and on rocky land. It is important in the blueberry barrens of Maine. The honey is amber and of good flavor.

BLUEBONNET, see Lupine.

BLUEBOTTLE, see Centaurea.

BLUE CURLS (Trichostema lanceolatum).

Blue curls is a plant known by a great variety of names in California. It is known as vinegar weed, camphor weed, turpentine weed, flea weed, bastard-pennyroyal, etc. It abounds over a large portion of California. According to Jepson, the range is throughout the Coast Ranges, Sierra Nevada foothills and southern California. The Western Honeybee lists it as the best fall honey plant in California. Both foliage and flowers have a pungent, penetrating odor. The plant is found mostly in stubble fields, where it appears after grain harvest. From the same source we quote as follows:

“Under favorable atmospheric conditions it yields abundantly of a very white honey, that granulates quickly and with a fine grain. Sometimes it granulates before the bees have time to seal the cells. One peculiarity of this plant is that it continues to yield honey for several hours after falling to the ground. The quality of the honey is good.”--Western Honeybee. October, 1914.

“It is often claimed that rain will end the honeyflow from blue curls. I find by several seasons’ observation that this is an error. If a rain is followed by favorable atmospheric conditions--warmth and humidity--the nectar secretion is increased instead of diminished.”--Western Honeybee, November, 1916.

The flow from blue curls begins in August and continues till frost. Richter reports that very large yields are sometimes secured from this source, tons of honey sometimes being stored in the vicinity of Fresno. A report of an average of 80 pounds per colony from this source reached the author when visiting at Visalia.

BLUE GUM, see Eucalyptus.

BLUE LUPINE, see Lupine.

BLUET, see Centaurea.

BLUE THISTLE (Eryngium articulatum).

The blue thistle is listed by Richter as the source of a dark honey of good flavor in California. He reports it from the Suisun Marshes, along the Consumnes River and the Alvarado Marshes, blooming from August to October.

BLUEVINE (Gonolobus laevis).

This plant is also known as devil’s shoestring, climbing milkweed, sand vine, wild sweet potato vine and anglepod. It is a vine of luxuriant growth, common on low lands from Virginia and Tennessee westward to Missouri and south to Texas. It is common in Southern Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, where it is a persistent and troublesome weed. It is especially troublesome in the corn fields, where it may be found climbing the stalks. A single vine will run for many feet on fence wires or other support. It blooms freely through July and August, and is the source of large quantities of surplus honey of good quality. The honey is light in color, mild in flavor and does not granulate readily. S. H. Burton, of Washington, Indiana, reports a yield of 60 pounds per colony in three weeks and an average of as high as 80 pounds per colony has been reported from Southern Indiana. From Missouri come similar reports, W. L. Wiley, of Brunswick, reporting as much as 100 pounds surplus from strong colonies.

sandvine.]

The plant may be readily recognized by the abundant clusters of small, white flowers, which are followed by seed pods similar to those of the milkweed. When the pods are dry they split open and the seeds are widely scattered by means of their cottony parachutes.

The honey is clear, heavy-bodied and of excellent flavor. The plant grows chiefly in cornfields in river bottom land and is perennial. It blooms before smartweed, but the smartweed honey is usually mixed with it, as it comes in later.

BLUEWEED or VIPER’S BUGLOSS (Echium vulgare).

The blueweed, or viper’s bugloss, is a weed naturalized from Europe. It is common in the meadows and roadsides of the Eastern States. It has showy purple or blue flowers and grows about two feet high. June is the flowering period. Sladen lists it as an important source of nectar in Southern Ontario. Probably not sufficiently abundant to be very important in many places.

This plant was introduced into Australia from Europe by a settler named Patterson, and has become widely spread there, where it is known as “Patterson’s curse.” Rayment states that it yields honey, but hardly sufficient to store much in the supers. (Money in Bees in Australasia).

BONESET (Eupatorium).

There are 475 species of =Eupatorium= known, many of them found in Tropical America. Some are found in Europe, Asia and South America, so that the plants have a wide range. Forty-five or more species are common to North America. Whether nearly all yield nectar, we have no records to prove. Fig. 27 shows =Eupatorium ageratoides=, a species common from New England south to Tennessee and Georgia. According to J. M. Buchanan, it is common over the State of Tennessee, but only yields honey in the northern part. He reports the honey to be a light amber, of strong flavor. The yield comes in August and September. Fig. 28 shows the white snakeroot (=E. urticaefolium=), a species common to the woodlands of the Middle West. Although the bees visit this species freely, from September until killed by frost, usually in October, the honey yield is probably rather small.

The Joe-Pye weed or turnip weed (=E. purpureum=), is frequently reported as yielding honey, and it is one of the most widely distributed species. It is found from New Brunswick to Manitoba and south to Colorado, Texas and Florida.

The boneset of commerce is made from thoroughwort (=E. perfoliatum=), which is one of the best for honey in the Northern States and Canada.

All the bonesets are autumn bloomers, and the honey is usually mixed with that of heartsease, asters, goldenrod, Spanish needles and other plants blooming at the same period. Several years ago Professor Beal made the statement, in the American Bee Journal, that there were twenty species or more valuable to the bees. The wide distribution of the group, together with the regularity of its yield, make it one of special importance to the beekeeper, although the amount of surplus gathered from boneset is not often as large as that of many other well-known plants.

Some species of boneset are to be found in almost any kind of situation. While white snakeroot grows in shady woodlands, other kinds delight in open, sunny situations, along roadsides and in pastures or waste places. Some do best on high lands, while others thrive in low, wet land. In places in the Mississippi River bottoms in Illinois, boneset, together with heartsease and Spanish needle, cover acres of the richest land like a waving grain field.

An Illinois beekeeper reports =Eupatorium serotinum= to be one of the best honey plants he knows.

BOOTJACK, see Spanish Needle.

BORAGE (Borago officinalis).

Borage is a European plant which is cultivated for honey and as an ornamental. Its blue flowers are very attractive to the bees. The following quotations indicate its value to the beekeeper:

“The period of blooming is from June 20 to cold weather. Where there are no plants for bees to work upon, borage does very well; but when white clover and basswood are in bloom, bees will forsake the borage for them. As cold weather begins to come, they swarm to the borage. It is a good honey plant, when there are no plants of greater importance in bloom.”--Fisk Bangs, American Bee Journal, page 84, 1878.

“In Practicher Wegweiser, page 280, Herr Willhelm says that in response to the general cry, ‘Sow borage,’ he has been sowing it for years and now has it in abundance. How the bees do hum upon it! But, alas! now that he has it in such abundance that it shows its character in the surplus honey, he finds it such as no customer wants, and says it is as black as a certain ‘gentleman’ with whom beekeepers do not generally care to have dealings. The task of getting it now rooted out is a difficult one.”--American Bee Journal, page 103, 1908.

BOX ELDER (Negundo aceroides or Acer negundo).

The box elder, or ash-leaved maple, is a near relative of the maples, and is sometimes included with them. Fig. 29 shows the staminate blossoms of box elder. As in the willows, the stamens are borne on one plant and the pistils on another.

The box elder is found from New England and Southern Canada west to Dakota and southward. It is also common in California. Apparently its range does not extend as far southward as other maples. It is very commonly planted for windbreaks and shade in the prairie States of the Central West. Some honey is yielded by the blossoms, and honeydew is often secreted by aphis feeding on the leaves. While not generally regarded as especially valuable, its season is such that its addition to honey-producing flora is important. The blooms come very soon after soft maple, in April.

BOSTON IVY (Ampelopsis veitchii).

The Boston ivy is a well-known climbing vine, clinging to the walls of brick and stone buildings in all our northern cities. The flowers are very attractive to the bees in midsummer and the bees store some honey from this source. The quality is rather inferior.

BRASSICA, see Mustard.

BRAZIL or LOGWOOD (Condalia obovata).

Brazil or logwood is a spiny shrub, or small tree, common to Western Texas. It occurs in the lower Rio Grande and is reported as a source of honey at Brownsville. There it is smaller than farther north and west. In places it forms very dense thickets, called “chaparral.” Beekeepers report it as important in the fall, yielding a dark honey. The honey is said to be of fine flavor, despite its dark color. The flow at Beeville is reported as being very rapid. At Goliad, W. C. Collier reports Brazil as the best all-round honey plant. He states that it blooms sometimes in spring and sometimes in fall. Again, it sometimes blooms several times, and yields at irregular periods. At Crystal City, the honey from Brazil is reported as rank flavored, exactly opposite from reports of quality in eastern parts of its range.

BRITISH COLUMBIA--Honey Plants of.

Indigenous honey-yielding flowers, Kootenays, B. C.: Willows--Glauceus or pussy willow (=Salix discolor=). River bank willow (=Salix longifolia=). Flower in March and April and probably yield more pollen than honey. Dandelion (=Taraxicum officinale=). Flowers in April and May. Bearberry--Kinnikinnik (=Arctostaphylos Uva ursi=). Blueberry (=Vaccinium ovalifolium=). Huckleberry (=Gaylussacia resinosa=). Choke cherry (=Prunus demissa=). Bird or pin cherry (=Prunus pennsylvanica=). Bearberry--Kinnikinnik (=Arctostaphylos Uva ursi=). Wild raspberry (=Rubus=). Flowers in June. Dogbane--Milkweed (=Apocynum androsaemifolium=). Spreading dogbane. Snowberry (=Symphoricarpos racemosus=). Wolfberry (=Symphoricarpos occidentalis=). Canada thistle (=Cirsium arvense=). Flowers in June and July. Willow herb or fireweed (=Epilobium angustifolium=). Goldenrod (=Soladago canadense=). Flowers in July and August.

--W. J. Sheppard. American Bee Journal, Nov., 1917.

BROOMWEED (Gutierrezia texana).

Broomweed is a common fall plant over a large portion of Texas, on the prairies. According to Scholl it yields well in September and October. The honey is dark and strong and valued mostly for winter stores. In the November 1, 1906, issue of American Bee Journal he writes as follows concerning this plant:

“Broomweed is still in bloom, the pastures being one sheet of golden yellow. Cold nights and cool, windy days have interfered with the bees somewhat, but there are yet many warm days when the bees are very busy. Some of my bees have stored a good deal of surplus from this plant, for this time of the year--about 20 pounds per colony. The honey is a golden yellow and has a somewhat strong taste, a little bitter, and hence is not a suitable honey for market.”

BUCKBRUSH, see Indian Currant, also Snowberry and Dogbane.

BUCKEYE (Aesculus).

The buckeye or horse chestnut is widely distributed and well known because of the poisonous properties of the peculiar nut-like fruit, everywhere called buckeye. There are several species, with minor differences. The photograph is of the blossoms of the Ohio buckeye (=Aesculus glabra=). This species occurs from New England west to Iowa, Kansas and Oklahoma and south to Georgia, Alabama and east Texas. There is a species common on the Pacific Coast known as the California buckeye (=Aesculus californica=). This species is reported as yielding considerable honey in some localities in California, and some beekeepers think it is poisonous to the bees.

horse-chestnut.]

The buckeye is widely mentioned as a honey plant, though there are few localities where it is sufficiently abundant to be important as a source of surplus.

BUCKTHORN (Rhamnus).

The common buckthorn (=Rhamnus cathartica=) is a hedge plant introduced from Europe and commonly cultivated. It has become naturalized in some localities.

In California there are three species reported as important sources of honey. The coffee berry (=Rhamnus californica=) is an evergreen shrub 4 to 6 feet high, with olive-like leaves, common to the Coast Ranges and the Sierra Nevada Mountains and southward. Called also pigeon berry.

Richter reports this species as yielding an amber honey of very heavy body in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains and also in San Diego County. Honey of good flavor, slightly cathartic.

The redberry (=Rhamnus crocea=) occurs in the Napa Range and southward near the coast to southern California, according to Jepson. It is tree-like, with a distinct trunk, sometimes several stems clustered, 5 to 12 feet high. Richter reports it of special value for early breeding.

The Cascara Sagrada or Chittam (=Rhamnus purshiana=) occurs in northern California, where it is reported as an important source of amber honey. In the timbered portions of western Oregon, Washington and British Columbia, it is reported as one of the chief sources of honey. The honey is amber, with a delightful aroma. When fully ripened it is too thick to extract readily, and there is much breakage of combs. The flow begins in May and the honey is usually mixed with that from other plants. The blooming period lasts about a month.

“We get more honey from cascara than from any other one plant in this vicinity. It is so dark as a comb honey that it is a poor seller to those who go on looks alone. We prefer it on our table to any other honey. I have customers who will take no other. It is not purgative, but one of the best remedies for chronic constipation known. I have never known any of the pure article to granulate under any conditions.”--A. D. Herold, Gleanings, Jan. 1, 1910.

BUCKWHEAT (Fagopyrum esculentum).

Buckwheat is a native to Asia, which was early introduced into America from Europe by the colonists. It has become an important field crop, and buckwheat flour is a staple in American markets. It is often sowed as a catch crop on lands that have not been ready for early sown crops, or where the first sowed crop failed to secure a stand. It requires a short season in which to reach maturity and is usually sown in June or July. It needs a cool, moist climate for best results and often fails to yield a satisfactory crop of grain or to secrete nectar in the hot and dry atmosphere of Iowa and Nebraska.

It is well suited to sandy or other light soils and is grown extensively in the sandy lands of northern Michigan.

Buckwheat is an important source of surplus honey in the region of the Great Lakes. Ontario, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Michigan are the States from which come the great crops of buckwheat honey. Although the crop is often grown further west, the amount of honey secured is very disappointing in most cases. The author corresponded with a number of prominent Iowa beekeepers, and found only one who had secured surplus honey from buckwheat to any extent, and his was mixed with other sources to such an extent as to have a very different color and flavor from that which is secured unmixed.

It was given a trial at the Texas Agricultural College for a period of three years. It failed to meet expectations as a honey plant on account of the hot and dry weather which prevails there during most summers. It was reported as blooming profusely, but not yielding nectar.

In New York it is regarded as one of the best honey plants. The late E. W. Alexander, writing in Gleanings, stated that he had kept 200 colonies in a location with scarcely 100 acres of buckwheat within four miles, yet had harvested 15 to 20 pounds of section honey from buckwheat per colony. He stated that it yielded best with cool nights followed by a clear sky and a hot sun, with little or no wind. Under such conditions it secreted nectar freely from about 9 a. m. to 2 p. m. No bees would be seen on it earlier or later in the day. On one occasion, when there were 1,500 acres of buckwheat within reach of his bees, they were gathering fast at the beginning of the August harvest. A thunder storm caused the temperature to drop 21 degrees in less than half an hour. The weather remained cloudy and windy, with a temperature of about 65 degrees, for eleven days. During that time the bees gathered no honey, and destroyed much of their brood.--Gleanings, March 15, 1907.

The Ontario Association’s Crop Report Committee reported an average per colony production of 23 pounds from the more than ten thousand colonies belonging to its members for two years in succession. A writer in the American Bee Journal asserts that in a favorable season an acre of buckwheat will yield 25 pounds of honey daily, and that a strong colony within half a mile of a field, will store six to eight pounds per day. Alexander kept as high as 700 colonies in one yard, at his home near Delanson, New York, and secured satisfactory crops, though, of course, there was a large acreage within reach.

Quality of the Honey

Honey from buckwheat is very dark and has a strong flavor. People who are accustomed to light and mild honey of the clover type seldom like it. On the other hand, residents of the west, who were raised in the buckwheat country of eastern New York, regard the clover honey as insipid and not to be compared to the dark honey with which they were familiar in childhood. Buckwheat honey has a peculiar flavor, slightly nauseating to one unaccustomed to it.

During a heavy flow from this source there is a strong odor present in the apiary which can be detected for some distance. J. L. Byer, in the American Bee Journal, tells of a case where a farmer and his wife spent some time looking for dead chickens in the vicinity of the hives, mistaking the odor of the new nectar, which the bees were bringing in, for that of a dead fowl. (Page 306, October, 1908.)

Buckwheat varies somewhat in density, according to weather conditions at the time it is gathered. When fully ripened on the hives it is sometimes so thick as to be hard to extract. Some beekeepers report honey from this source which weighs as much as fourteen pounds to the gallon. On the other hand, there are numerous reports of very thin honey, probably because of being extracted before fully ripened.

Buckwheat honey is used largely in France to make a gingerbread “pain d’épices,” in which the peculiar odor and flavor of the buckwheat is very noticeable and is much liked by those who are accustomed to it.

BUCKWHEAT TREE, see Ti-Ti.

BUFFALO BEAN, see Loco Weed.

BULL BAY, see Magnolia.

BUM-WOOD, see Poisonwood.

BURDOCK (Arctium lappa).

The burdock is a coarse, disagreeable weed, introduced from Europe and Asia. It is now common over the United States. The burrs fasten themselves to the clothing or to passing animals, and in this manner the seeds are spread. It is a biennial, common in barn lots and waste places.

The burdock is one of the many plants on which the bees work to some extent that never count for very much in the total production of the hive. The sources of surplus are comparatively few in number, but there are hundreds of plants from which the bees get a taste of honey or pollen. The presence or absence of these minor plants makes a great difference in the value of a locality for honey production. If there are enough of them to keep the bees busy, and sustain the colony between flows when the good yield comes, the bees are in the best possible condition to take advantage of the opportunity.

=BUR CLOVER (Medicago denticulata).= Wild.

Bur clover is a relative of alfalfa which is very common over much of California. The burs are produced abundantly and the plant is prized as a stock forage. The plant, although spreading like a weed, is valuable both to live stock and for bees. The principal blooming period is from March till June, though it blooms to some extent at all seasons.

Richter lists it as especially valuable to stimulate early breeding, but states that surplus is occasionally harvested from this source and that it is fully equal to filaree or pin clover as a honey plant.

BUR-MARIGOLD, see Spanish Needle.

BUSH HONEYSUCKLE (Diervilla Lonicera).

The bush honeysuckle is a common bush shrub in the northeastern States. It is to be found from Newfoundland south to North Carolina and west to Minnesota. It is reported as common in New England and Ontario. In Northern Minnesota, where it is abundant, beekeepers report that the bees work it eagerly when the weather will permit. The flowers are not showy, but the profuse bloom is rich in nectar. The blooming period begins in June and, in some places, continues as late as August.

BRUNNICHIA.

The tendril-bearing smartweed, or ladies’ ear drops (=Brunnichia cirrhosa=) is a perennial climbing vine, common to the southeastern States. It ranges from southern Illinois and Arkansas to South Carolina and Florida. An Arkansas beekeeper reports that the plant is abundant in his locality and covered with bees.

H. B. Parks reports it grows on the low lands of Southeast Texas, where it blooms from March till August and yields some surplus.

BUFFALO CURRANT (Ribes aureum).

The yellow flowers of the buffalo currant are very fragrant and apparently contain much nectar. The writer has often noticed the bees working on the blossoms, but since the corolla tubes are half an inch or more in length he supposed they were getting only pollen. A close examination showed that the bees were unmistakably getting nectar from this source and that the tubes had been slit entirely down one side by some unknown agency. Whether this is a common occurrence the author cannot say.

BUTTER WEED or GROUNDSEL (Senecio).

The groundsels are herbs with alternate leaves and mostly yellow flowers, common to the northeastern States. The bees are reported as working upon them freely, but they are probably of minor importance.

BUTTON-BUSH (Cephalanthus occidentalis).

The button-bush, also called button willow, is a bushy shrub growing in marshy places, stagnant shallow water, and along streams, from New England to Texas and west to California. This shrub, or in places a small tree, has a very wide range and is found in most of the States where honey production is important. Bulletin No. 102 of the Texas Agricultural College, reports it as common throughout Texas, and the bulletin relating to honey plants of California (217 Experiment Station), records it as a good honey plant in California. It is listed in the catalog of plants of nearly every State and of Canada, which the author has consulted. It is also said to occur in Asia, and possibly Africa.

Our readers who live in the vicinity of wet lands are likely to find specimens near at hand. In a few sections it is sufficiently abundant to be an important addition to the midsummer flora. It is reported as more particularly valuable in the overflowed lands along the Mississippi River. The bees seek it eagerly when in bloom, and in places where it is plentiful it is regarded as of considerable value as a honey plant.

The honey is light in color and mild in flavor, according to published reports. Fig. 33 shows a near view of the flowers, which are crowded together in dense heads, giving them the appearance of cotton balls.

The shrub is very bushy, with an abundant foliage. It is reported as reaching a height of 40 feet in California. In Alabama it is recorded as a shrub of from 6 to 15 feet in height, which is more like its appearance in Iowa, according to the author’s observation. Here it is rather a small bush, not much higher than a man’s head, and as far across, with many branches from the ground.

The blooming period is July and August, according to locality, a season when additions to the honey-producing flora are most welcome.

BUTTON-WEED (Diodia teres).

The button-weed occurs on sandy lands from New England to Florida and west to Kansas and Texas. Scholl lists it as yielding honey well during drought in Texas, but not as a source of surplus.

BUTTON WILLOW, see Button Bush.

C

CABBAGE (Brassica oleracea).

Cabbage belongs to a group of valuable honey plants, including mustard, turnip, etc. In the seed belt of California, where grown for seed on a large scale, cabbage is valuable. The late J. S. Harbison said of it:

“Cabbage blossoms afford a considerable amount of honey of a fine quality and flavor.”--Beekeeper’s Directory.

CACTUS, see Prickly Pear.

CALICO BUSH, see Laurel.

CALIFORNIA HOLLY, see Christmas Berry.

CALIFORNIA--Honey Sources of.

Honey plants yielding a surplus during an average season:

Yucca (=Hesperoyucca whipplei=). Willow (=Salix sp.=). Wild buckwheat (=Eriogonum fasciculatum=). =Berberis pinnata.= Black mustard (=Brassica nigra=). English mustard (=Brassica sp.=). Rocky Mountain honey plant (=Cleome integrifolia=). Jackass clover (=Wislizenia refracta=). Christmas berry (=Heteromeles arbutifolia=). Pear (=Pyrus communis=). Apple (=Pyrus malus=). Wild alfalfa (=Lotus glaber=). Bur clover (=Medicago denticulata=). Alfalfa (=Medicago sativa=). White sweet clover (=Melilotus alba=). Yellow sweet clover (=Melilotus officinalis=). Lima bean (=Phaseolus lunatus=). Alfilerilla (=Erodium cicutarium=). White stem filaree (=Erodium moschatum=). Orange (=Citrus aurantium=). Tree of heaven (=Ailanthus glandulosa=). Poison oak (=Rhus diversiloba=). (Laurel) Sumac (=Rhus laurina=). Pepper tree (=Schinus molle=). California buckeye (=Aesculus californica=). Coffee berry (=Rhamnus californica=). Cascara sagrada (=Rhamnus purshiana=). Wild hollyhock (=Sidalcea malvaeflora=). Prickly pear (=Opuntia lindheimeri occidentalis=). Lemon scented gum (=Eucalyptus citriodora=). White stringy-bark (=Eucalyptus eugenioides=). Blue Gum (=Eucalyptus globulus=). Red gum (=Eucalyptus rostrata=). Manna gum (=Eucalyptus viminalis=). Blue thistle (=Cryngium articulatum=). Manzanita (=Arctostaphylos=). Yerba santa (=Eriodictyon trichocalix=). Caterpillar phacelia (=Phacelia hispida=). Valley vervenia (=Phacelia tenacetifolia=). Carpet grass (=Lippia nodiflora=). Horehound (=Marrubium vulgare=). Peppermint (=Mentha spicata=). White sage (=Salvia apiana=). Thistle sage (=Salvia carduacea=). Annual sage (=Salvia columbariae=). Purple sage (=Salvia leucophylla=). Black sage (=Salvia mellifera=). Creeping sage (=Salvia sonomensis=). Blue curls (=Trichostema lanceolatum=). Button willow (=Cephalanthus occidentalis=). Napa thistle (=Centaurea melitensis=). Spike weed (=Centromadia pungens=). Bull thistle (=Cirsium lanceolatum=). Common sunflower (=Helianthus annuus=). Coast tarweed (=Hemizonia corymbosa=). Tarweed (=Hemizonia fasciculata=). Yellow tarweed (=Hemizonia virgata=). “Yellow Tops” (=Hemizonia=). Goldenrod (=Solidago occidentalis=). Rabbit brush (white) (=Chrysothamnus nauseosus hypolluca=).

Cultivated plants that would rank with the above had they a wider distribution:

Common century plant (=Agave americana=). White clover (=Trifolium repens=). American linden (=Tilia americana=). Tamarisk (=Tamaris=, =Eucalyptus calophylla=). Yate tree (=Eucalyptus cornuta=). Sugar gum (=Eucalyptus corynocalyx=). Cider gum (=Eucalyptus Gunnii=, =Eucalyptus Lehmannii=). White ironbark (=Eucalyptus leucoxylon=). Spotted gum (=Eucalyptus maculata=). Honey scented gum (=Eucalyptus ficifolia=). Red boxtree (=Eucalyptus polyanthemos=). Red mahogany gum (=Eucalyptus resinifera=). Swamp mahogany gum (=Eucalyptus robusta=). Broad leaved ironbark (=Eucalyptus siderophloia=). Victoria ironbark (=Eucalyptus sideroxylon=). Apple scented gum (=Eucalyptus Stuartiana=). Forest gray gum (=Eucalyptus tereticornia=).

Honey plants occasionally yielding a surplus:

Asparagus (=Asparagus officinalis=). Live oak (=Quercus agrifolia=). Blue oak (=Quercus douglassii=). Valley oak (=Quercus lobata=). Mistletoe (=Phoradendron=). Common mustard (=Brassica campestris=). Wild radish (=Raphanus sativus=, =Escallonia montevidensis=). Wild currant (=Ribes sanguineum=). Greasewood (=Adenostoma fasciculatum=). Castor oil plant (=Ricinus communis=). Islay or holly leaved cherry (=Cerasus illicifolia=). Bitter almond (=Prunus amygdalus=). Apricot (=Prunus amygdalus=). Apricot (=Prunus armeniaca=). Cherry (=Prunus cerasus=). Plum and prune (=Prunus domestica=). Peach (=Prunus persica=). Raspberry (=Rubus strigosus=). Cultivated blackberry (=Rubus villosus=). Himalayan berry (=Rubus villosus var.=). Common wild blackberry (=Rubus vitifolius=). Black wattle (=Acacia decurrens mollis=). Golden wattle (=Acacia pycnantha=). Rattleweed (=Astragalus=). Yellow sweet clover (=Melilotus indica=). Locust (=Robinia pseudo-acacia=). Sour clover (=Trifolium fucatum=). Alsike (=Trifolium hybridum=). Gorse (=Ulex europaeus=). Mandarin (=Citrus nobilis=, =Croton californicus=). Turkey mullein (=Eremocarpus setigerus=, =Ceanothus cuneatus=). Wild lilac (=Ceanothus=, =Rhamnus corcea=). Grape (=Vitis vinifera=). Cotton (=Gossypium herbaceum=, =Godetia bottae=). California waterweed (=Jussiaea californica=). Sweet fennel (=Foeniculum vulgare=). Madrona (=Arbutus menziesii=). Oregon ash (=Fraxinus oregona=). Olive (=Olea europaea=). Morning glory (=Convolvulus arvensis=, =Gilia chamissonis=). Hill vervenia (=Phacelia distans=, =Phacelia ramosissima=). Heliotrope (=Heliotropium=). Lawn plant (=Lippia repens=). Wild verbena (=Verbena prostrata=). Yerba Buena (=Micromeria chamissonis=). Hedge nettle (=Stachys bullata=). California figwort (=Scrophularia californica=). Simpson’s honey plant (=Scrophularia vernalis=). Watermelon (=Citrullus vulgaris=). Cantaloupe (=Cucumis mello=). Cucumber (=Cucumis sativus=). Winter squash (=Cucurbita moschata=). Pumpkin (=Cucurbita pepo=). Globe artichoke (=Cynara Scolymus=). Jerusalem artichoke (=Helianthus tuberosus=). Mayweed (=Anthemis cotula=). Beggar ticks (=Bidens frondosa=). Spanish needle (=Bidens pilosa=, =Coreopsis gigantea=).

Cultivated plants that would rank with the above had they a wider distribution:

Mignonette (=Reseda odorata=). White tree clover (=Cystisus proliferus=, =Melilotus bicolor=). Poinsettia (=Euphorbia pulcherrima=).

Honey plants not known to yield a surplus:

Corn (=Zea mays=). Tanbark oak (=Quercus densiflora=). Virgin’s bower (=Clematis ligusticifolia=, =Clematis=). California laurel (=Umbellularia californica=). California poppy (=Eschscholtzia californica=). Cream cups (=Platystemon californicus=). Canyon gooseberry (=Ribes menziesii=). (Western) chokecherry (=Cerasus demissa=). Rose (=Rosa californica=). Wild sweet pea (=Lathyrus splendens=). Lupin (=Lupinus affinis=). Nonesuch (=Medicago lupulina=). Red clover (=Trifolium pratense=). Spring vetch (=Vicia sativa=). Maple (=Acer negundo=). Virginia creeper (=Ampelopsis quinquefolia=). California wild grape (=Vitis californica=). Small flowered mallow (=Malva parviflora=). White mallow (=Malva sylvestris=, =Helianthemum scoparium=). Milkweed (=Asclepias mexicana=). Milkweed (=Asclepias speciosa=). Dodder (=Cuscuta=). Common heliotrope (=Heliotropium curassavicum=). =Tournefortia heliotropoides.= Tule mint (=Mentha canadensis=). Pennyroyal (=Monardella lanceolata=). Loving sage (=Salvia amabilis=). Winter savory (=Satureia montana=). =Stachys ajugoides.= =Stachys albens.= =Veronica andersonii.= Common plantain (=Plantego major=). Wild honeysuckle (=Lonicera=). Blue elderberry (=Sambucus glauca=). Cornflower (=Centaurea cyanus=), =Encelia californica=, =Eriophyllum confertiflorum=, =Heterotheca grandiflora=, =Malacothris saxatilis=. Common sow thistle (=Sonchus oleraceus=, =Sonchus maruanthus=).

--M. C. Richter, Bulletin 217, Agricultural Experiment Station, Cal.

CALIFORNIA POPPY, see Poppy.

CAMPANILLA (Ipomoea).

The campanillas, or Christmas bells, are plants similar to our American morning-glory, which are common to Cuba and adjacent countries. The vines are perennial and grow to considerable size, covering wayside fences, trees, etc. The name Christmas bells, applied to white bellflower, comes from the fact that the height of the blooming period is reached near the holiday season. There are two species, known as white campanilla (=Ipomoea sidaefolia=), and the pink bellflower (=Ipomoea triloba=). The latter blooms a month or two before the white variety.

The honey, according to Root’s A B C, is equal to alfalfa or sage in color and flavor, the comb built during a campanilla flow being pearly white and the wax, when melted, as white as tallow.

CAMPHOR WEED, see Blue Curls.

CANADA THISTLE (Carduus arvensis).

The Canada thistle is a most troublesome weed, naturalized from Europe and widely spread through Eastern America. It is a perennial plant, growing from one to two feet high. The roots creep extensively, thus gradually spreading the plant to surrounding areas. It is very persistent and difficult to eradicate. It is common in fields, pastures and along roadsides.

It is the source of a light honey of good quality. It is most frequently reported as a source of surplus in Ontario and the Eastern States.

CANADIAN HEMP, see Dogbane.

CARPET GRASS (Lippia).

The carpet grass of California (=Lippia repens=) is a native of Chili which has been introduced on the Pacific Coast and widely cultivated as a lawn plant. It is known as lawn plant, carpet grass and lippia. It is much sought by the bees and is the source of some honey, a surplus of two cases per colony being not unusual, according to C. D. Stuart. The honey, he states, is light amber, heavy body, and similar in quality to alfalfa. The plant is of trailing habit, spreading by rooting of runners like strawberries. Fig. 34.

=Lippia nodiflora=, mat grass or fog fruit, is native to California, and, according to Richter, is the principal source of surplus honey in the vicinity of Sacramento. Three-fourths of the surplus honey from Sutter County he reports as from this source. There it begins to bloom in May and lasts till frost. According to Jepson, the plant is esteemed as a covering for levees, to resist erosion. It is especially valuable on overflowed lands after the water recedes. The honey is said to be light in color, mild in flavor, and to granulate readily.

CARROT (Daucus carota).

The carrot is a well-known garden vegetable which came from Europe and is everywhere cultivated in gardens. It has escaped and become naturalized over a wide scope of country. It yields some honey, and where grown on a large scale for seed or for the roots, it is valuable for the bees.

We quote Richter as follows:

“Honey white, with a characteristic flavor, and granulating within a few months after extraction. A most excellent yielder in the Sacramento Valley, where it is considered to surpass the onion as a honey plant.”--Honey Plants of California.

CASCARA SAGRADA, see Buckthorn.

CASSIA, see Partridge Pea.

CASTOR BEAN (Ricinus communis).

The castor bean, or castor oil plant, is often cultivated for the oil contents of the beans. Large areas were planted during the late war, especially in Texas. The plant has escaped from cultivation and become naturalized in the Southeastern States. It is generally planted for ornament over a large scope of country. It is reported as very attractive to the bees and of some value for honey, where sufficiently abundant. Scholl lists it in the Texas bulletin as yielding well in favorable seasons. Richter lists it also for California.

CASTOR OIL PLANT, see Castor Bean.

CATALPA (Catalpa speciosa).

The catalpa tree produces a great profusion of bloom. The blossoms are so large that a bee can readily crawl right into the heart of the flower.

The testimony of competent observers gives an unqualified indorsement of the catalpa as a nectar producer, though there is slight mention of it in our literature. The fact that large areas of these trees are being planted for timber, in many places, makes them of special interest to the beekeeper. The catalpa, or Indian bean (=Catalpa speciosa=) is a native of the woodlands of southern Indiana and Tennessee, west to Arkansas. This form, known as the hardy catalpa, is also widely planted in Iowa, Illinois, Kansas, Nebraska and other States. There is another similar species closely resembling it which occurs further south, and is common in the Gulf States.

The leaves are heart-shaped and the blossoms are large, nearly white, and grow in large clusters, as shown in Fig. 35. The tree grows very rapidly furnishing desirable timber for fence posts, telephone poles, railroad ties, etc. In Kansas, large areas have been planted by the railroad companies for the purpose of growing ties. Beekeepers situated near such plantings should find the trees of material value.

CATNIP (Nepeta Cataria).

Catnip, or catmint, was introduced from Europe, and cultivated in herb gardens. It is thus an escaped introduction and has become very widely naturalized in the United States, although it is generally considered a weed. It is usually found only in the vicinity of buildings and gardens, and seldom spreads into the fields to any extent. Almost all or us remember the popularity of catnip tea among the grandmothers of an earlier generation. The plant is a perennial, growing from 2 to 3 feet high, with flowers in clusters, the more conspicuous ones being in a terminal spike. The blooming season is rather long, and the bees visit it very freely. Apparently, the plant yields much nectar, although it is seldom present in sufficient quantity to test its real value as a honey producer. If it had sufficient value for other purposes to justify its cultivation, it would probably be an important source of nectar.

CATSCLAW, see Acacia.

CAT’S EAR (Hypochaeris radicata).

Cat’s ear, sometimes called California dandelion, is abundant west of the Cascade Mountains in Washington and south to California. It is a naturalized European weed in pastures and fields, blooming in midsummer. According to H. A. Scullen, it supplies considerable nectar in Washington. It is amber color and in some localities darkens the fireweed honey.

CELASTRUS Scandens, see Bittersweet.

CELERY (Apium graveolens).

The blossoms of the cultivated celery yield nectar abundantly, and where grown for seed, it is a valuable source of honey. In the seed belt of California it yields well, as the following will indicate:

“I saw the hives stacked five or six high and on opening them we found them jammed full of honey; in fact, the bees should have had room long before, but Mr. Gear had had difficulty in getting help, and the bees had got ahead of him. The colonies were so crowded that the space between the frames and the tops of the hives were built full of burr combs. All this honey was from celery and parsnip. * * * On our arrival at the field it was easy to see that there was honey in the blossoms. In the sunlight the little drops of nectar gleamed like myriads of little diamonds. * * * I tasted some of the raw nectar from the celery. Sure enough, there was quite a strong suggestion of celery flavor.”--E. R. Root, Gleanings, Nov., 1919, page 712.

CENTAUREA.

There are several species of centaurea which yield nectar. The common corn-flower of the gardens (=Centaurea Cyanus=), also known as blue-bottle, bluet, ragged sailor or batchelor’s button, is a good honey plant. The bees work upon it from morning till night, though it is seldom sufficiently abundant to be important as a source of surplus. Richter lists this species from California as commonly cultivated. He also lists the Napa thistle, or tacalote (=Centaurea melitensis=), as yielding some honey of light amber color, good flavor and fair body. This species is known in the southeastern States as Lombardy star thistle. (See Star Thistle.)

striking sight when it does so.]

CENTURY PLANT (Agave).

The agaves are an important group of long-lived perennial plants native to Tropical America, Mexico and, to some extent, to the southwestern United States. Each plant has a cluster of numerous fleshy leaves and, when blooming, a tall flower stalk. There are at least five species native to the United States. The range is southern New Mexico, Arizona and California. The best known is the common century plant (=Agave americana=), an introduced species, cultivated for ornament. This is a conspicuous figure of ornamental planting in southern California.

In Mexico some species of agaves furnish fibre, while others are the source of pulque and mescal, intoxicating drinks much used in the country below the Rio Grande.

The plants do not bloom until they are several years old. The flower stalks grow very rapidly and reach a height of 25 or 30 feet within a few weeks’ time. When in bloom they secrete nectar in abundance, and the bees swarm over them in great numbers. As will be seen by the illustration, the flower stalks support innumerable blossoms, so that a single plant will yield a considerable amount of honey. The fact that the plants are nowhere abundant in this country, together with the long period which must elapse before they bloom, makes it improbable that they will ever be of much importance to American beekeepers.

CEPHALANTHUS, see Button Bush.

CHAMISE, see Greasewood.

CHAPMAN HONEY PLANT (Echinops sphoerocephalus).

The Chapman honey plant was introduced from France about 1885. The bee journals of 1886 and 1887 devote a large amount of space to a discussion of this plant. It was brought prominently to the attention of American beekeepers by Hiram Chapman, of Versailles, New York, who planted about three acres of it at that place. He made such glowing reports of the plant at the National Beekeepers’ Convention that a committee of prominent men was appointed to visit the Chapman home and report on the new plant at the convention of the following year. They made a lengthy and very favorable report, which is published in full on page 28 of the American Bee Journal for January 5, 1887.

Numerous beekeepers secured seed, and so attractive did the plant prove to the bees that favorable reports appeared frequently in the columns of the journals for the next few years. However, the great expectations were not realized, for it soon disappeared, and is seldom mentioned in current literature. The following quotation from Dr. C. C. Miller, which appeared in Gleanings, in December, 1918, is probably a correct estimate of the value of the plant:

“After reading the British Bee Journal of September 26, I should have made a vigorous effort to secure a supply of seed of =Echinops Sphoerocephalus=, if I had no previous experience with the plant. No bee plant that I have ever grown was so attractive to the bees. Whenever the weather was favorable the heads were crowded. I have counted fourteen or fifteen bees on one at the same time.”

This is the Chapman honey plant that had a big boom in this country a number of years ago; but it is not heard of now, and is not included among the honey plants in the bee books. Upon its introduction I planted quite a patch of it, and like Mr. Harwood, I never saw the bees so thick on any other plant. But close observation showed that the bees were not in eager haste in their usual way when getting a big yield, but were in large part idle. It looked a little as if the plant had some kind of stupefying effect on them. At any rate, I should not take the trouble to plant it now, if land and seed were furnished free.

CHAYOTE (Sechium edule).

Chayote is a vegetable of the squash family, commonly grown in the American Tropics. It is found in Mexico, Cuba, Porto Rico and other countries in that latitude. There has been some discussion of the plant in the bee magazines and occasionally the plants have been grown in American gardens. That it is a valuable honey plant there can be but little doubt. J. J. Siebert, writing from Porto Rico to the American Bee Journal, says that it is all that it is claimed to be, and that as a source of nectar it has only one rival, the banana, blossoming all the year round. The following is from the U. S. Department of Agriculture. Bulletin No. 28:

“As in other vegetables of the squash family, the stamens and pistils are in separate flowers, pollination taking place through the agency of insects. To attract these, the flowers of both kinds, but especially the pistillate, yield abundant nectar, which is secreted in ten glands, two at the base of each of the lobes of the corolla. In most of the countries into which it has been introduced, beekeeping has not been a regular industry, and the value of the chayote as a source of honey has not been noticed, but the reports of experimenters in New South Wales contain very emphatic statements on the subject:

‘When the plant is in flower I have noticed that the vines were swarming with bees, and as flowers are scarce in the autumn, the plant will no doubt be valuable as a honey-producer.

‘The plant, which spreads over a large area, commenced flowering at the close of the year, and has been well laden with mellifluous blossoms ever since. The bees are extremely fond of the chocho, and with the apiarist the newly-introduced plant must become a strong favorite.’

“The chayote differs from many cucurbitaceae in producing numerous flowers on each fertile branch. It has long been known that the flowers of this family are rich in honey, but from the standpoint of the beekeeper they have been considered of little importance, because seldom accessible in sufficient amount, though in the United States fields are recognized as good bee pastures. The chayote seems to make up by numbers what the flowers lack in size, so that the yield of honey may be larger than in related plants. In addition to this there is the fact that Sechium is a perennial bloomer in the Tropics, and in the sub-tropical regions has a very long season. It is thus possible that in the regions like parts of Florida, where beekeeping is already an established industry, the honey-producing qualities of the chayote may be found of practical account in connection with its other utilities.”

CHEROKEE ROSE (Rosa laevigata).

The Cherokee rose is found from the Coast Region of the South Atlantic States westward through Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana to eastern Texas. It occurs also in California. It was in Alabama that the author first heard it mentioned as a source of nectar. Later reports from California indicated that bees sometimes find nectar from this source, though most of the roses yield only pollen. H. B. Parks states that he has observed the bees getting honey from this source, and M. B, Talley, of Victoria, Texas, states that he has observed the bees gathering nectar from it in Mississippi and also at Victoria. It is probably of little importance, unless it be as a source of pollen.

CHERRY (Prunus cerasus).

The cultivated cherry is closely related to the plum and is equally attractive to the bees. Both bloom at about the same time. In California the cherry is reported as one of the best of the fruit trees for honey production. In the East it is valued principally for stimulating early brood-rearing.

When the weather is warm and bright during its period of bloom a great variety of insects may be found on the blossoms. Bees are seldom strong enough to store surplus from cherry. (See also Wild Cherry.)

CHESTNUT (Castanea dentata).

The chestnut is an important timber tree from northern New England and Ontario to Michigan and along the mountains to Georgia. It is a tall and slender tree in the forests, but a magnificent spreading shade tree when grown with sufficient room. It sometimes reaches a height of 90 to 100 feet.

As a source of nectar it is probably nowhere important, though it yields pollen in June or July. E. E. Hasty, writing in the American Bee Journal, from Toledo, Ohio, (Sept., 1906), reports that there the bees roar on chestnut bloom, even when basswood blooms at the same time.

It is frequently listed as a source of honey, but the author can find no authoritative records of surplus stored from it.

CHINABERRY, see Wild China.

CHINA TREE (Melia azedarach).

The China tree, also known as pride of India, is a native of the Far East, probably coming from China. It has become naturalized in the Southeastern States from the Atlantic Coast to Texas. It is found as far north as Arkansas and Virginia.

H. B. Parks reports that in Texas it is a fairly good honey plant, blooming very early in the season. On account of its early blooming, it is principally valuable to stimulate early brood rearing.

This tree should not be confused with the Wild China, which see.

CHINESE SUMAC, see Varnish Tree.

CHINQUAPIN (Castanea pumila).

The chinquapin is a shrub or small tree common from New Jersey and southern Pennsylvania southward to Missouri and Texas. It is well known to the beekeepers in parts of Alabama, Georgia and north Florida, where it flowers in May. In Arkansas, it is a large tree, reaching a height of fifty feet in some cases.

In some localities beekeepers report good crops of honey from chinquapin, but the quality is inferior. It is dark and strong, with a bitter taste. Some use it for feeding to replace the better grades of honey which may be taken from the bees. In color it looks like New Orleans molasses, and a sample, in the author’s collection for several years, shows no tendency to granulation.

CHITTAM, see Buckthorn.

CHOCTAW ROOT, see Dogbane.

CHOKE CHERRY, see Wild Cherry.

CHRISTMAS BERRY, or CALIFORNIA HOLLY (Heteromeles arbutifolia).

The Christmas berry is known also as toy-on or tollon berry, as well as California holly. It is common along the streams and on the mountain-sides of California, where it flowers in June and July. It has white flowers and the bright red berries ripen in late autumn. The berries, according to C. D. Stuart, are acid and slightly astringent, though not unpleasant. He states that the berries were eaten by the Indians as a kind of salad, and that a wine-red drink is sometimes made from them after an old Spanish-Californian recipe. The plant is much used for Christmas decoration on the Pacific Coast.

According to Richter, the plant is the source of a thick amber honey of decided flavor, which candies with a coarse grain, within two or three months after extraction. He reports surplus from this source in Monterey, Colusa and Nevada Counties, California.

Jepson gives the range as “Throughout the coast ranges and Sierra Nevada, and southward to southern and Lower California. Frequent along streams and gulches in the lower hills, and also abundant on stony slopes at middle elevations, especially from Napa to Humboldt Counties.

At Visalia the author heard reports of an average of a case per colony of surplus honey from this source in the mountains.

CITRUS FRUITS, see Oranges, Lemons, Etc.

CLEMATIS.

The white clematis is commonly known by the name of virgin’s bower, but also has several other local names, such as love vine, traveler’s joy and devil’s hair. Fig. 42 shows the delicate white blossoms and the leaf, and Fig. 43 shows a mass of vines on a roadside fence.

The range of the plant is from Nova Scotia and Ontario west to Lake Winnipeg and Nebraska and south to Louisiana and Florida. It may be expected almost anywhere east of the Mississippi River. It is a slender climbing vine on the borders of woods, roadsides and hedgerows. The blossoms are white and fragrant, blooming in midsummer. It is much sought by the bees, and apparently produces considerable nectar. It is doubtful whether the plant is anywhere sufficiently abundant to make an appreciable difference in the production of the hive.

Richter, in his “Honey Plants of California,” reports a related species, the hill clematis, (=Clematis ligusticifolia=), as common in the hilly districts almost throughout California. It is said to produce “a great deal of pollen and probably some honey,” but it is not known to produce surplus. Common also in the Rocky Mountains.

CLEOME, see Rocky Mountain Bee Plant.

CLEOMELLA (Cleomella angustifola).

The Cleomella is very similar to the Rocky Mountain bee plant, or cleome. The flowers are small and yellow and the plant does not grow so tall as the cleome.

An Oklahoma beekeeper reports as follows:

“It seems to be a remarkable honey plant. It was in bloom for more than ten weeks during the dry season, and bees worked upon it freely every morning. The blossom is very fragrant, sweet, yellow, and is at the branches. It keeps crowding out a new growth and blooming, forming small purse-shaped seed pods as the blossoms drop. The growth is much like sweet clover or yellow mustard, but forming a larger spreading top. Some plants grow four feet tall and three feet across and an inch through at the butt. It is an annual, and no stock will eat it.”--M. S. Hubbell, Helena, Okla. American Bee Journal.

Cleomella is found from Nebraska to Utah and south to Texas.

CLETHRA, see Pepperbush.

CLIMBING MILKWEED, see Bluevine.

CLOVER (Trifolium).

The clovers are by far the most important American honey plants. If we include the closely related alfalfa and sweet clover, they probably are the source of more surplus honey than all the other plants together. They are to be found in nearly every part of America and yield nectar more freely than most plants. The quality of clover honey is of the best and in quantity of yield it ranks high, under favorable conditions. If the whole group was to be removed, honey production as a commercial proposition would decline to a very large degree.

Clover seems to yield most heavily in the northern part of its range and gradually declines southward. White clover is the most important of the group. Alsike is quite as valuable where equally abundant. The corolla tubes of red clover are usually too deep for the honeybee to reach the nectar, but occasionally some honey is secured from this source. (See Red Clover). Each of the clovers is considered separately. (See White Clover, Alsike, etc.)

COCKLEBUR (Xanthium canadense).

The cocklebur is a coarse weed, common in fields and waste places from Louisiana. In Texas, Scholl lists the plant as a source of pollen in clinging to clothing and to the hairs of horses and cattle.

There is an occasional report of honey from this source, especially from Louisiana. In Texas, Scholl lists the plant as a source of pollen in late fall.

COFFEE BERRY, see Buckthorn.

COLIMA (Xanthoxylum pterota).

Colima is a species of prickly ash common to the valley of the lower Rio Grande River. It is a small shrub with zigzag branches, armed with short curved thorns. The flowers are in axillary clusters.

Colima is reported as yielding but a light flow, of principal value for stimulative purposes. At Mathis, Texas, Wm. Atchley reports that he had a good surplus flow from colima in 1900. The honey was golden and very thick, weighing 121⁄2 pounds to the gallon. The flavor was good. Although he kept bees in that vicinity for a number of years he secured surplus from Colima but the one time. (See also Prickly Ash).

COLORADO--Honey Plants of.

Practically all surplus is secured from alfalfa and sweet clover, with an occasional crop from cleome. The rosin weed (=Grindelia squarrosa=) yields considerable honey of low grade which often spoils the grade of the white honey by being mixed in the supers. Narcissus, parsley and prairie clover are prairie plants which attract the bees freely. Wild onion yields some honey. Dandelion and fruit bloom are important for spring brood rearing and canteloupes yield some surplus in the Rock Ford region. Sunflowers, mentzelia, lupines and loco weeds add something to the sum total brought to the hives. The white clematis is very common along the streams, as are willows. Wild currant is common in the mountain canyons. =Gaura coccinea=, the red gaura or ragged lady, is much sought by the bees for both honey and pollen. Oreocarya is a desert plant which yields surplus, but which is rapidly disappearing through cultivation of the land on which it grows.

COLUMBO, see Monument Plant.

COMA (Bumelia lycioides).

Coma is the Mexican name for southern buckthorn (=Bumelia lycioides=), which is found from Florida north to Virginia and west to Texas. It is also known as ironwood. It is a spiny shrub with flowers in dense clusters. In South Texas it is also known as coma and is frequently reported as an important source of honey. It blooms there from October to February and produces nectar freely. At Rio Hondo, in the lower Rio Grande Valley, beekeepers reported to the author that a flow of six weeks from coma, from September to November, was common, and that swarms issuing as late as December had gathered sufficient honey from this source to carry them through. The honey is said to be light amber in color and of good quality. The flow varies greatly, depending upon the rains. (See also Gum-elastic.)

abundant from Pearsall, Texas, to the Rio Grande River, blooming from October to February, and is the best of the group.]

CONE FLOWER (Rudbeckia).

The cone flowers, also called golden glow, are not often mentioned as honey plants, yet the bees visit them freely and apparently they are the source of some nectar. The plants are widely distributed east of the Missouri River and are probably of limited local importance.

CONNECTICUT--Honey Sources of.

The clovers, alsike and white clover, occur all over Connecticut and yield nectar freely. Goldenrod and asters are also important. Buckwheat, wild raspberry and milkweeds all yield surplus under favorable conditions. Basswood, locust maple and clethra are among the valuable trees and shrubs. Fruit bloom, willow, etc., are important in early spring. Some honey from tobacco is reported in Connecticut.

CORAL BEAN or FRIJOLILLO (Sophora secundiflora).

The coral bean is a small tree common along the streams of Texas and New Mexico, and southward to the interior of Mexico. The Mexicans call it frijolillo. The beans are said by Coulter to be used by the Indians as an intoxicant. The beans are round and red and as large as small marbles. They contain a powerful poisonous alkaloid. Some beekeepers have expressed a fear that the honey might be poisonous to the bees, though apparently there is little grounds for such fear. The tree is abundant along the Nueces River in the shade of larger timber and was yielding nectar very freely at the time of the author’s visit to that section on March 10, 1918. There had been a long dearth of nectar and the bees were extremely short of both honey and pollen. The new nectar was coming in in considerable quantity and the honey stored had a peculiar flavor. The tree is particularly abundant in the vicinity of Matagorda Bay.

CORAL BERRY, see Indian Currant.

CORAL SUMAC, see Poisonwood.

CORN, see Indian Corn.

CORNEL, see Dogwood.

CORN-ITCH, see Cow-itch.

COTTON (Gossypium herbaceum).

Although the cotton plant is found growing wild in many warm countries, in the United States it is known only as a staple field crop. It was brought to this country as early as 1621, and has been the most important plant grown on southern plantations since the early development of the country.

of Agriculture.)]

The plant thrives in a warm and humid climate, and needs five to six months of warm weather. However, it is grown successfully under semi-arid conditions in parts of Texas and other Southern States. The so-called cotton belt extends from the northwest corner of Texas south to the Rio Grande, and east to the Atlantic seaboard. A limited acreage is grown in California, but, excepting very restricted areas, it is not important outside the territory mentioned. Texas, Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia are perhaps the most important of the cotton-growing States. The Carolinas, Louisiana and Oklahoma also grow it in large areas.

Honey production reaches its highest development in localities where good nectar-bearing plants are grown in large acreage. Hence we find beekeeping thriving in dairy communities, where alsike and white clover are grown abundantly. We also find the beekeepers prosperous where alfalfa is an important crop. In the Southern States, cotton is the one field crop grown on a sufficient scale to offer ideal conditions for the beekeeper. However, cotton is fickle in its behavior, and cannot always be depended upon to produce nectar, no matter how abundant the crop. In some cotton-growing districts the beekeepers swear by cotton, while in other localities they declare that it is of little value. The character of the soil seems to be a very important factor in the secretion of nectar by this plant. The vigor of the growth and the amount of available plant food in the soil are also important. Reports from different sections indicate that the quality of the honey varies in different sections.

W. D. Null, of Demopolis, Ala., wrote to the author as follows:

“This, you know, was for sixty years the heaviest cotton-growing section in the nation. Bees will not work cotton if they can work anything else, even bitterweed. It yields honey of very poor quality, and never very much, some years none at all. Weather conditions must be just right, and that don’t come often. The honey is the same grade as the most honeydews.”

In contrast, we find the following report of good honey and abundant yield in American Bee Journal for 1907, page 267:

“Cotton blossoms furnish a great deal of excellent honey, and the theory that it explodes or ferments is all bosh. It makes an excellent rich honey, oily, and it is not liked so well by some until they get used to it.”--Jules Belknap, M. D., Sulphur Springs, Ark.

When the writer made his first trip through Georgia he was much puzzled by the different reports of apparently good observers in different parts of the State. The matter was finally explained by a beekeeper who had lived in different localities, by the variation in behavior of the plant under different conditions. There is perhaps no important honey plant which varies so much, in the quality of its nectar, as does cotton. The poor quality in some places can doubtless be explained by the fact that the flow is not abundant, and is mixed with other low-grade stores. However, honey dew is also sometimes reported from the plant itself.

“Sometimes, during a damp spell, the cotton gets covered with vast numbers of aphis, and the upper side of the leaves will first get gummy and then will even drip a kind of dirty-looking sweet fluid. If there is anything else on hand the bees will not touch it.”--W. H. Alder, Callahan County, Texas, page 334, American Bee Journal, 1899.

It is needless to say that this would make a poor product, and it is not improbable that honeydew is sometimes secured from cotton in localities where it seldom yields nectar. The secretion is apparently dependent far more upon soil than upon any other condition. Upon the black, wavy lands of Texas and upon other soils, it reaches its highest development. The boundary of the belt, where cotton yields freely and where it does not, is very marked in Texas. North of the escarpment which runs across Bexar County, Texas, near San Antonio, it is an important source. South of that line few beekeepers report it as dependable. North of this line the soil is black and heavy; south it is sandy. Wherever the writer has found beekeepers on sandy soil, they have reported the yield from cotton as uncertain; while on the heavy soils they report it as fairly constant, with suitable weather conditions. The map shown herewith, Fig. 46, roughly outlines the heavy section where honey from cotton is important in Texas. Cotton is grown east, south and, to some extent, west of that line. In east Texas cotton is reported as yielding well on river bottom lands and but little on the hills. In the southern sections, and also in other States, an occasional crop is reported where it does not yield regularly:

“We had a very dry, sultry spell here the latter part of last August, and up to that time the bees were living from hand to mouth. All at once they began storing from the cotton bloom, though it looked as though cotton was going to die in the fields from drought and heat, yet it yielded until the bees had stored from 30 to 60 pounds per colony.”--J. J. Wilder, Cordele, Ga., American Bee Journal, page 141, 1906.

On suitable soils it is one of the most dependable sources of nectar:

“The apiarist who has his bees located within range of extensive cotton areas can count on at least an average crop year after year, with more certainty than many of the other numerous honey yielders which we have.”--Louis Scholl, page 652, Gleanings, 1912.

“My main sources for surplus are mesquite trees, the cotton fields being the second of importance in the central and northern parts of the State, or throughout the black land region. On sandy or light soil cotton yields very little honey. * * *

“The yield is good, averaging about 73 pounds of bulk comb honey per year. One year it was over 100 pounds. Honey from cotton is very light in color, the comb very white, and of excellent flavor when well ripened. As soon as cool weather sets in this honey fairly draws out in long strings, when handled with a spoon.”--Gleanings, page 1313, 1907.

From the above it will be seen that cotton honey is of good quality, at least in some localities Samples said to be from cotton from Georgia, are strong and of rather poor quality, while cotton honey received from Texas is light in color, of mild and rather pleasing flavor. The honey from Cotton granulates very quickly. That produced in the Southeastern States also has the effect of bursting the containers, possibly from the effects of fermentation. The humidity of the atmosphere evidently has a marked effect on the quality of the honey from this plant. The following reports indicate the quality:

“As to the quality of cotton honey, I can say from my own experience, that it varies in color from light amber to almost water white. While I do not consider it equal to white clover in flavor, it is superior to basswood. * * * The flow increases toward the last of the season, and if we can get two weeks of nice weather after frost it amounts to a considerable increase in the crop.”--J. D. Yancey, Hunt County, Texas. Gleanings, page 162, 1910.

“It did well on our rich bottom land and yielded a fair crop of the finest honey it was ever my pleasure to see. It was so thick that it was almost impossible to extract it, and entirely out of the question to strain it through a single thickness of cheese-cloth. It was light in color, mild in flavor, and very heavy, and in my opinion superior to any honey ever shipped to this locality, not excepting huijilla. The long drought and consequent absence of all other bloom, enabled us to get a purer cotton honey than we had ever been able to get before. Again, in the late fall, when the weather began to get cool, our cotton took a second growth, soon blooming profusely, and by accident we got also a fair fall crop.”--O. Saunders, Trenton, Texas. Page 734, Gleanings, 1910.

One great advantage of the cotton flow is its long continuation. In Texas it begins to bloom in May or June, and the bees work it steadily until late fall, often November. Extra cultivation or fertilization of the soil increases the vigor of the plant and the nectar flow is increased accordingly:

“I can remember when the bees gathered only enough nectar from it to stimulate brood rearing, and now we get from one to three supers of surplus from this source alone. * * * On land where we used to make a bale of cotton to 4 or 5 acres, now we make 1 to 2 bales per acre, using high grades of commercial fertilizer and more prolific varieties of the plant. It yields more where it grows best, and of a much longer duration.”--J. J. Wilder, Cordele, Ga. Page 237, American Bee Journal, 1911.

Bees get nectar not only from the cotton blossoms, but from extra floral nectaries as well. At times almost entirely, and to gather freely they seem to neglect the blossoms for the extra-floral nectaries. Some of these are located under the flower and begin to secrete nectar before the blossoms open. Others are located on the under sides of the leaves, and vary from one to three on each leaf. When atmospheric conditions are favorable, these glands secrete abundantly and the nectar gathers in drops. At times it is so abundant that the men cultivating get their clothes saturated with the nectar, from the brushing of the leaves against them. Later in the day the heat of the sun evaporates most of the moisture, leaving the clothing sticky. In hot and dry weather the flow is on in the morning and again in the evening, while in cloudy or damp weather it lasts all day.

When first gathered, the honey is said to be very thin and clear, with a strong and nauseating taste, resembling the taste of the plant itself. As the moisture is evaporated and the nectar ripens in the hive this disagreeable taste is lost to a large extent. During a heavy flow a strong odor is frequently present in the apiary, which can be noticed at some distance from the hives. Scholl compares this odor to that of crushed cotton leaves. He reports that at times it becomes so strong as to have a sickening effect on the apiarist, even interfering with his work, on calm days.

The heaviest flows come from rank-growing plants on rich soils, during warm and wet weather. At such times the honey is lighter in color and superior in quality, while the honey stored from plants growing on light soils during dry weather is darker and strong in taste.

Pollen from the cotton plant is white in color, and is produced in abundance from the large bell-shaped flowers. When the bloom first opens it is white, later turning pink.

COTTON-GUM, see Tupelo.

COTTONWOOD, see Aspen.

COW-ITCH (Cissus incisa).

The cow-itch is a climbing vine found from the coast of Florida to western Texas and north to southern Arkansas. In south Texas it is called “yerba del buey,” according to Coulter.

Scholl states that it “yields sufficiently to keep the bees out of mischief during a dearth, and giving surplus when abundant.” At Buffalo and Palestine, Texas, the author found reports to the effect that cow-itch was a heavy yielder of nectar, bees beginning on it as soon as the basswood bloom closed. It blooms from June till October, with fruit in all stages. The honey was reported to be light amber in color and of good flavor. R. A. Nestor reported that he had secured as high as 35 to 40 pounds of surplus per colony from this source mixed with partridge pea. It is also called corn-itch.

COWPEA (Vigna sinensis).

The cowpea is widely cultivated in the warmer regions of the old world and in our own Southern States. It is grown for forage and for green manure. The plant is more closely related to the beans than to the peas.

R. A. Nestor reports that it yields freely in east Texas, and where planted in sufficient acreage yields surplus. The honey is very dark in color, but of mild flavor, according to his report.

The nectar from cowpeas is secreted by extra floral nectaries and beekeepers are often mystified because the bees are working at the “joints” instead of on the flowers. Some report that bees gather nectar from the flowers, also.

The following reports indicate the value in different localities:

“There is no finer honey plant than the cowpea, while it lasts, but it blooms only about a week. During this time, if the weather is fair, the bees swarm over the fields from early morn till dewey eve.”--J. D. Rowan, Tupelo, Miss. Gleanings, Sept. 15, 1909.

“The cowpea is one of our most abundant sources of honey for late summer. The crop is planted here from May 1 to August 1, and furnishes nectar through a considerable period of otherwise scarcity. Unlike other plants, the stems, and not the blossoms, secrete the nectar as the young pods are forming. These the bees work upon excessively. The honey is of good body, thick, deep, approaching dark yellow in color, and of strong taste like that of tulip-poplar, only stronger, with a somewhat slight, wild-green-bean-like flavor.”--C. C. Gettys, Hollis, N. C. Gleanings, Sept. 14, 1909.

“A small patch of peas was covered with bees from morning till night. Nearly all of them were working on the stalks, as usual; but here and there I saw a few Italians pushing their tongues down into the blossoms. I have never noticed any pollen from the field peas.”--Mrs. Ameda Ellis, Fremont, Mo. Gleanings, June 1, 1910.

“The peas bloom when there is a honey dearth and the bees gather honey from them. However, I notice they do not work on them much if there is a better honey plant blooming at the same time. My bees get a good deal of nice honey from them.”--G. H. Latham, Jr., Rapidan, Va. Gleanings, May 15, 1910.

COYOTE WEED, see Turkey Mullein.

CRAB APPLE (Malus).

There are several species of wild crab apples native to America. The fruit is small and sour and of little value. The blossoms are rose colored and very fragrant, making the tree worthy of cultivation as an ornamental. As a source of honey the wild crab apple ranks with the cultivated apple and other fruit trees. The blossoms appear from March to May and serve to stimulate spring brood rearing, though where abundant, strong colonies may gather some surplus.

The southern crab apple (=Malus angustifolia=) occurs in open woods from southern Pennsylvania south to Florida and west to Louisiana and Missouri.

The American crab apple (=Malus coronaria=) is common from eastern Canada to Michigan and south to Alabama and South Carolina. It is a small tree and often grows in dense thickets, where it furnishes ideal bee pasturage.

The Soulard crab apple (=Malus soulardi=) is much like the American crab apple in tree and flower, but has a larger fruit, which leads some authors to regard it as a hybrid between the cultivated apple and a native species. It is sometimes cultivated for its fruit, which is used as a substitute for quince. It occurs in the wild state from Minnesota to Texas, but not very common.

The Oregon crab apple (=Malus diversifolia=), is a native of the Pacific Coast from Alaska through Western Canada south to California. The fruit was formerly dried by the Indians for winter use.

All the wild crab apples are valuable sources of nectar, though the principal value is to stimulate early brood rearing.

CRIMSON CLOVER (Trifolium incarnatum).

Crimson clover is grown in the Southern States, but is not hardy in the North. It is an earlier bloomer than the other clovers. The blossoms are more showy than either alsike or red clover. The plant is an annual, and must be resown to perpetuate a field.

The honey yield is reported to be good and the quality similar to that of the other clovers. It is nowhere grown on the scale of the others, so is not so-well known as a source of honey.

Bonnier gives it third rank as a honey yielder, while the British Bee Journal states that it is about on a par with buckwheat, and that neither is satisfactory when honey of later yield is worked for.

Niswonger lists it as a very important plant in Kentucky, and states that the honey is of a very light yellow color of good quality.

pollen in spring.]

CROCUS.

A group of early spring flowers native to the Mediterranean region of Europe, widely cultivated in gardens. Among the first flowers to bloom, they are very attractive to the bees, as shown in Fig. 47.

CROTON (Croton).

Scholl lists four species of croton as yielding pollen and nectar in Texas, though none of them are of much importance. Richter states that the bees visit the small blossoms of =Croton californicus= in large numbers. The author can find no records which indicate that the plants are of special value anywhere.

CROWNBEARD (Verbesina).

There are several species of this plant, some of which are very attractive to the bees. They may be found in the borders of open woodlands and partially shaded situations of the region east of the Missouri River. Where sufficiently abundant the crownbeard is the source of a considerable quantity of nectar. A coarse weed, growing four to eight feet tall, with winged stems and yellow, or sometimes white, blossoms.

CUCUMBER (Cucumis sativus).

The cucumber is dependent upon bees for pollination of the blossoms. The flowers are imperfect, the male organs being contained in one flower while the female organs are in another. For this reason it is necessary that insects carry the pollen from the staminate blossoms to the pistillate ones. Where pickles have been grown under glass, they have proved unfruitful until bees are given access to the bloom. Formerly the pickle growers fertilized the blossoms by hand to some extent. This was very laborious. According to B. N. Gates (In 3rd Report Iowa Bee Inspector), one grower has forty acres under glass in Massachusetts and the industry requires about three thousand colonies of bees annually to serve in the cucumber greenhouses.

In some sections, cucumbers are grown extensively for pickles. At Marengo, Ill., Doctor Miller reports that about 600 acres are planted to pickles. He reports that, whereas he formerly had no fall flow, his bees now gather some fall crop, part of it evidently from cucumbers. There are numerous localities where cucumbers are of some importance to the beekeeper. Lovell states that the honey is pale yellow or amber and has at first a rather strong flavor, which largely disappears in time.

CUP PLANT (Silphium perfoliatum).

Cup plant, also called rosin weed, is a common square-stemmed plant with leaves grown together at the base forming a cup. It grows from four to eight feet high and is abundant on rich lands, along streams and in woodside borders, in the Mississippi Valley. It produces numerous large yellow flowers and, where plentiful, furnishes considerable forage for the bees. It is probably seldom important as a source of surplus.

CULVER’S ROOT (Veronica virginica).

The Culver’s root is found from New England and Ontario to Manitoba and southward to Arkansas and Georgia. There are reports to the effect that the bees fairly swarm on this plant, but apparently it is not of much importance to the beekeeper.

CURRANT (Ribes).

There are several varieties of the cultivated garden currant and many species of the wild currants which are valuable sources of nectar. There are at least seven species of wild currant native to New Mexico. It is probable that some species of wild currants are to be found in every State where bees are kept. In the vicinity of large plantings of cultivated currants they are an important source of nectar, but generally speaking, they are a minor source and of chief value for pollen and for stimulating early brood rearing along with most other fruits.

CYNOGLOSSUM, see Hound’s Tongue.

D

DAHOON, see Holly.

source of nectar.]

DANDELION (Taraxacum officinale).

The dandelion is one of the most widely distributed plants in America. Originally introduced from Europe, it has been naturalized over practically the entire continent. As each plant will produce hundreds of seeds, which are borne for long distances on the wind, its wide distribution is not surprising. The plant is sometimes used for medicinal purposes, serving as a mild laxative and tonic. The tender shoots are very popular as a table delicacy in early spring, with those who are fond of greens. The bright yellow flowers are very showy, and if the plant was not so abundant, would be considered attractive. The warfare against the dandelion is as relentless and as continuous as the campaign against the house fly. Little is to be accomplished by digging the plants from one’s own lawn, when a whole pastureful are going to seed a mile or two away.

The beekeeper has little to complain of from these weeds, as there is nothing of greater value during the short period of bloom. While the honey gathered from dandelions is dark and strong, most of it will be consumed for brood rearing. Occasionally a small surplus will be secured from this source, but it blooms so early that surplus is unusual. Large quantities of pollen as well as nectar are produced, so that a large acreage of dandelions within reach of the apiary is much to be desired. Fig. 50 shows the plant as it appears during the period of bloom, with blossoms and unopened buds.

Hon. Eugene Secor, the beekeeper’s poet, has written a number of things regarding the intimate relation existing between bees and flowers, and for one of these, the dandelion furnished the inspiration:

“Here’s a bee, my children see! Gathering sweets for you and me, On Sir Dandy Lion’s crown; She is yellow that was brown, Yellow with the golden dust Lent to her in solemn trust; Blossoms bart’ring gold for gold. Through this dusty trader bold, Dandy Lion seeks a bride, Sends his offerings far and wide With his trusty friend, the bee, And with Honey pays the fee.”

DATE-PLUM, see Persimmon.

DEER CLOVER, see Wild Alfalfa.

DEER’S EARS, see Monument Plant.

DELAWARE--Honey Sources of.

Clover, tulip-tree, willows, maples, fruit bloom, dandelion, heartsease, buckwheat, blueberry, huckleberry, boneset and asters are among the well-known sources of honey in Delaware. Beekeeping is not highly developed in this State and few pay serious attention to honey production.

DEVIL’S CLAW, see Acacia.

DEVIL’S SHOESTRING, see Bluevine.

DEWBERRY, see Blackberry.

DIERVILLA, see Bush Honeysuckle.

DOCTOR-GUM, see Poisonwood.

DOGBANE (Apocynum).

When not in bloom the dogbane resembles the milkweed. There are several species found in Europe, temperate Asia and North America. In the United States there are two common species, =Apocynum cannabinum=, known as Indian hemp, Canadian hemp or Choctaw root, and =Apocynum androsaemifolium=, the spreading dogbane.

Dogbane can be distinguished from milkweed by the finer stem and smaller leaves. The stems are unusually reddish in color. By Fig. 51 it will be seen that the flowers are very different. At times the bees work on this plant very freely. It is especially abundant in some localities along the Missouri River in Kansas and Missouri.

DOGWOOD (Cornus).

The dogwoods or flowering cornels are a large group of shrubs with showy flowers. Some species are common over all of Eastern America, from Nova Scotia and New Brunswick south and west to Texas. The group is not important to the beekeeper, although occasionally some honey is reported from them. W. C. Brass reports that in central Arkansas smooth dogwood (=Cornus femine=), locally called spicewood or buckbrush, is very abundant, and the bees work upon it industriously during May. He reports, however, that it is uncertain in its value, the bees not working upon it every year. H. B. Parks reports that the bees work upon the red dogwood (=Cornus paniculata=) in Missouri, but the author never knew them to work on this species in Iowa.

Scholl lists =Cornus asperifolia= as yielding nectar freely in Texas, though the species is not plentiful.

DOORWEED, see Heartsease.

DROUGHT-WEED, see Turkey Mullein.

E

EBONY, see Texan Ebony.

ECHINOPS SPHOEROCEPHALUS, see Chapman Honey Plant.

ECHIUM, see Blueweed.

ELDERBERRY (Sambucus canadensis).

The American elder or elderberry is a common shrub from New Brunswick west to Saskatchewan and south to Arizona and Texas. Fig. 52 shows the flower clusters of the common elder (=Sambucus canadensis=). Since the plant blooms late in May and June, there is usually an abundance of pollen in most localities. The bees, however, gather the pollen freely at times, and it is of value where pollen is not plentiful at this season.

The berries are used for pies and wine. The flowers and bark are used to some extent for medicinal purposes.

Richter lists the blue elderberry (=Sambucus glauca=) as important for pollen in California, but as yielding no nectar.

ELM (Ulmus).

The elms are very attractive to the bees for pollen. The American or white elm is more especially valuable, and a large tree will attract so many bees that the humming sounds like a swarm.

There are numerous reports of nectar from elm in Texas. Scholl lists the winged elm (=Ulmus alata=) as giving a good yield of honey, surplus sometimes being secured from it. He described the honey as amber in color, with strong and characteristic aroma. He also lists the American elm as a source of nectar.

EPILOBIUM, see Fireweed.

ERIOGONUM, Wild Buckwheat or Flat Top.

A group of low annual or perennial plants common to the Rocky Mountain and plains States. It is a large group and numerous species are to be found from Nebraska to California. In New Mexico the Eriogonum are among the commonest plants, there being something like forty species recorded from that State. The best known is the wild buckwheat of southern California (=Eriogonum fasciculatum=). This is an important source of nectar in that region. The honey is said to be light amber and of good flavor. It granulates readily.

Richter lists it as the most important honey plant in many southern California localities.

In Colorado =Eriogonum effusum= is sometimes known as “heather.” According to Herman Rauchfuss it yields nectar nearly every year when there are late rains. It blooms in August and September and is usually in bloom for some time before the bees are attracted to it. He sometimes gets a super of comb honey per colony from this source. The honey he reports to be amber, of fine quality, and strong aroma, of which one does not easily tire.

It grows abundantly on the prairies about Denver. The plant is small and inconspicuous, with minute flowers, and is not generally recognized as a honey plant among beekeepers of Colorado.

“Wild buckwheat (=Eriogonum fasciculatum=) is one of the principal honey plants of southern California. In the Acton, Antelope Valley and Elsinore districts it is the main reliance. Although quite abundant at lower levels, it does not yield much nectar below 1,500 feet nor above 5,000 feet. The honey is a deep light amber, but of fine flavor, and the comb is very white. The honey has such a heavy body that it is seldom extracted.”--J. D. Bixby, Western Honeybee, May, 1917, page 116.

ERODIUM, see Pin Clover.

(_Eucalyptus globulus_).]

EUCALYPTUS.

There are about one hundred and fifty different species of eucalyptus trees, most of which are native to Australia and Tasmania, where they are the most characteristic and important timber trees. Many of them secrete resinous gums, hence are called “gum trees.” A number of commercial products are derived from them. They have been widely introduced into California, and, to some extent, also into Florida, Texas and other Southern States. The various species are known as sugar gum, blue gum, mahogany gum, red gum, stringy bark, white iron bark, red box tree and various similar names. Richter lists 21 species as yielding honey in California. According to this author there is a great variation in the quality of honey from the different species. While some species seem to yield water-white honey of good quality, others produce an amber product of low value. The blue gum (=Eucalyptus globulus=) is said to produce “honey, amber, of acid flavor, heavy body and granulating within a few months. The blue gum is very constant in nectar secretion, even in spite of unfavorable weather, and since it is of wide distribution, considerable quantities of honey come from this source. On account of the pronounced flavor of eucalyptus honey there is little or no demand for it in the retail trade.”

On the other hand, he describes white ironbark (=Eucalyptus leucoxylon=) “a great honey producer, with a beautiful flavor much like vanilla extract.”

Almost all of the honey seems to be gathered from the sources which produce the poorer grade, so that the eucalyptus honey is not favorably known in the markets.

The blooming period of the different species varies so that there are some in bloom at all times during the year. The blue gum, already mentioned, blooms from December until June, while the sugar gum blooms from August to November. Several species bloom during the winter months, when they are especially valuable in sustaining the bees until the time of the main honeyflows. Fig. 53 shows the eucalyptus blossoms.

At the California short course, at Davis, in 1918, M. H. Mendleson, of Ventura, spoke as follows concerning this source:

“Every winter the gum, or eucalyptus, comes into bloom. Last winter they filled two or three stories high on eucalyptus. I got 171⁄2 cents per pound for it; previously I never could get more than 4 cents, but it was seldom that I got a surplus from this source. The most eucalyptus honey I have ever known was gathered last spring.

“The scarlet bloom (=Eucalyptus ficifolia=) is one of the greatest honey producers I have ever known. It grows from 10 to 25 feet and has a brilliant bloom, in clusters, a beautiful sight. * * * The honey is of fine flavor, water white. You can see the nectar wave in the flower cup when you shake it. The flow sometimes lasts a month. It will stand a light frost, but not a heavy one. Our hot east winds are very hard on it, as they scorch the trees.”

EUPATORIUM, see Boneset.

EUPHORBIA, see Snow-On-the-Mountain, also Poinsettia.

F

FALSE INDIGO (Amorpha fruticosa).

False indigo is a tall shrub common to low lands along streams from Pennsylvania west to the plains. It grows in thickets and is very attractive to the bees. It is of special importance in Nebraska and Kansas. In the Arkansas Valley beekeepers report that bees get both nectar and pollen in considerable quantity, though it is seldom mentioned as a source of surplus. Nebraska beekeepers value it because it fills in the period between fruit bloom and white clover.

FARKLE-BERRY or SPARKLE-BERRY (Vaccinum arboreum).

The farkle-berry or sparkle-berry is also known as winter huckleberry and tree huckleberry. It is a tall shrub 6 to 25 feet in height and common from southern Illinois and Missouri east to North Carolina and south to Texas and Florida. In parts of Arkansas it is one of the main sources of honey. W. C. Brass writes that in Lonoke County, near the center of the State, it is very abundant and takes the place of clover further north. It blooms in May and the bees roar on the sparkle-berry bushes like swarming time. It belongs to the group of plants to which the blueberries belong and most of these are good honey plants.

FIDDLE NECK, see Phacelia.

FIGWORT (Scrophularia marilandica).

Simpson honey plant, or figwort, is another widely distributed plant. It is common in the woods from Maine to the Rocky Mountains and south to the Gulf. It is also said to occur on the Pacific Coast. The same, or a similar plant occurs in Europe and Asia.

It is a tall growing plant from 3 to 6 feet high, with numerous small branches. The stem is four angled, with rather long-pointed leaves. The flowers are very numerous and quite small, as will be seen by the picture, Fig. 55. It blooms in the late summer and is freely visited by the bees.

FILLAREE, see Pin Clover.

FIREWEED or WILLOW HERB (Epilobium angustifolium).

Fireweed is a common plant in the woodlands of the Northern States and of Canada. It is a tall herb with attractive pink blossoms on a long terminal spike, as shown in Fig. 56. It springs up following forest fires and covers the burned district with a dense growth. The blooming period is long, lasting from July till frost, as new blossoms appear as the older ones fade. It is important as a source of honey in much of eastern Canada, Minnesota, parts of Michigan. Wisconsin and on the Pacific Coast, where it is also valuable in Oregon, Washington and parts of Montana. It is gradually crowded out by other growth. A locality may yield great crops of fireweed honey for two or three years and then little surplus be gathered from it for many years. The author has visited beekeepers in Northern Michigan who count on an average of fifty pounds or more per colony, with as high as 125 pounds, in locations where fireweed was yielding. As fireweed disappears in that locality, raspberry and milkweed follow, and these are also good sources, so that the location does not suffer from the change.

Honey from fireweed is very light in color and of high quality. The late W. Z. Hutchinson, who wrote much concerning beekeeping in the forest region of northern Michigan, styled it as the whitest and finest-flavored honey with which he was acquainted.

As the timber is removed, settlement gradually clears the land, and the wild growth gives place to cultivated fields and pastures. Most of the fireweed country is also good clover territory, so that the beekeepers need not fear the development of the country.

FLAT TOP, see Eriogonum.

FLEA WEED, see Blue Curls.

FLORIDA--Honey Plants of.

Wild Pennyroyal in southern half of the State.

Titi, in pine swamps in northern portion, gives surplus only in west Florida.

Black Tupelo, in same territory as titi, bad weather makes the yield uncertain.

White tupelo in low swamps over west Florida; main source in swamps along the Appalachicola and Chipola rivers in Calhoun County.

Orange from the north central portion to the southern end of the peninsula.

Andromeda, central and northwestern part of the State, not important.

Gallberry or holly grows in almost all parts of Florida, but does best in north part of the State.

Saw or scrub palmetto thrives on sandy soils, doing best on moist hummocks.

Black mangrove grows on lands overflowed daily by salt water along the east coast, but yields best on east side.

Partridge pea grows in great abundance in the high pine lands of the northern half of the State.

Cabbage palmetto reaches its greatest height on the coasts and keys of the southern section. Yields heavily when it does yield.

Manchineel, on southern coast and keys as far north as Palm Beach.

Dogwood, along the keys and southern coast.

Pigeon cherry, same range as the two preceding.

In addition there are a number of such fall flowers as wild sunflowers, asters, goldenrods and thoroughwort.

Four-fifths of all the surplus honey produced in the State comes from the blossoms of nectar-producing trees or shrubs, not flowering plants.--E. G. Baldwin in Gleanings in Bee Culture, March and April, 1911.

FLORIDA MAHOGANY, see Red Bay.

FLOWERING RASPBERRY, see Salmon Berry.

FRUIT BLOOM.

All the orchard fruits are of more or less value to the beekeeper, and few differentiate between them when speaking of the sources of early nectar. In localities where a great variety of fruit is grown, the blooming period is longer than where there are large orchards of one kind. In most localities the beekeepers depend upon fruit blossoms for building up their colonies in spring, and when the weather is unfavorable at this time, feeding is often necessary to carry the bees until the next honeyflow. Apples, peaches, pears, plums, apricots and cherries all secrete nectar abundantly and, given strong colonies of bees and favorable weather, large quantities of surplus honey should be gathered from these trees. If it were possible to bring the bees through the winter as strong as in the fall, there is no estimating the amount of honey that would be gathered from the early blooming orchard fruits.

FOG FRUIT, see Carpet grass.

FRASERA, see Monument Plant.

FURZE, see Gorse.

G

GAILLARDIA, see Marigold.

GALLBERRY (Ilex glabra). See also Holly.

The gallberry, in some localities better known as inkberry, is usually heard of as a honey plant only in the South. However, it occurs as far north as Nova Scotia, on the seashore, and along the coast from Massachusetts to Virginia and Florida, and west to Louisiana. It is a common shrub in the low pine barrens of the Gulf States. It is a small evergreen shrub with small, dark leaves. It is an important honey plant in southern Georgia, where it is widely distributed over the sandy lands, especially of the coastal plains. It is important, also, in the Carolinas. It grows in dense thickets and rapidly extends over newly cleared lands. Fig. 57.

“As a honey plant perhaps it has no equal in the southeast. We have never failed to get a surplus from it, even during the most unfavorable weather conditions. It begins to bloom the first of May and continues for 24 to 28 days. During this time bees disregard other bloom, working it up to about 8 o’clock for the pollen; then the flow comes on for the remainder of the day. * * * It is a great bloomer; even the stems are rolls of bloom. * * * We have never taken off a large crop of this honey, as 147 pounds of surplus is the best crop we have ever had from one colony. The honey is a light amber color, has a heavy body, a very mild taste, and is highly flavored. The demand for this honey is so great that we cannot furnish our local markets, consequently very little is shipped from the southeast to other markets.

“We have raised tons of this honey and have never seen a pound of the pure article, well ripened, that granulated.

“It has been said that it is impossible to overstock a good gallberry location. We do not know that this statement is true, but we have never heard of one being overstocked. We have had bees in a location where there were 362 colonies, with the same result as with 100 colonies. Good gallberry locations are nearly numberless and large quantities of this fine honey are wasted every year in localities where there is not a bee to gather it. The gallberry should be included in the list of the best honey plants.”--J. J. Wilder, Cordele, Ga. Gleanings, page 1200, September, 1907.

GAURA.

There are several species of gaura of wide distribution. Although frequently mentioned as honey plants, they are seldom of sufficient abundance to be important.

Scholl reports that =Gaura filiformis= occasionally yields surplus in Texas, when conditions are favorable. The red gaura is reported as of value in Colorado. (See Red Gaura.)

GELSEMIUM, see Yellow Jasmine.

GEORGIA--Honey flora of.

The earliest blooming of our spring forage plants is the alder (=alnus=), which commences about the middle of January and lasts, some seasons, till the middle of February. It yields little or no honey, but during its time of bloom, its pollen-laden catkins are covered with bees. The amount of pollen that this plant affords is immense; and it comes in a time when breeding should be most encouraged.

In some sections of the South, particularly on light, sandy soils, there may be found some yellow jasmine (=Gelsemium sempervirens=). As its flowers possess very decided toxical properties, it is not a very desirable plant to have within range of one’s bees. It blooms after the alder. While our native black bees are very seldom seen working upon it, the Italians, in some seasons, will work upon it quite briskly. I am inclined to think, from close observation, that it is mostly pollen they gather from it, though in some seasons it does yield some honey.

The wild plum (in some sections known as the hog plum) usually commences to bloom the last of February and lasts for two or three weeks. This is peculiarly a southern tree, and grows to great perfection nearly everywhere. Whole acres are often covered with it, forming a dense thicket, thus affording the bees rich pasture.

In March we have the peach, the apple (which continues into April), the mock orange, or evergreen wild cherry (=Cerasus carolinaensis=), the huckleberry, strawberry, and a few other plants of minor consideration. Further south they have the titi, the saw palmetto and the orange, all good forage plants.

The willow, wild cherry, hawthorn, blackberries, raspberries, locust, holly and tulip tree (=Liriodendron tulipifera=) bloom in April. The two latter are most valuable for honey. The holly blooms for about two weeks--the height of its flowering is about the first week in May. The tulip tree blooms for three weeks. This is the poplar tree of the south.

In May we have the black gum (=Nyssa multiflora=) and the persimmon, both excellent for forage. The blooms of these trees are dioecious, that is, the male flower is found on one plant and the female flower on another. Bees are very seldom seen working on the female tree, while on the male bloom they work in a continuous swarm.

In May, also blooms the bay (=Magnolia glauca=). This tree flowers for at least one month, and extends into June. It affords some of our best and most abundant forage. The =Magnolia grandiflora=, linden and China berry (=Melia azedarach=) bloom also in May. The magnolia blooms for six weeks, the linden from six to ten days, and the China tree for two weeks.

Sourwood, the varnish tree (=Sterculia platanifolia=), Japan privet (=Ligustrum=) and a few other plants of less note embrace the principal forage in June.

I have now enumerated the chief honey-producing plants that go to make up our spring honey harvest. Take one season with another, our bees commence to lay up surplus about the last of April and continue until the first or middle of June. After this date but little honey is gathered from the holly, persimmon, black gum, bay and sourwood. Of course, some seasons there is considerable honey gathered from other sources. The color of the honey is usually a little dark, but of excellent flavor.

There is comparatively little forage during the summer months of July and August. The button bust (=Cephalanthus occidentalis=), sumach, =Asclepias tuberosa= (known as pleurisy root and butterfly weed), and =Yucca alnifolia= (Spanish bayonet), are the most important. The cotton plant, which generally commences to bloom about the first of July, yields largely of pollen, but very little honey. Sumach is a rich mellifluous plant, but the warm, dry atmosphere evaporates the secretion very rapidly, so that the bees can only work on it very early in the morning, while the dew is on. The Spanish bayonet plant no doubt furnishes some nectar. It generally swarms with flies, various sorts of wild bees, and now and then a few honeybees will visit it.

Bees are generally able to gather sufficient stores during July and August to keep up brood rearing and the strength of the colony until the blooming of the autumn forage.

The first to bloom of the fall pasturage is the =Chrysopsis graminifolia= of Nuttall, a perennial, composite. This plant is often taken for a species of dog fennel, but it is altogether distinct. It is indigenous to the south from Florida to North Carolina, which seems to be its northern limit. It is a yellow flowering weed that commences to bloom in August and keeps on till frost.

The goldenrod and the asters bloom till killed by frost. I esteem both these plants very highly for their honey-producing qualities. In some seasons I have hives filled with aster honey alone.--Dr. J. H. P. Brown, Augusta, Ga. American Bee Journal, Page 500, 1880.

GERMANDER or WOOD SAGE (Teucrium canadense).

The germander, also known as wood sage, is found in open woodlands and thickets from Nova Scotia to Nebraska, and south to Florida and Texas. It is common in the Central States, and is much sought by the bees. The blooming period is long. In 1915 the bees were working on this plant in the writer’s garden for nearly two months. Apparently this plant does not secrete nectar very freely, yet it is an excellent plant to keep the bees at work when they might otherwise be robbing. The writer does not recall ever having seen a locality where it was sufficiently abundant to amount to very much by itself, though it is a valuable addition to the other honey-producing flora. Fig. 58 shows the blossoms and leaves, which bear some resemblance to catnip.

GIANT HYSSOP (Agastache nepetoides).

Giant hyssop is a tall perennial herb with flowers crowded on a terminal spike, flowering in summer. It is common in woodland borders from New England to Minnesota and south to North Carolina and Texas. Lovell lists it as blooming about six weeks and much visited by honeybees. Probably nowhere important.

GILIA.

Jepson lists 18 species of gilia as common to California. The late Prof. A. J. Cook, writing of gilia in the American Bee Journal stated that all the gilias are good honey plants. He mentioned =Gilia capitata= as the source of quantities of sky-blue pollen. He mentions the fact that several species yield pollen of a blue color. It is probably a source of minor importance, since it is seldom mentioned except incidentally in the literature.

GOLDEN GLOW, see Coneflower.

GOLDEN HONEY PLANT (Actinomeris squarrosa).

The golden honey plant is common from New York to Michigan and Nebraska, and southward to the Gulf States. This plant is closely related to the crownbeard and is sometimes classified as a verbesina. It grows in rich bottom lands and in the borders of woods and fields, reaching a height of 4 to 8 feet. The yellow flowers are very attractive to the bees and, where sufficiently common, are a valuable source of nectar.

GOLDENROD (Solidago).

Of the eighty species of goldenrod all but three or four belong to North America. It is one of our most widely distributed native plants. Some species seem adapted to nearly every condition from Canada to Mexico and from the Atlantic Coast to California. There is a wide difference, however, in the value of the different species to the beekeeper, and it is no easy task to get reliable information regarding the range of conditions under which it secretes nectar abundantly, nor is there much recorded information concerning the particular species which are most valuable for this purpose. It is a well-known fact that the secretion of nectar with any plant is greatly influenced by soil and climatic conditions. Some of our most valuable honey plants have been reported as producing no nectar when introduced into Australia.

It is very probable that when we have studied the matter carefully we will find that the same species of goldenrod varies as much in its nectar secretion under different conditions as we know to be the case with alfalfa.

Lovell is of the opinion that all species of goldenrods secrete nectar in some localities. This is quite probable, although there is very little honey from goldenrod in Iowa from any species. Along the upper Mississippi, in the northeastern counties, a few beekeepers report honey from goldenrod. In other sections of Iowa beekeepers report that they have never seen a bee on the plant. Dr. L. H. Pammel, botanist at the State Experiment Station, reports nine species of goldenrods common to that State. He lists =S. serotina=, =S. canadensis= and =S. graminifolia= as furnishing some honey here. If Lovell is right about all yielding nectar under some conditions, then all are of interest to the beekeeper, and it remains a question of learning the conditions under which each species develops most favorably. If all do not yield nectar, it is important that we learn to distinguish between the species which are valuable honey plants and those which are troublesome weeds.

fine honey plant in New England.]

Richter lists only two species of this plant as important in California. The western goldenrod (=S. occidentalis=), he mentions as common in wet places such as marshes and river banks, from August to October, yielding an amber honey. =S. californica=, the common goldenrod of the coast, he describes as common on dry plains and hillsides or mountains throughout the State, from August to December. He lists it as a fair honey plant.

Scholl reports goldenrods as common to all parts of Texas, and states that the honey yield is good in favorable seasons when it is not too dry. He reports a long season, from April to November, but gives no list of the species furnishing nectar in that region.

Sladen reports finding eleven species of goldenrods about Ottawa. He finds that individually the =canadensis= group (Fig. 64) produce comparatively little nectar, but their great abundance makes them important collectively.

of the best for honey.]

Sladen also notes the variation of the plant under different conditions and says that the nature of the land determines the presence and abundance of the best species. He reports that in the wet lands of Charlotte County, N. B., especially in the Honeydale district, they, together with asters, furnish the principal source of nectar, and that they are valuable generally as a source of surplus in coastal districts of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. The same is said of eastern Manitoba. He places the yield at from 50 to 80 pounds per colony in localities where the best species of goldenrod and asters abound. The honey is usually of good quality, ranging in color in the different districts from white to dark amber. That gathered in swampy districts is usually bright golden. Evidently goldenrod honey is seldom stored separate from aster in localities from which these reports are made.

canadensis_).]

Mr. Sladen describes three types of locations in which the plants may be found in Canada:

1. Open swamp or bog, where =S. uglinosa= and =S. rugosa= are found. The former begins blooming in August, while the latter blooms until mid-September, so that there is more than a month of flow from these plants. Although the bogs are independent of rain during the honey flow, fine weather and moderate warmth are necessary to a crop.

2. Sandy or gravelly barrens or plains. On the coast, as well as inland, on such lands are found =S. puberula= (Fig. 60), while inland are to be found in addition, =S. squarrosa= (Fig. 59) and the less important =S. hispida= (Fig. 61). Good rains in early August, followed by fine and warm weather, bring best results.

3. A restricted area centering in Cumberland County, Nova Scotia, in which =S. Graminifolia= is a troublesome weed (Fig. 62.)

He further reports that the roadside goldenrods of old Ontario are not heavy producers of honey under ordinary conditions.

In an article on the Honey Flora of New England, which appeared in the April, 1916, American Bee Journal, Lovell states as follows:

“If I were compelled to stake the existence of bee culture in New England on a single genus of plants I should select the goldenrods. There are many species, and they all yield nectar and pollen. They begin to bloom in midsummer and continue to bloom in October. They are very common and there are species adapted to the seashore, the fields, the rocks and the woods. I have never known the flow of nectar to fail, and a great quantity of heavy, yellow honey is stored annually.”

Mr. Lovell has kindly sent me his field notes on these plants. There is a large amount of interesting information which space will not permit inserting here. The notes include the study of six species, all of which produce some nectar in Maine. He describes the tall, hairy goldenrod =S. rugosa= (Fig. 63) as the latest to blossom and the most valuable as a honey plant. It is found in damp thickets and on moist land. While in bloom the bees work it very diligently and the honey is stored rapidly. The apiary is filled with a sour odor, which, in the evening, is noticeable at a distance.

Goldenrod honey, according to him, is deep golden yellow in color, thick and heavy, with a more decided flavor than white clover honey. When extracted it granulates in a month or two, but the bees winter on it perfectly.

Next in importance he places the bushy goldenrod (=S. graminifolia=) (Fig. 62). This is common in fields, open woodlands and hedgerows. The odor is faint, but the nectar is clearly visible in the flowers. He reports as many as six honeybees at work at one time on a single flower cluster. It will be noted that this is one of the species which Doctor Pammel mentions as yielding nectar in Iowa. Sladen also cites it as important in Canada.

Graenicher collected 135 different species of insects on this species in Wisconsin.

The cream-colored goldenrod, sometimes called white goldenrod (=S. bicolor=), is of special interest because of the fact that it is the only one of the group which is not yellow in color. Although it produces nectar, I can find no record which indicates that it is of much importance as a honey plant anywhere. Lovell says that it is of little value in Maine.

The early goldenrod (=S. juncea=) (Fig. 65), is the first to bloom in Maine and is very abundant in old fields. The bees visit it freely, but apparently do not get much honey from it.

Graenicher states that he has collected 182 different species of insects on this plant, in Wisconsin, which indicates the presence of considerable nectar in that locality.

General Reports

In searching through the beekeeping literature for reports on honey from golden rods I seldom find the particular species mentioned. There are numerous reports of honey from goldenrod, but this is as far as the report usually goes.

“Two colonies of bees taken to a sandy plain forty miles north of Ottawa, August 25, each gathered, in three weeks, about 40 pounds of surplus honey from =S. puberula= and =S. squarrosa=. It is estimated that at least three-fourths of the honey came from =S. puberula=, which was much more abundant than =S. squarrosa=. The honey is of a light color and the flavor and aroma are pleasant and distinctly suggestive of goldenrod.”--Sladen, in 36th report, Ontario, B. K. A.

“You ought to see the bees work on it. They store lots of honey from it. Last year I had five or six nuclei which did not have any stores at all on the first of September, but when I went to feed them for winter I found they had twenty pounds of nice honey gathered from goldenrod. They all came through the winter in good condition.”--Kentucky. Gleanings in Bee Culture.

“The goldenrod is one of our main sources for a fall flow. The bees usually fill one or more supers from it.”--Connecticut. Gleanings in Bee Culture.

“My bees have gathered lots of goldenrod honey this fall, and at times the odor has been offensive to the neighbors.”--Vermont. Gleanings in Bee Culture.

“Smartweed and goldenrod grow here, but do not furnish any honey. Never saw a bee on them.”--Iowa. American Bee Journal.

GOOSEBERRY (Grossularia).

Gooseberries are native American shrubs with stems covered with sharp thorns or spines. There are several species widely distributed. They are very attractive to the bees and are of some importance, especially where grown in large plantings for market. The wild varieties are common in open woodlands in nearly every section of the country.

GOLDEN WATTLE, see Acacia.

GOPHER WOOD, see Yellow Wood.

GORSE or FURZE (Ulex europaeus).

Figure 66 is a spiny evergreen shrub with yellow flowers that is common in Europe, where it is said to be used to some extent for fuel and fodder. There are few references to it in this country. In California it is said to bloom during all seasons, although much more freely in spring. Richter reports it as a very good honey plant on the hills of Marin County.

GRANJENO, see Hackberry.

GRAPE (Vitis).

The grape family is represented by wild species in all parts of the temperate regions of both hemispheres, and by cultivated species in nearly all parts of the world. There are about thirty species of wild grapes, and where sufficiently common they are very attractive to the bees. In many localities cultivated grapes are grown in large acreage. The nectar yield is not as abundant as with many plants, but is of some value where the vines are largely grown. Quantities of pollen are gathered from this source. At times honeydew is gathered from the leaves.

Scholl lists the mountain grape (=Vitis monticola=) as giving a fairly good honey yield and furnishing pollen for early brood rearing. Richter lists the California wild grape as yielding some honey.

Bees and Grapes

Of the disagreements between fruit growers and beekeepers, probably those growing out of the tendency of the bees to suck the juice from cracked grapes have been most serious. Many unfortunate misunderstandings have resulted from such circumstances, though the injury was as great to the beekeeper as to the fruit grower, in many cases.

This condition arises from a combination of circumstances which does not often occur in the average locality. In the first place, the bees do not seek the grapes when there is plenty of nectar in the field, and, beside, they are unable to reach the juice unless the grape has first cracked open through unfavorable weather conditions or has been injured by birds, wasps, or other agency. Grape growers, seeing the bees at work in the vineyards, have often accused the bees of injury to the fruit. The fact of the matter is that the bee is unable to puncture the fruit, and only sucks the juice from such fruits as have already been broken open and are already damaged.

Wet weather often causes ripening grapes to crack open to such an extent that they would be of little value, even though no insect touched them thereafter. In dry weather, also, birds sometimes pierce the skins, apparently in search of moisture from lack of an available water supply. Some authorities say that at such times a liberal supply of water in open vessels near the vineyard will stop the injury from the birds. The English sparrow is accused of injury to grapes to a larger extent than most birds.

The grape-berry moth infests a great many grapes in some localities. In fact, entomologists state that in some localities as high as 50 per cent of the crop is injured by this insect alone. The fact that the honeybee sucks the juice from the berries which have already been opened by wet weather, grape-berry moths or other causes, does not greatly injure the grape grower, for such fruit is of little value.

The writer has visited the raisin districts of Southern California and discussed this condition with the raisin growers. The accompanying picture (Fig. 67) shows a bunch of raisin grapes that had been sucked dry by the bees. In that locality rains are very infrequent when the raisins are being dried. They are spread out in thin layers in crates and the crates left in the sun, or piled up one above another, till fully dry. Previous to the writer’s visit there had been an unexpected rain, and some raisins were allowed to get wet. As a result they cracked open, and there being just then no available nectar for the bees, they swarmed over the raisins and sucked them dry, as shown in the picture. The grower admitted, however, that the raisins had been so badly damaged by the rain as to be of little value.

skins have been broken by rain.]

The thing which few grape growers seem to understand, is that it is unfortunate, indeed, for the beekeeper in northern regions, whose bees fill their hives with this grape juice. In the north there are long periods during the long winter months when the bees are unable to leave the hive. Since the bee is only able to void her excrement while on the wing, there is a large accumulation of feces during such long confinement. If the bees have only the best white honey for food the tax is severe at best. When they have fruit juice, honeydew or other food containing a large amount of waste matter, the intestines become so distended that the bees die for lack of opportunity of a cleansing flight. Grape growers will in many cases be surprised to learn that thousands of bees die from having filled their combs with fruit juice instead of honey. Of course, the wide-awake beekeeper will remove this material from the hive and give them good honey or sugar syrup instead, if it is possible to do so. This, however, involves a large amount of labor, and the gathering of the juice from the grapes, instead of being an advantage to the beekeeper, is a serious inconvenience to him. In southern California, where there is no winter confinement, there is no particular injury to the bees, other than spoiling the grade of any honey with which it may happen to be mixed.

The late Charles Dadant, who was one of the most widely known beekeepers of the past generation, on one occasion had a difficulty with some growers who could not be made to understand that he was not getting rich at the expense of his neighbors, when his bees were attracted to their grapes. He decided that the only way to convince them that the interests of the beekeeper and the grape grower were mutual, was to grow the largest acreage of grapes in the neighborhood. This he proceeded to do, and after he became the largest grower of grapes in his community there was no longer any criticism, for they could readily see that he had too much at stake in his grapes to permit him to be prejudiced in favor of the bees.

That bees are valuable in securing the fertilization of the blossoms of some varieties of grapes, there is little question.

GRAPE FRUIT (Citrus decumana).

Nowhere in America is the grape fruit cultivated in such extensive orchards as is the case with the orange and lemon. It is recognized as a valuable source of honey, but not equal to either of the foregoing. It is an evergreen tree similar in habit to the other citrus fruits, and the area devoted to its cultivation is being extended in various districts.

Bees are very efficient pollenizers of grape fruit blossoms. The Atwood grape fruit ranch, one of the largest in Florida, is provided with two apiaries, brought there at the request of the manager of the ranch. They hold that the trees bear a larger number of fruits since the bees have been kept in close proximity.

GRASSES.

There are many grasses which are attractive to the bees for pollen. Timothy or herd’s grass produces pollen in great abundance and the bees are often observed gathering it. Occasionally some honeydew may be gathered from the grasses also, but no honey.

GREASEWOOD (Adenostema fasciculatum). CHAMISE.

Greasewood is an evergreen bush or shrub of spreading habit about two to ten feet in height. Jepson describes it as “the most abundant and characteristic bush of the higher coast ranges and Sierra Nevada, commonly gregarious and occupying, to the exclusion of other shrubs, extensive and especially abrupt slopes and mountain ridges. It often forms a distinct zone between the foothills and the yellow pine belt.”

Richter lists it as eagerly sought by the bees in several California counties, though no mention is made of it as a source of surplus honey.

GREENBRIAR (Smilax).

There are several species of greenbriar, some of which are common from Canada to Texas. They grow along watercourses and in open woodlands and the stems are covered with stiff and hard thorns. Scholl lists one species as yielding nectar in Texas. The author found reports to the effect that bees gather honey from greenbriar in McLennan County, Texas. At the same time it was stated that no honey was gathered from it in other nearby sections. The plant seems to be of doubtful value and is not sufficiently abundant to be important.

GRINDELIA, see Gum Weed.

GROUNDSEL, see Butterweed.

GROUND LAUREL, see Arbutus.

GUAIACUM, see Soapbush.

GUAYACAN, see Soapbush.

GUM, see Tupelo, also Eucalyptus.

GUM-ELASTIC or SHITTIM-WOOD (Bumelia lanuginosa rigida).

Gum-elastic is the common name in south Texas for the Arizona buckthorn, a small tree occurring from western Texas to Arizona. It has a short stem with stiff and very spiny branches. It is frequently mentioned as a source of honey in southern Texas.

There are reports to the effect that it sometimes yields a surplus along the Trinity River and that the honey often sours in the combs after being sealed.

GUM TREE, see Eucalyptus, also Tupelo.

GUM WEED or GUM PLANT (Grindelia squarrosa).

The gum weed, also called rosin weed, is a common plant from Wyoming and Colorado south to Arizona, New Mexico and Texas. It occurs sparingly eastward to Minnesota and Missouri. The bright yellow flowers exude a milky resinous gum, which gives rise to its name, “gum weed.” It is also widely known as rosin weed (Fig. 68). It blooms in August and is much sought by the bees. The honey is yellow and of inferior flavor. It is often mixed with light honey in the super and the grade spoiled as a result. In Colorado it is well known by the name of “rosin weed.” There the comb-honey producers complain that it often spoils the quality of their product through being mixed with the honey from alfalfa and sweet clover. Honey from gum weed candies very quickly, so quickly in fact, that Colorado beekeepers say that the bees have to hurry home with the load to prevent it becoming candied in their sacs. Comb honey which candies cannot readily be restored, hence in localities where gum weed is abundant the beekeeper may find it to his advantage to produce extracted honey. Even this does not solve the problem entirely, since the gum weed honey candies in the combs so readily as to make it difficult to extract. There are few reports of large surplus from this source. In most cases it is mixed with other honey and only in such quantity as to make it rather a nuisance than otherwise. The tendency to candy in the combs makes it undesirable for winter stores.

H

HACKBERRY (Celtis).

The hackberries are an important group of trees. There are about sixty species of trees and shrubs which are widely distributed in both the old world and America. There are about half a dozen species known to America, and of these, three are much valued by the beekeepers of Texas. The author has never known the bees to find nectar on the hackberry in the north, and was surprised at the many reports of honey from hackberry received from Texas beekeepers while visiting that State.

The granjeno (=Celtis pallida=) is a shrub common to the mesas and foothills of western and southern Texas. E. G. LeStourgeon, of San Antonio, regards it as the best of all the hackberries, blooming after every good rain. The honey is pale amber in color and of good quality. He reports that honey from all hackberries is of good quality. When the author visited at Brownsville, in February, 1918, the bees were working on the above species very freely at that time.

The Southern hackberry or sugarberry (=Celtis mississippiensis=) is common all over the Gulf and South Atlantic States from Kentucky and southern Illinois to Florida, Arkansas and central Texas. LeStourgeon reports that this species blooms after the others, in March and April, and that while it yields some honey, it is not as good as the others.

The Northern hackberry (=Celtis occidentalis=) is also known as sugarberry, and is common from New England and Ontario to Minnesota, Nebraska, Colorado and southward to Georgia and Texas. The author has never heard a report of bees visiting this species for nectar in the North, but it is reported also as a source of honey in Texas.

HAU TREE (Paritium tiliacium).

“The hau tree of Hawaii has nectaries on its leaves which secrete a honeydew. These are located on the veins of the leaves near the stem, and are one, two, three or five in number. Small drops of honeydew may frequently be seen on these spots. It is interesting to note that these extra-floral nectaries are present on the outside of the calyx of the flowers. There is apparently no true floral nectary. The hau tree is used extensively as a hedge, and grows from 20 to 30 feet high. It is doubtful whether this is the source of any great percentage of the honeydew honey.”--E. F. Phillips, Bul. 75, Part 5, Bureau of Entomology.

HAW, see Hawthorne.

HAWAII--Honey Flora of.

The algarroba tree (=Prosopis juliflora=) is either the same species as, or very closely related to, the mesquite of the southwest. On the islands it grows to the size of a tree, as is also the case in Mexico. In Texas it is generally very much smaller. In 1908 the tree came into bloom about the 1st of March, the time varying considerably in different localities on the islands. It usually blooms until August, and this very long blooming period adds greatly to its value to the beekeepers.

The following list of honey plants, other than algarroba, is furnished by Mr. D. L. Van Dine, Entomologist of the Hawaii Agricultural Experiment Station. Mr. Van Dine has studied the honey sources of the islands very thoroughly:

Forest Trees

“Texas mesquite (=Prosopis glandulosa=). Growing in dooryard of Mr. C. C. Conradt, Pukoo, Island of Molokai. Seeds under propagation at Hawaii Agricultural Experiment Station. Introduced by Mr. Conrad from Texas several years ago.

Ohia lehua (=Metrodsideros polymorpha=). Produces a particularly high grade of honey. Locations for apiaries, as a rule, somewhat inaccessible. One location on the island of Molokai is within the ohia lehua belt.

Various species of Acacia (black wattle, koa, etc.) Mountainous districts.

Various species of eucalyptus. Mountainous districts.

Wiliwili (=Erythrina monosperma=). In gulches on Molokai and Oahu.

Rose-apple (=Eugenia jambos=).

Mamani (=Sophora chrysophylla=). Found in higher forest belts.

Catalpa (=Catalpa speciosa= and =C. bignonioides=). Introduced by Mr. Jared G. Smith, April, 1902, from the Missouri Botanical Gardens.

Logwood (=Haematoxylon campechianum=). Found in dooryards. Two trees are growing in the grounds of Oahu College and one in the grounds of Lunalilo Home, Honolulu. Seeds under propagation at Hawaii Agricultural Experiment Station. The honey produced by bees from this tree is reported to be the finest table honey in the world.

The black mangrove of Florida. Introduced by Mr. Jared G. Smith from Southern Florida, for the purpose of preventing the mud flats from washing along the coast of Molokai, near Kaunakakai. The introduction was made several years ago and the trees are now well established at the above-mentioned place. The tree is a valuable honey plant.

Fruit Trees

Various species of citrous (orange, lemon, lime, etc.)

Avocado (=Persea gratissima=).

Banana (=Musa spp.=).

Guvy (=Psidium spp.=).

Loquat (=Eriobotrya japonica=).

Tamarind (=Tamarindus indica=).

Pasture Plants

California burr-clover (=Medicago denticulata=). Introduced on Maui in 1882 by Mr. C. R. Blacow. Now found generally on the ranches of the islands.

Carpet grass (=Lippia repens=). Growing on grounds of Hawaii Agricultural Experiment Station.

Alfilaria or filaree (=Erodium cicutarium= and =E. moschatum=). Seeds introduced in California hay. Established on upland pastures on Hawaii and Molokai.

White clover (=Trifolium repens=). Found on Haleakala and Makawao pastures, Maui.

Crop Plants

Sisal (=Agave sisalana=).

Various species of curcurbits (melons, squashes, pumpkins, cucumbers, etc.)

Forage Plants.

Alfalfa, several varieties.

Lupins, blue and yellow. Occasionally used as green manure plants on sugar plantations.

Tangier pea (=Lathyrus tingitanus=). Growing at Haiku, Maui.

Sanfoin (=Onobrychus sativa=). A forage plant introduced by Mr. Jared G. Smith in 1904. Seed distributed to ranches.

Ornamental Plants

Palms, particularly the royal and cocoanut.

Poppy, a horticultural form of =Romneya coulteri=, found in gardens in Honolulu.

Chinese inkberry (=Sestrum diurnum=).

=Thevitia nereifolia=.

Vines (=Ipomæa spp.=).

Weeds

Lantana, two species.

California Sages (=Artemisia=). Introduced by Hawaiian Beekeepers’ Association in 1907. Not as yet established. Suitable for waste, arid lands. The most important honey plant in California. Valuable as a forage plant.

Ilima (=Sida spp.=).

Oi (=Verbena bonariensis=).

Pill grass (=Heteropogon contortus=).

Spanish needle (lauki) (=Bidens pilosa=).

Puakala (=Argemone mexicana=).

Alii (=Dodonæa viscosa var. spathulata=).

Hila hila (undetermined).

Other weeds are =Waltheria americana=, =Ipomæa pes-capræ= (vine along seacoast), and =Malvastrum tricuspidatum=.

Other Sources of Honey

Hawaii is peculiar in that most of the honey produced is from some source other than flowers. Two-thirds of the honey shipped annually from the islands is largely or entirely honeydew honey. By far the greater part of this comes from the exudations of the sugar cane leafhopper.--E. F. Phillips, Bul. 75, Part 5, Bureau of Entomology.

HAWTHORN (Crataegus).

Figure 69 pictures a hawthorn in full bloom. The picture does not do justice to the masses of white flowers with which the tree was covered. This is an eastern species (=Crataegus punctata=), which occurs from Quebec to Ontario and south to Georgia. It was about the middle of June when this picture was taken and the bees were working on these trees everywhere we went. Clover had not begun to yield to any extent and the thorn was a great boost to the bees wherever it was plentiful.

nectar freely.]

There are many different species of hawthorn, or haw, some of which occur in Europe and Asia, as well as in North America. On this continent some species are common from Canada to Mexico and west to the treeless plains. Scholl reports the white thorn (=Crataegus spathulata=) as valuable for both honey and pollen in Texas, where it blooms in April. There are about 25 species of these trees within the United States, and all may be regarded as valuable sources of honey where they are sufficiently plentiful. In general, they may be regarded as similar to the tree fruits in quality and quantity of nectar. Five species are known to occur in Ontario, where they are regarded as important honey plants.

HAZELNUT (Corylus americana).

The hazelnut is a slender growing shrub common in the borders of woodlands of the most of the temperate North America. It yields some pollen and is valuable where there is a scarcity of early pollen-bearing plants. The figure shows the male blossoms, which are more conspicuous than the fertile ones.

HEARTSEASE (Polygonum).

We now come to another large family with a variety of names. In some localities one name will apply, while in another the plant will be known by an entirely different one. Smartweed, knotweed, doorweed, persicaria, lady’s thumb, water pepper, heartsease and several other names are applied to these plants. They are widely distributed, covering practically all of the United States and Canada, as well as much of Europe and Asia. =P. persicara=, or lady’s thumb, the large-flowered kind, is most often called heartsease, and is also said to be the best honey producer. It is an introduced species, coming from Europe, and is still widely scattered through the sale of clover seed, the seed of this plant being commonly mixed with red clover seed.

The honey gathered from these plants varies greatly, both in quantity and quality. Some species do not seem to yield at all, at least not regularly, while others produce large quantities of nectar. The blooming period in the North is from midsummer until frost, and occasionally large yields are reported, an average of 200 pounds per colony not being the highest on record, from this source alone. Sometimes honey from these plants is of very good quality, while from other species it is very dark and of inferior grade. The better grade of honey is sometimes designated as heartsease honey, while the poorer grade is called smartweed honey.

These plants grow in moist fields everywhere, and frequently come up in grain fields and stubbles late in summer, after cultivation has ceased, thus offering plentiful forage for the bees, in fields where otherwise they would find nothing.

HEATHER (Calluna vulgaris).

Heather is a very important honey plant in Europe, but occurs in few places in America. Gray’s botany lists it at the following places: “Low grounds, Massachusetts at Tewksbury and West Andover; Maine, at Cape Elizabeth; also Nova Scotia; Cape Breton; New Foundland, etc.” It may in time become locally important in Eastern America, though it is doubtful whether it be so at present.

Writing in Gleanings, D. M. MacDonald has the following comments on heather honey in Scotland:

“The product of heather is of a rich amber color, bright and sparkling, rather than dull and shady. It has a pronounced flavor, delicious to the palate when one has acquired a liking for it. The aroma is pungent and penetrating, making itself manifest in a room where heather honey is kept in a closed cupboard. Its consistency is so remarkable that it will not leave the comb by any amount of centrifugal force used in the extractor, and when desired in the liquid form, the combs have to be melted and pressed by heavy screw power in a specially constructed press. Most beekeepers in heather districts, therefore, work for sections only; but it pays well to press all defective combs preserved for the purpose, and thus renew the wax of the brood area periodically. On account of the profusion of the bloom, the flow is at times extraordinarily abundant; but as the lateness of the season frequently causes unfavorable weather conditions, the crop is an uncertain one.

“Heather honey sells for about double the price obtained for any other kind in this country. While a great part of the flower, clover and lime honey brings the apiarist only 18 cents per pound, heather frequently fetches him 36 cents. While, too, the other kind drags on the market, heather honey sells readily and is often disposed of before it comes off the hives. Retail prices in warehouses in Edinburg and London are often as high as 48 to 60 cents per section.”--October 1, 1910.

In November, 1913, C. P. Dadant, editor of the American Bee Journal, wrote as follows concerning heather in southern France, seen by him during his visit to Europe in 1913:

“I had often heard of the ‘Landes’ of Gascony, but thought them low, sandy plains. They are rolling hills instead, and extend for scores of miles along the Gulf of Gascony.

“The growth upon the ‘Landes’ is confined to numerous ferns, scrubby pines and cork oaks, with a very thick undergrowth of heather. Just now the heather is in its fullest bloom (September), and there are perhaps 20 different varieties, ranging from the palest pink to almost red and deep yellow in color. It is a mass of flowers upon which the bees work from June until frost, which comes very late, usually not before November. So we may readily call this the eldorado of beekeeping. There is only one dark side to the picture--the heather honey is dark in color, a deep amber, strong in flavor and almost impossible to extract with the honey extractor. Here I ascertained positively what I already suspected, that when speaking of nectar containing 75 per cent of water, we should confine ourselves to the nectar of our moist prairies. I am told that much of the nectar harvested from heather, in this dry, sandy soil, is too thick at the end of the first day to be thrown out readily.”

HEATHER, see also Eriogonum.

(Photographed by Prof. Hottes.)]

HEDGE NETTLE or WOUNDWORT (Stachys).

The hedge nettles are herbs with flowers in terminal spikes as shown in Fig. 73. The corollas are two-lipped and =Stachys agraria= is commonly known as “mint” in the Rio Grande Valley. At several places in the extreme south part of Texas the author heard reports of surplus honey from this source and from related species.

Richter lists three species, =Stachys ajugoides=, the white hedge nettle, =Stachys albens=, and =Stachys bullata=, as yielding honey in California.

Other species are common to the Eastern States from Ontario south to the Gulf States.

HELENIUM, see Bitterweed.

HELIANTHUS, see Sunflower.

HELIOTROPE (Heliotropium).

The cultivated heliotrope and also the wild heliotrope (=Heliotropium curassavicum=) are listed by Richter as sources of honey in California. There is also an occasional mention of heliotrope as a source of nectar in the bee magazines, but probably it is not important.

HERCULES CLUB or ANGELICA TREE (Aralia spinosa).

Hercules club or angelica tree is a shrub or small tree common to damp borders of the woods and river banks from Virginia to Missouri, and south to Florida and Louisiana. The flowers are white and appear in early summer. It is reported as yielding nectar abundantly, though not often as a source of surplus.

HERON’S BILL, see Pin Clover.

HETEROMELES, see Christmas Berry.

HICKORY (Hicoria).

The hickories are an important group of forest trees of wide distribution. They are of special interest to the beekeepers as sources of large amounts of honeydew from aphis, which are frequently to be found on the leaves. These trees are important for pollen, also, in many localities.

HIMALAYA BERRY, see Blackberry.

HOARHOUND (Marrubium vulgare).

Hoarhound (Fig. 74) is a well-known plant, introduced from Europe, which has become naturalized from Canada south to the Gulf of Mexico. The plant is perennial, flowering from July to September. It occurs in waste places, along roadsides and near dwellings over a wide scope of country.

It is one of the chief sources of nectar in places in the Arkansas Valley in Kansas, also in portions of Texas. The honey is dark amber and strong in flavor. Beekeepers report it as important at Seguin, Texas. Reports of honey from this source come from widely separated localities from the Eastern States to California.

Richter lists it as blooming in May and June in southern California, but at the usual period further north. He reports that Ventura and Los Angeles Counties produce hoarhound in considerable quantities, but that it is regarded with disfavor in the sage districts because a small quantity of this honey, mixed with the sage, impairs the color and flavor of the latter.

Wherever plentiful, hoarhound may be expected to yield some honey, and in many places it yields surplus in quantity. Although not of the best quality, it is still an important honey plant.

HOARY VERBENA, see Vervain.

HOG GUM, see Poisonwood.

HOLLY (Ilex).

The holly family is a large one, with representatives in Europe, Asia and South America, as well as North America. There are more than a dozen species on this continent, most of them common to the Southeastern States. The common holly (=Ilex opaca=) is found from Massachusetts and New York south to Florida and west to Arkansas and Texas. It is reported as a valuable source of nectar in most of the Southern States. The Myrtle-leaf dahoon holly (=Ilex myrtifolia=) occurs from North Carolina to Florida and western Louisiana.

The holly trees bloom in May, and in Alabama, Georgia and Mississippi are reported as yielding rapidly for a short period of time, usually three to ten days.

The deciduous holly or privet (=Ilex decidua=), of the Southeast, is known in Texas as possum haw or bearberry. It ranges from southern Virginia to Florida and west to Missouri and Texas. It blooms early and is reported as yielding well for a short period.

The yaupon (=Ilex caroliniana=) Trelease, is frequently reported as a source of honey by Texas beekeepers, though Scholl lists it as unimportant.

The gallberry (=Ilex glabra=) is probably the most important source of honey of the group, especially in the Gulf region. (See Gallberry).

HOLLYHOCK (Althaea rosea).

The hollyhock is one of the oldest cultivated garden flowers. It is a native of China and is to be found in every garden of old fashioned flowers. Wherever found, the bees seek it eagerly, and apparently it secretes nectar freely.

HONEYDEW.

Such material as the bees may store as honey, which is not secured from the nectaries of plants, is usually spoken of as honeydew. There are numerous exudations of plants which attract the bees and which can hardly be regarded as nectar, to which the term honeydew may well be applied.

The main source of honeydew, however, is from insects rather than from plants. Aphids, scale insects and leaf hoppers yield this sugar in great abundance. These sucking insects are often found on various trees or plants in large colonies, feeding on the sap; while bees and ants gather to feed upon their excretions. At times aphids are so abundant that they eject honeydew in such quantity as to cover the leaves on lower levels with the sticky substance, till the drops give the impression that it might have rained. The bees gather honeydew readily in the absence of a natural honeyflow, carry it to the hive and seal it in their combs the same as honey.

The quality of most honeydew is inferior and it brings a low price in the markets, being in most demand for baking purposes. Since there is a much larger percentage of gums in honeydew than in honey it makes a poor food for winter stores. The excess matter clogs the intestines of the bees, and where they are confined on such stores for long periods without an opportunity for cleansing flight, a heavy mortality results.

There are hundreds of references to honeydew in the beekeeping literature. A few are given here to indicate the extent to which bees gather this insect product:

“The most copious flow of honeydew I ever saw was in 1897. It was from the pine. In early morning and late in the evening it could be seen dripping from the leaves, till all the leaves and even the bare ground beneath them were covered with the nectar. The bees swarmed over the trees and the hives were filled as I had never seen them before. The honey was light amber and of fine flavor, and gave my customers the best of satisfaction. While this flow was on, there was scarcely any honeydew to be found except on the pines, and every pine was dripping with it.”--C. C. Parsons, Alabama. American Bee Journal, page 546, 1899.

“We have had the heaviest honeydew flow ever known in this part of the State. We have tons of the stuff.”--Scholl. American Bee Journal, August, 1910.

“My bees stored a quantity of honeydew which granulated in the combs as fast as stored.”--South Carolina. American Bee Journal, August, 1910.

“Of 250 colonies of bees in this town last fall there are not more than 20 left. It is not the winter that kills the bees, but poor honey. Honeydew is half an inch deep all over my honeyhouse floor; it soured and ran out of the combs where I packed up my hives. The bees will not touch the horrid stuff, nor can I get a swarm to go into a hive with one frame of it on one side, and good clean combs and frames of brood for the rest.”--Vermont. American Bee Journal, page 458, 1904.

“Bees are working on honeydew, the trees just glistening with it. I have several hundred pounds of it in the supers. It is bad looking stuff, not fit to eat or sell.”--Iowa. American Bee Journal, page 537, 1904.

Not all honeydew is of such bad color and flavor. There are numerous reports of honeydew of such flavor and quality that it finds a ready sale in competition with good honey. However, it is usually unsatisfactory for winter stores for the bees, regardless of its source.

HONEY LOCUST (Gleditsia triacanthos). THORNY LOCUST.

The honey locust is a well-known tree from Pennsylvania and Ontario to Florida and westward to Texas and Kansas. It prefers rich bottom lands, seldom being found on dry hillsides. The tree has spreading branches and very long, red brown thorns. The thorns are often branched and sometimes nearly a foot in length. At times they cover the trunk of the tree in great abundance. The flowers appear in May or June.

While the honey locust is the source of considerable nectar, it is not equal to the black locust (=Robinia pseudo-acacia=). (See Locust.)

The two species are often confused, although the long thorns peculiar to the honey locust should distinguish it readily.

There are numerous reports to the effect that the bees work freely on honey locust, but it is seldom regarded as a source of surplus, while the black locust yields abundantly for a short period, under favorable conditions.

HONEY POD, see Mesquite.

HONEYSUCKLE (Lonicera).

The honeysuckles are rich in nectar, but most species have corolla tubes of such depth as to be beyond the reach of the honeybee. There are numerous reports of the bees seeking nectar from such species as they can reach, and from Minnesota come reports of the bush honeysuckle as an important plant. (See Bush Honeysuckle).

HOPS (Humulus Lupulus).

The common hop plant is too well known to need description. It is common from New England to British Columbia and southward. It is very generally cultivated for making yeast and for medicinal purposes. The small greenish flowers are wind-pollenated. It furnishes pollen in abundance, but no nectar. (Fig. 75).

the beekeeper.]

HOP-TREE (Ptelea trifoliata), SHRUBBY TREFOIL.

The hop-tree occurs from New England and Ontario south to Florida and westward to Michigan, Illinois and Missouri to central Texas. It is a shrub or small tree known also as wahoo and quinine tree. The bitter fruit is sometimes used as a substitute for hops. The flowers have a disagreeable odor. Scholl lists the honey yield as good, and very good, in favorable seasons, where the shrub is abundant. The California hop-tree (=Ptelea crenulata=) occurs in the western foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains and in the Coast ranges. Its bloom has an agreeable aromatic odor. The author can find no reports that indicate it is regarded as important to the beekeepers of that region.

There are numerous reports to the effect that the hop-tree is a good source of nectar in the Eastern States.

HORSE CHESTNUT, see Buckeye.

the well-known horsemint honey.]

HORSEMINT (Monarda).

There are several species of horsemint, known also as bee balm, wild bergamot, etc. Some of the species are represented from New England to Texas. Figure 77 shows =M. fistulosa=, the wild bergamot of the North. The corolla tubes are so deep that, as a rule, the bees are unable to reach the nectar. In some cases it is reported as yielding freely and the author has seen times when the bees were apparently getting considerable nectar from this species. Whether the nectar secretion is unusually abundant or the corolla tubes shortened more than is commonly the case, the author will not venture an opinion. In parts of Wisconsin, =M. punctata= (Fig. 76), according to D. L. H. Pammel, can be depended upon to yield an abundance of nectar every season. This is probably the most important species to the beekeeper. It is found more or less commonly on sandy soil from New York to Minnesota and south to Florida and Texas. In Texas it is the source of very large quantities of surplus honey in seasons following wet winters and springs. The honey is a clear light amber with a decided minty flavor. It is one of the most important sources in Texas, where, together with =M. clinopodioides=, it is regarded very highly. In the Arkansas Valley of southern Kansas horsemint is also important, yielding as high as fifty pounds of surplus per colony.

corolla tubes are usually too deep for the bees to reach the nectar.]

HOUND’S-TONGUE (Cynoglossum officinale).

Hound’s-tongue is a weed introduced from Europe. It is now common in parts of Canada and the Northwestern States and occurs in Missouri and Arkansas, and from the Ohio Valley to the Carolinas and north Georgia. It is named from the shape and texture of the leaf. The illustration (Fig. 78) was photographed in open woods near Guelph, Ontario. There it is frequently mentioned as a good honey plant.

HUAJILLA, see Acacia.

HUCKLEBERRY (Gaylussacia).

There are several species of huckleberry common to the Eastern States. The common huckleberry of the markets, the black huckleberry (=Gaylussacia baccata=) is common from Eastern Canada to Minnesota and south to Georgia, in rocky woodlands and swamps. This species also occurs on the Pacific Coast, and W. J. Sheppard reports it is a honey plant in British Columbia. (Fig. 79).

Lovell reports that it is very abundant on Cape Cod and yields every year.

HUISACHE, see Acacia.

HYDROPHYLLUM, see Virginia Waterleaf.