pear and peach trees, add a share of both honey and pollen.
Sugar maple (_Acer Saccharinum_) now throws out its ten thousand silken
tassels, beautiful as gold. Strawberries modestly open their petals in
invitation, but, like "obscure virtues," are often neglected for the
more conspicuous Dandelion, and the showy appearance and flagrant
blossoms of the apple-trees, which now open their stores, offering to
their acceptance a real harvest.

FRUIT FLOWERS IMPORTANT IN GOOD WEATHER.

In good weather, sometimes a gain of twenty lbs. is added to their
stores, during this period of apple-tree blossoms. But we are seldom
fortunate enough to have good weather all through this period, it being
rainy, cloudy, cool, or windy, which is very detrimental. Sometimes a
frost at this time destroys all, and the gain of our bees is reversed,
that is, they are lighter at the end than at the beginning of these
flowers. Yet this is the season that decides their prosperity for the
summer, whether they do _first rate_ or otherwise. If good weather now,
we expect our first swarms about the first of June; if not, no
subsequent yield of honey will make up for this deficiency. We now have
a time of several days, from ten to fourteen, in which but few flowers
exist. If our hives are poorly supplied when this scarcity occurs, it
will so disarrange their plans for swarming, that no preparations are
again made much before July, and sometimes not at all. In sections
where the wild cherry (_Cerasus Seratina_) abounds, the flowers of this
will appear and fill this time of scarcity, which this section annually
presents.

RED RASPBERRY A FAVORITE.

The red raspberry (_Rubus Strigosus_) next presents the stamens as the
most conspicuous part of the flower, soliciting the embrace of the bee,
by pouring out bounteous libations more prized by our industrious
insect than wine. For several weeks they are allowed to partake of this
exquisite beverage; it is secreted at all hours and in all kinds of
weather. When the morning is warm we often hear their cheerful humming
among the leaves and flowers of this shrub, ere the sun appears above
the horizon. The gentle shower, sufficient to induce man to seek a
shelter, is often unheeded by the bee when luxuriating among these
flowers; even white clover, important as it is in furnishing the
greatest part of their stores, at this season, would be neglected if
there was only a full supply of this. Clover begins to blo