The temperature makes the owner of a grove as nervous as the same thing does an owner of an orchard.

CITRUS TREES IN FULL BLOOM.

When the groves are well in bloom in February and March, the air is redolent with fragrance from the blossoms. The snowy-white petals standing among the dark green of the leaves present a pleasing contrast of color. But the sight of an orange tree in full bloom, while not so gorgeous as an apple tree in full blossoming, is still one to make the on-looker rapturous with delight. The full effect of all the blossoms cannot be obtained by a sight of the exterior of the tree, as many buds and blossoms are concealed under and beneath the leaves; for it must be remembered that the orange is an evergreen.

ORANGE-BLOSSOM HONEY.

But, after all, it is the nectar of the blossoms that is the most interesting feature of the blooming period. In favorable weather tiny drops of nectar can be seen shining in the bottoms of the white gold-centered blossoms. In California the nectar-secretion seems much more abundant than in Florida; for there it is reported that it drips on the ground and even spatters the harness and workmen so that the outfit must all be washed in the evening after a day in the groves. No wonder, then, that Orange Culture and Bee Culture go hand in glove! Ever since the days, away back in “the 80’s” when Florida citrus culture began to draw large numbers of northern men and their capital to develop it.