Evening star., 1932-08-08
Bergamot is a plant upon which

Bergamot is q plant upon WHICH
! gardeners divide.
Some like it, and some do not.
There is no question, however, as to
, whether the bees love it.
1t did not get its common name
| Bee-Balm, for nothing,
The showiest Of our herbs, the Ber-
gamot is grown today principally for
its curious DISLIKE flowers, and its
good foliage.
It will do well in the shade, which is
another point in its favor
Possessing a shallow root system the
Bee-B Balm will flourish Immediately at
| the base of most trees, another distinct
merit.
In such a position it makes a neat
green collar around the tree, often
covering up the bare earth which so
often shows there, where good grass
cannot be induced to grow.
| The varieties of Bergamot grown in
the average garden today are mentha-
ceous plants, with an odor which some
people find pleasing, and which all types
| Of bees prefer.
After the dark red or pink blossoms
(these are the two colors most often
seem come into existence, there Is
scarcely minute of the day when one
| or more bees cannot be heard humming
| around them.
1t may be suspected that there is no
! medicinal attraction about this plant
| to these winged stingers: the balm"
they seek is merely something to eat.
The word "BeSGamot" originally
designated sort of orange tree, to be
found in Italy Perfume made from
the fruit was called "Bergamot"
The name is said to- derive from the
Italian town of Bergamo, which
centuries ago was famous as being a
very rustic sort of place indeed
| Its people were regarded as the
veritable "clodhoppers'' Of their day, the
supreme rustics. and an outlandish
type of dance was called "bergamask "
The town still exists, but the old
definitions have been forgotten, until
today most people who grow the
Bergamot only know 1t as a plant with
peculiar raylike blossoms, called Bee
| Balm.
In the old days, after the fall of
Rome, or, better, after the several falls
of Rome, the interesting things Of the
world in the floral line fell only to the
share of the kings. the queens, the
princes and the princesSeS.
Every time botanist, in his humble
work ran into new plant he shipped
it back to his native king. In the case
of the Bergamot, the original word was
not italian, but Turkish, and meant
| princes pear" although 1t was really
a sort of orange or lemon.
The modern garden types Of Bergamot
are among certain flowers which are
worth planting by any one who desires
! to lure various creatures to the yard.
The Bee Balm will lure the bees, in
cluding the burly humble" or bumble-
| bees, even more surely than the flowers
| of the mallow family. In the average
garden these will include the shrubby
althea, the hibiscus and the lavatera.
The former may attain tree height
(some examples 20 to 80 feet high are
| to be seen in Washington and always
bears its interesting purple, white or
rose flowers, Of typical cup shape.
Bees love to enter these blossoms,
which, owing to their peculiar conStruc-
ton, afford them a fine feast of pollen.
Sometimes the creatures become so
coated with pollen, mixed with dew,
that they cannot fly and are forced to
remain until the heat of the afternoon
dries them out.
! The huge flowers of the hibiscus are
the special delight of all bees, but the
BUNDLES like them best Of all, and will
never leave them alone.
Every gardener wants a humming
bird guest If he can induce one to
honor his place
| This is not as difficult as It sounds.
for there are several flowers which are
| almost 'sure-hre" in attracting these
finest Of birds. To say which is the
finest bird, Of course, Is a risky pro-
cedure, but probably more people would
vote for the ruby-throated humming
bird than any Of its larger relatives.