I had a professor once who told the class that a weed is any plant that is growing where it is not supposed to be or not wanted.  The example he gave was that a stalk of corn in a tomato field is a weed.  The last couple of days I have been observing which flowers the honeybees are working on.  Two days ago I had Dr. Stephan Hatch, a botanist at Texas A&M University, accompany me and identify some of the plants for me.  He told me that most of the plants we were looking at were considered weeds that would thrive in an overgrazed pasture.

It is a beautiful sight to see a large patch of wildflowers with bees busily working in them.  When you stand still and start looking for motion, you soon discover that there a many many bees working in an area that is attractive to them.  Across Joe Routt Boulevard, fairly close to the George Bush Presidential Library, west of the Reed Arena, and near the new tennis courts is a large field/meadow on the side of a small creek.  This meadow contains several large patches of Spring Beauty (Campestris virginiaca), a beautiful, small pale pink to white flower, about 2 cm across.  The blossoms were just full of bees flying from flower to flower gathering nectar.  I also observed  a few bees working the extra-floral nectaries of vetch (Vicia sativa).  They did not go to the flowers, but to the nectaries at the stem nodes.  I guess those plants don't need to be pollinated by bees, but it makes be wonder what the nectaries are for.  We saw a very small amount (just a couple of bees) at work in the Chickweed and the Mouse's Ear (Cerastrium species), where those flowers were exceptionally numerous.  The little white flowers are so small that it's hard to believe there could be very much nectar in them.  Another plant that was very attractive was a wild mustard with yellow flowers (Brassica).  It had not only honey bees but hover flies (Syrphidae) visiting it.

The other two plants in bloom that had furious foraging activity were dewberries (Rubus trivialis) and Burford holly (Ilex).  There is a nice large patch of dewberries (that's what we call wild blackberries here in Texas) on the south facing slope of the creek bed near where Joe Routt Boulevard and Discovery Drive intersect.  Since the exposure is perfect for the sun to hit it at this time of year, these dewberries are in full bloom, while this plant in other locations is not yet in bloom.  The ornamental Burford holly is planted in building landscapes in many places in our town, and particularly at the university, and it is in full bloom right now too, with its small nondescript greenish flowers that are so pungent and attractive to bees.  We have a ring of them completely surrounding the parking lot at my work.  I even have one planted in front of my home since they do so well in our area.  Curtis Farmer sent me an email letting me know that the bee activity on the hollies around his house is so furious that it almost looks like they are swarming.  I even got a telephone call from a homeowner yesterday who thought they had a swarm of bees in their holly bush.  I explained to her that they are only foraging bees and that they will go away after the plants finish blooming in a couple of weeks (maybe sooner).  There is no need to be fearful of bees that are foraging, as long as you don't swat at them or try to kill them.  You can stand right next to them and watch them with no fear, and they will pay absolutely no attention to you.  They are not defending their "home" and they are intent on getting the "goodies" from the flowers.  The fragrances of the flowers in full bloom that the bees are visiting right now are very strong.  Even I (with my "bad nose") can easily smell them on the air.  I have heard it said (ref. Adrian Wenner's posts) that bees do most of their foraging orientation based on the odors that the scout bees bring back to the hive.  The bees that have been "danced to" pick up the scent from the dan
catch the scent on the air and follow it to the most concentrated source of the smell.  There they will find flowers reflecting ultraviolet radiation that visually shows them exactly where to go to get the nectar or pollen they are seeking--at least that's my understanding of the theory about how it happens.  My uncle in California tells me that in his opinion this theory makes more sense than any of the others he's heard.

Layne Westover, College Station, Texas, U.S.A.