Another of my friends came to see me one day about his half acre of cherry trees. He wanted me to bring some of my beehives and put them right under the trees. I told him that my bees were within a quarter of a mile from his place, and while the distance was farther than it should have been for the season when the trees are in blossom, the bees would fly that far, so he should get a fairly good crop. There are usually a few warm days when the bees are sure to fly much farther than that in search of nectar.
We walked over to his home and looked at the trees which are all Royal Annes. I judged them to be about forty years old for they are very large. There are no other cherry trees in the vicinity at all. But, for many years there have been plenty of bees, both domesticated and wild.
I explained that he didn’t need more bees but some pollinators. I offered to bud some scions of one on a few trees for him. I knew that was what was needed. That, or the addition of a good Black Republican cherry tree!