eastern side is a single continuous rugged range with a precipitous descent of 1000 feet to the mile, but on the western flank the slope is more gradual. On the foothills, or “the steps up to the high ranges,” valley conditions prevail up to an elevation of about 1000 feet. Above this elevation the winter temperature is lower, snow flurries begin, and above 4000 feet the land is used principally for summer pasturage. The mountain winter is like that of the eastern states, with a very heavy snowfall; and the only streams which flow in summer in the Central Valley are fed by the snows of the Sierra. Unlike the forest of Oregon, the Sierra woodland is open, and the trees stand far apart, admitting the sunlight. The characteristic vegetation of the foothills is the chaparral, spiny impenetrable thickets densely covering large areas of the higher slopes of the Coast Ranges and the foothills and middle altitudes of the Sierra. The more common shrubs of the chaparral are manzanita, chamise, mountain lilacs or buckbush (Ceanothus), coffeeberry, pea chaparral, Christmas berry or toyon, poison oak (Rhus), and several species of scrub oak which are nectarless. Chamise, or greasewood, often excludes all other shrubs, when the thicket is known as a “chamisal.” Pea chaparral (Pickeringia montana) is restricted chiefly to the Coast Range. A number of herbaceous plants found on the plains are also of value. In the valley many counties report only a few colonies of bees in the foothills of the mountains. A beekeeper at Coalings, Fresno County, in the Diablo Mountains of the Coast Ranges, writes: “Like every other mountain location in California, there is a crop about one year in four. When there is a good flow they all crowd in; when there is nothing they move away.” “There are ten million acres of chaparral in the state suitable for bee range,” writes George A. Coleman. “The chaparral extends along the inner and outer Coast Ranges from Siskiyou County to the Mexican border, and on the inner Sierra foothills for a strip 50 miles wide and 450 miles long.”

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA

North of the Great Central Valley the Coast Ranges and the Sierra Nevada unite to form a rugged country, which is thinly populated. During the Tertiary Period a great flood of lava flowed over Lassen, Modoc, and Siskiyou counties, converting this section into a volcanic plain, which is largely barren because of the dryness of the climate. But the soil is fertile and a large area is already under irrigation. Many acres of alfalfa are grown and white clover is rapidly becoming more common; and as both of these plants are dependable sources of nectar here this section should in the near future offer excellent locations for the production of honey.

The northwest coast region is occupied by many disconnected chains of moderate elevation, between which are many valleys, low hills, and grassy slopes. The climate is mild, and there is a heavy annual rainfall of 40 to 100 inches. Fogs and high winds are very prevalent along the coast. The land is well suited to dairying, and both white and red clover succeed well; but the acreage of alfalfa is small. This region reports few colonies of bees and only a small amount of honey. The redwood belt with its heavy fogs is considered by Coleman as one of the poorest locations for beekeeping in the state.

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

Southern California, or that portion of the state south of the Tehachapi Mountains, has an area of over 50,000 square miles. The western section of this region is mountainous, consisting of a series of chains with a general trend from northwest to southeast. The Death Valley, Mohave, and Colorado deserts are in the southeastern portion of the state, and a large area is depressed below sea level. Fruit-growing is the principal industry of southern California, and with its favor-