Non-Smoking Problematic. Cultivated Tobacco, Nicotiana tabacum, and Apis mellifera, Honeybee, Hortus 'Henricus Munting', Haren, Groningen, The Netherlands
Curiously neither father Henricus (1583-1658) nor son Abraham (1626-1683) Munting, both professors of botany of the university of Groningen, mention smoking in their catalogue and horticultural manuals. Smoking was all the newest vogue in delectable pleasures in the Low Countries of their times, and in their garden the Muntings cultivated various tobaccos. But they don't delve into the etymological background of the word 'tabak', and in his long description of the plant (Hyoscyamus peruanus latifolius or Tabacum verum latifolium, as they knew what we call Nicotiana tabacum) Abraham says nothing at all about its smoking by his countrymen. He does give a great number of medicinal uses; and he also at length discusses how in various forms Tobacco is a great antidote to plant pests. But why neither discusses smoking it, is something of a conundrum to me.
In the botanical garden named for the first Munting at Haren just to the south of Groningen, I saw today this pretty sight of Honeybee and Tobacco Flower. Apis has to delve deeply into Tobacco's throat to find her reward of nectar. That nectar does contain nicotine but it will not harm our Bee because it's not sufficiently concentrated. On the contrary, it seems that this nicotine is even healthy: it helps combat all kinds of hostile bacteria and parasites in Apis's gut. Of course, she doesn't need to worry about lungs!
Non-Smoking Problematic. Cultivated Tobacco, Nicotiana tabacum, and Apis mellifera, Honeybee, Hortus 'Henricus Munting', Haren, Groningen, The Netherlands
Curiously neither father Henricus (1583-1658) nor son Abraham (1626-1683) Munting, both professors of botany of the university of Groningen, mention smoking in their catalogue and horticultural manuals. Smoking was all the newest vogue in delectable pleasures in the Low Countries of their times, and in their garden the Muntings cultivated various tobaccos. But they don't delve into the etymological background of the word 'tabak', and in his long description of the plant (Hyoscyamus peruanus latifolius or Tabacum verum latifolium, as they knew what we call Nicotiana tabacum) Abraham says nothing at all about its smoking by his countrymen. He does give a great number of medicinal uses; and he also at length discusses how in various forms Tobacco is a great antidote to plant pests. But why neither discusses smoking it, is something of a conundrum to me.
In the botanical garden named for the first Munting at Haren just to the south of Groningen, I saw today this pretty sight of Honeybee and Tobacco Flower. Apis has to delve deeply into Tobacco's throat to find her reward of nectar. That nectar does contain nicotine but it will not harm our Bee because it's not sufficiently concentrated. On the contrary, it seems that this nicotine is even healthy: it helps combat all kinds of hostile bacteria and parasites in Apis's gut. Of course, she doesn't need to worry about lungs!