90 



SEVENTEENTH ANNUAL REPORT OF THE 



pose you know they have been selling that 

 feeder. I put confidence in what this 

 Society at that time indorsed, and I 

 bought several of the feeders. I like them. 

 In the first place, I never have to break the 

 sealing at the top of a hive, so we save all 

 the heat. I like to have my bees packed in 

 there as solid as possible in early spring, 

 then I can regulate the feeding. I can 

 feed light or I can feed heavy, and I am 

 satisfied with that. I use a quart bottle, 

 and I always can see whether they need 

 more feed or not. There is just one danger. 

 If you use a quart bottle and the frost 

 catches you, you might lose the bottles, but 

 at that time as a rule we do not need to 

 feed. Otherwise I like this feeder better, 

 and I have tried the others. In other 

 cases sometimes I couldn't regulate the 

 feed, and then again I could not see 

 whether they needed more, but this Thaler 

 feeder gave me the best satisfaction. Now, 

 in regard to this pepper box feeder on top, 

 I must say it looks good to me, but I am 

 afraid I would lose too much heat by put- 

 ting it on top of the hive. In feeding in 

 the fall just for storing up, the danger is 

 not so great as in the spring, but I am 

 afraid for the spring feeding. 



The Secretary — I might say I overcome 

 that danger by conserving the heat on top. 

 I just take an ordinary piece of roofing 

 paper and cut a little hole right in the 

 center, and put your feeder over that hole. 



Mr. Stewart — I feed mine out of doors 

 between white clover and fruit bloom. 



The President — We would like to have 

 you tell us just how you do that, and 

 what your success is; 



Mr. Stewart— Well, it makes lots cf bees. 

 That is what I am after. 



The President— You put it in a large 

 vessel of some sort? 



Mr. Stewart — Yes, I have a whole lot of 

 Alexander feeders, and they are on two by 

 four's, a row of them, and I go along with 

 feed, just simply all the water will take up. 



Mr. Wheeler — Do you wear a veil when 

 you go out to look at them. 



Mr. Stewart — I don't go out to look at 

 them. 



Mrs. J. G. Reichert — May I ask how 

 you prepare your suear and water, as you 

 call it? 



The President — Put the water in a 

 vessel and stir in the sugar. 



Mrs. Reichert — I made it up for my 

 husband, and he said I shouldn't put the 

 sugar in until the water had reached the 

 boiling point. 



The President — It will dissolve more 

 readily if the water is boiling, and then 

 you can let it cool. 



Mrs. Reichert — My husband said I 

 would burn the sugar if I put it in first 

 before the water was boiling. 



The President — If you put the sugar in 

 first, it will sink and is liable to scorch. 

 Put it the water first, and stir in the 

 sugar slowly. It isn't absolutely necessary 

 to boil the water, unless yuu want to put a 

 great deal of sugar into a small amount of 

 water. You can dissolve about two parts 

 of sugar to one of cold water. 



Mrs. Reichert — Then it isn't necessary 

 to boil it five minutes? 



The President — Not if you are' using 

 sugar. If you are using honey, it is a 

 good plan to boil it, in order to kill any 

 foul brood germs. 



A good way to dissolve the sugar is to 

 use boiling water. Pour it on, it will 

 dissolve very readily if you stir it a little. 

 You don't have to put it on the stove. 



Mr. Smith — A prominent bee-keeper a 

 year or two ago said he had the best success 

 in feeding for breeding purposes, to mix it 

 in the proportion of about one to six or 

 seven, that is one part of sugar to six or 

 seven parts of water. Make it just as 

 thin as the nectar is that they get out of 

 the plant. 



Mr. MacNeill — One authority says ten 

 or twelve. 



Mr. C. 0. Smith— That takes less sugar 

 for the amount used, but it would seem 

 there is some good reason for that. 



The President — In regard to Mr. Smith's 

 question in feeding for stimulative pur- 

 poses, you do not mix it in the same pro- 

 portion as in feeding for stores. In feeding 

 late in the season for stores, mix in all the 

 sugar you can with water. If you are 

 feeding for stimulating purposes, use all 

 the water you can, so long as the bees 

 take it up. 



Mr. Kanneberg— Mr. President, how 

 much heat would it take to boil the honey 

 so it wouldn't hurt the bees any to take it? 



The Secretary-Water boils at 212 de- 

 grees. 



Mr. Kanneberg — I mean the honey. 



The President — I presume the boiling 

 point of a honey solution .would be higher 

 than that of water alone . The temperature 

 would depend upon the amount of honey 

 you had, and it is said that if j'ou mix it 

 about half and half, water and honey, and 

 then boil it for fifteen minutes or more, 

 that it usually kills the germs, but it is 

 safer to boil it longer if you have any foul 

 brood. 



Mr. Stewart — Wou't two or three 

 minutes do? 



The Preoident — It has been tried, I un- 

 derstand, by Dr. White. 



