260 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



April 7, 1904. 



ers would follow up more promptly anything that they see in the 

 newspapers or other publications that is so wide of the truth, and 

 which might result in injury to the producers of pure honey. 



Some of these days we hope the National Association will be able 

 to, take up all such matters that may be referred to them, and if cor- 

 rections or retractions are not made by the newspapers about the pub- 

 lication of such untruths, it will be able to proceed in a legal way 

 against them, and compel as public a correction as was the injustice. 



It the National Association were able to do advertising in the 

 daily papers, and thus place before the public the truth about honey, 

 it would go a long way toward ending the baseless untruths that are 

 continually passing around among the newspaper press. It will take 

 a long time to correct the mistaken ideas that have lieen formed in the 

 minds of many people through tearing the many statements that have 

 been repeated during the last 30 years or more. It is a matter in 

 which bee-keepers must co-operate, even if the National Association 

 should undertake to take the lead in this very necessary work. We 

 must get the truth a-going in the interest of not only the bee keepers, 

 but so that the people may be al)le to get correct ideas about honey 

 and its production. 



Later. — Since writing the above, we have received this from Mr. 

 Michael, dated March :is 



{Jentleiiieii .-—The editor of the Democratic Advocate treated me 

 very well in the statement of bogus comb honey. He says : "A bee- 

 keeper sa.vs ' No."' He piints the editorial article referred to, and 

 then comes my comment, making a very nice retraction. I thanked 

 him for publishing my article, and think the matter will die. 



J. F. MiOHAEL. 



And thus another newspaper editor knows more of the truth 

 about honey than he did before. So do his readers. Let the good 

 work go on. 



Chayote as a Bee-Plant. 



Uq page 180, from Mr. W. A. Pryal appears something on this 

 subject. We have now received the following from Mr. Harry Howe, 

 of Cuba : 



The writer of the Saturday Evening Post article on the chayote, 

 was evidently drawing on his imagination in the interest of the seed- 

 men. I have several plants growing, but I do not think it is ahead of 

 the cucumber for honey. The fruit is a sort of cucumber with one 

 big seed. The vine dies every year here. It is a climber, and bears 

 lots of fruit, but not as described. Harki Howe. 



About the same time we heard frem Mr. Howe, we received Bulle- 

 tin No. 2S of the Department of Agriculture on "The Chayote: A 

 Tropical Vegetable, by 0. F. Cook, Special Agent for Tropical Agri- 

 culture." From certain ear-marks, we are led to believe that the 

 bulletin was sent to us through the kindness of Mr. Frank Benton, 

 Apicultural Investigator for the Department of Agriculture. If we 

 are correct in this, he has our thanks for his thoughtfulness. 



Referring to the bulletin, we find the following paragraphs bear- 

 ing directly on thechayote's 



VALUE AS A BEE-PLAKT. 



As in other vegetables of the squash family, the stamens and pis- 

 tils are in separate (lowers, pollination taking place through the 

 agency of insects. To attract these the (lowers of both kiuds, but 

 especially the pistillate, yield abundant nectar, which is secreted in 

 ten glands, two at the bast of each of the lobes of the corolla. In 

 most of the countries into which it has been Introduced, bee-keeping 

 has not been a regular industry, and the value of the chayote as a 

 tource of honey has not been noticed, but the reports of experimenters 

 in New South Wales contain very emphatic statements on the subject: 



" When the plant is in (lower I have noticed that the vines were 

 swarming with bees, ano as (lowers are scarce in the autumn the 

 plant will no doubt be valuable as a honey-producer. 



" The plant, which spreads over a large area, commenced dower- 

 ing at the close of the year, and has been well laden with mellKiu- 

 ous blossoms ever since. The bees are extremely fond of the 

 chocho, and with the apiarist the newly introduced plant must be- 

 come a strong favorite." 



From the photograph of a flowering stem it will be seen that the 

 chayote differs from many Cucurbitaceae in producing numerous 

 flowers on each fertile branch. It has long been known that the 

 flowers of this family are rich in honey, but from the standpoint of 

 the bee-keeper they have been considered of little importance because 

 seldom accessible in sufHcient amount, though in the United States 

 fields are recognized as good bee-pastures. The chayote seems to 

 make up by numbers what the flowers lack in size, so that the yield 

 of honey may be larger than in related plants. In addition to this 

 there is the fact that Sechium is a perennial bloomer in the Tropics, 

 and in the subtropical regions has a very long season. It is thus pos- 

 sible that in regions like parts of Florida, where bee-keeping is already 

 an established industry, the honey-producing qualities of the chayote 

 may be found of practical account in connection with its other utilities. 



Since the foregoing was prepared for publication, we have re- 

 ceived the following on the subject, from Mr. J. J. Siebert, of Porto 

 Rico, where, doubtless, the chayote is quite at home: 



Editor American Bee Jocrnal— 



Dear Sir: — In your issue of March 10, page 180, you will find an 

 article about the " Chayote," called in Spanish " Tayote." 



Allow me to state that the Tayote is all it is claimed to be. As a 

 nectar-blOFSom it has only one rival, that of (he banana, blossoming 

 all the year around. The fruit is pear-shaped, and can be prepared as 

 a vegetable, salad, or as a preserve. 



Very truly yours, J. J. Siebebt. 





Miscellaneous Items 



J 



Mr. Morley Pettit, of Ontario, Canada, writing us March 26, 

 said: 



" 1 took the bees out of the cellar Wednesday. March 23, mostly 

 in good condition; none dead. Outside bees were only fair — ,5 percent 

 dead. Prospects seem good ; but time will tell." 



Mr. Will Li. Cowan, of Montgomery Co , Ohio, a grandson of 

 Father Langstroth, called on us last week when in Chicago. He is a 

 tall young man, of excellent appearance, and seemingly fine ability. 

 He is one of a family of seven children. His father died shortly before 

 his grandfather, of blessed memory, the latter passing away in the 

 fall of 1895. We had the great pleasure of meeting his mother and 

 Father Langstroth at the National convention, held in Toronto, Ont., 

 that year. It was the last meeting of bee-keepers Father Langstroth 

 ever attended, as he died very suddenly about a month thereafter. 



( 



Contributed Articles 





No. 4.— Comb or Extracted Honey— Which? 



BY C. P. DADANT. 



THE greatest item in favor of extracted honey as com- 

 pared to comb honey is the economy of production to 

 the bees. Comb costs the bees time, labor and honey. 

 The quantity of honey needed has been variously estimated 

 at from 2 pounds to 20 pounds to produce one pound of 

 comb. Some modern writers have asserted that the cost 

 had been exaggerated by previous writers, but no very 

 definite proof has ever been adduced. The scientists who 

 have tried the experiment by confining the bees and feeding 

 them have found the cost so great that there must be some 

 disadvantage in the confinement that made an increase of 

 consumption. And so there must be. Most of the experi- 

 ments have been more or less guess-work, as some condition 

 or other has been overlooked that would change results. 



It seems to me that the only way to arrive at anything 

 like a correct solution would be to take two swarms of ex- 

 actly the same weight, both loaded with honey, as is usual 

 when they swarm naturally, and give to one of these empty 

 combs, to the other an empty hive, and test the weight of 

 honey and wax in each after 24 or 48 hours. Just as soon 

 as eggs begin to hatch, in the hive to which the built combs 

 have been given, the test becomes uncertain, as a portion of 

 the harvest is used to feed the brood. There will still be 

 some conditions of uncertaintty, such as the greater or less 

 number of drones accompanying each swarm — for these are 

 great eaters — the greater or less amount of moisture con- 

 tained in the honey, and other minor details. So it is im- 

 possible to get to a fixed result. 



Then it is possible — I should say most probable — that 

 the results differ in different conditions, as the fattening of 

 animals differs in results according to the season, the 

 warmth, etc. For I cannot help comparing the production 

 of beeswax by bees to the production of fat by animals, al- 

 though the two are not absolutely similar. Wax is a fatty 

 substance, and requires similar ingredients to those of fat 

 in its production. Honey from which it is produced, must 



