148 



THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW 



quired to produce good queens, aside from 

 parentage and mating. 



The advantage of usually having a sur- 

 plus queen or two on hand, in a nucleus, 

 is a considerable item, and if increase is 

 desired the nuclei are ready. If increase 

 is the chief consideration I should prefer 

 to make the outside, or mating nuclei 

 large enough to hold two frames each. 



Another, and a marked advantage is, 

 that it is not necessary to make a colony 

 queenless in order to get cells started or 

 incubated. The colony can be immed- 

 iately restored to its normal condition by 

 removing the super, and, apparently, the 

 bees never realize how they have been 

 hocussed by their keeper. 



Tne principal disadvantage lies in the 

 loss of surplus honey, and it is impracti- 

 cal to try to get surplus while rearing 

 queens. The spring crop of comb honey 

 is usually lost so far as such colonies are 

 concerned. However, if increase is de- 

 sired, several colonies can be set apart 

 for this purpose and the queens reared 

 while the brood is being accumulated for 

 the formation of nuclei. 



On the whole, this plan is very simple 

 and well worth the trying by any bee- 

 keeper who wishes to rear a few queens 

 without any particular amount of new 

 equipment. 



Lincoln. Neb., Jan. 10, 191 1. 



m 



EDITORIAL 



Happiness grows at our own firesides, 

 and is not to be picked up in strangers' 

 galleries. 



The National Association of Bee Keep- 

 ers will hold its next annual convention 

 August 30th and 31st, in the Court 

 House at Minneapolis, Minnesota. 



Vigilance in watching opportunity, tact 

 and daring in seizing opportunity, force 

 and persistence in crowding opportunity 

 to its utmost possible achievement, — these 

 are the martial virtues which m.ust com- 

 mand success. 



The Annua! meeting of the Pecos Valley 

 Bee Keepers Association of New Mexico, 

 will be held at Roswell. N. M.. at 9 a. m. 

 Wednesday. June 7. 1911. Business of 

 importance will come before the associa- 

 tion. All lovers of the honey bee are in- 

 vited to meet with us. R. B. Slease, 

 Pres.; Henry C. Barron, Sec. 



Peddling Honey in cities may be quite 

 profitable for a man adapted to the busi- 

 ness. I have a letter this morning from a 

 young man who has been selling honey 



the past winter in Indianapolis. He says 

 that he has cleared as high as S6.00 a 

 day. One week his net profits were 

 $32.50. Let others go and do likewise. 



Sickness of the editor has made this 

 Review late. The stom.ach and digestive 

 ailments, from which he suffered last fall 

 and winter, had been overcome; but while 

 still in a weakened condition, he went down 

 town one cold windy day and contracted 

 a severe attack of bronchitis, from the 

 results of which he is still suffering. 

 With the coming of warm weather we 

 hope to see him on the road to recovery. 



Massachusetts has a great number of 

 green houses devoted to the growing of 

 cucumbers. It is impossible to secure a 

 crop without the use of bees to secure the 

 fertilization of blossoms. State Inspector 

 of Apiaries, Mr. Burton N. Gates, states 

 in his annual report that as many as 

 2.000 colonies are used each year for 

 this purpose. There is some difficulty in 

 always securing colonies that are free 

 from disease. A diseased colony soon 

 breaks down, is lacking in numbers, and 

 fails to do its work thoroughly at a critical 



