June, 1908. 



American HQe Journal 



Practical and Potential 

 Pointers 



BY PROF. A. J. COOK. 



Our bees are insects, and any thing 

 that pertains to insects, especially if it 

 touches our interests, or is likely to af- 

 fect the prosperity of ourselves or oth- 

 ers of our people, is sure to attract the 

 attention and claim the interest of every 

 intelligent bee-keeper. 



Annoying Ants. 



Our friends of the Crescent City, and 

 the immediate surroundines, are seri- 

 ously plagued by the introduction of an 

 ant from the Argentine Republic of 

 South America. At present, 1 think this 

 unwelcome immigrant is confined to the 

 State of Louisiana. This Argentine or 

 New Orleans Ant is known to Science 

 as Iridomynncx luimdis. As a household 

 pest it is said to be terriffic. It at- 

 tacks almost every food article, and its 

 bite is so severe that it is thought that 

 it might prove fatal to infants, if alone 

 when attacked. It also distributes other 

 pests and attacks directly our orchard 

 and garden plants. It is of the utmost 

 importance that this pest be not intro- 

 duced into other sections of our country, 

 or that it be allowed to spread to other 

 parts of the State that is afflicted by 

 its pestiferous presence. 



Quarantine Laws. 



The above case is but one of hundreds 

 where our prosperity and comfort have 

 been alarmingly interfered with by the 

 introduction of insect pests. In truth, 

 very many of our most destructive in- 

 sects have come from other countries. 

 Every State should have carefully 

 framed quarantine laws that such in- 

 sects should be kept from coming to 

 us. California has such laws, and they 

 are executed by able, cautious men to 

 the great advantage of our people. Could 

 we have had these laws earlier it woud 

 saved to our people millions of dollars. 

 But good and effective as our laws are, 

 they are not enough. We need general 

 or national laws that would reach be- 

 yond State lines. A wisely framed Na- 

 tional quarantine law, as wisely and 

 thoroughly executed as is our present 

 State law, would be a godsend to our 

 country. We are constantly bringing 

 plants from other countries, and are get- 

 ting many of our most valued fruits 

 and vegetables by this practise. We are 

 in constant and perilous danger, in this 

 incessant introduction of plants, of 

 bringing with them just such pests as 

 this Argentine ant that is so grievous 

 a pest about New Orleans. Is it not 

 our privilege and duty, to favor and 

 urge this general quarantine against our 

 insect foes? 



Gipsy and Red-Tailed Moths. 



These are two insects that have been 

 brought int'j Massachusetts from Eu- 

 rope, which have done serious damage, 

 and have thnatened widely to extend 

 their frightful ravages throughout the 

 country. The old Bay State has already 

 expended a million dollars in fighting 

 these two pests. It is very difficult to 

 exterminate an insect when it has once 

 gained a sure foothold in a country. 

 It would be far better and cheaper to 



keep it out, as suggested above. Mass- 

 achusetts has waged a fierce battle 

 against these' two foreigners, and to so 

 little purpose in the past that her people 

 were becoming quite discouraged. 



A New Method of Warfare. 



Years ago. Southern California was 

 alarmed by the attack of the white scale, 

 which was brought from Australia. This 

 scale threatened not alone the citrus 

 trees — orange and lemon — but was a 

 promiscuous feeder, and seemed likely 

 to sweep every green thing from the 

 face of the earth. Some orchardists, 

 discouraged in the face of this enemy, 

 began to uproot their citrus trees. Hap- 

 pily a little lady-bird beetle from Aus- 

 tralia — the land tliat gave us the white 

 scale — was introduced, and soon the 

 white scale was as rare as it was prev- 

 iously threatening. Thus by the intro- 

 duction of a little friendly beetle, known 

 everywhere in California as the Veda- 

 lia, a very profitable and fascinating 

 business was saved from total ruin. 



In the light of this wonderful experi- 

 ence, it seems strange that wise Massa- 

 chusetts had not at once upon the out- 

 break of the gipsy and red-tail moths, 

 gone to Europe to find the enemy that 

 holds them in check in their native 

 home. Two years ago this plan was 

 adopted, and we learn that already the 

 little parasites are conquering the de- 

 spoiling moths. We must remember that 

 all insects in the place of their nativity 

 are of necessity held in check by para- 

 sites. When, then, a pest is brought 

 us, is it not wise to seek out whence 

 it came, and go at once to find, if hap- 

 pily we may, what holds it in check, and 

 at once bring this friend to our shores? 



A Needed Official. 



The cotton-boll weevil, was one of 

 these grievous foreigners, which was 

 laying heavy tax on the cotton-growers 

 of Texas. The Government has voted 

 heavy appropriations to conquer this 

 foe. It is now found that native para- 

 sites are attacking this new foe, and bid 

 fair to wipe out the evil. We see that 

 we need more attention and study of 

 these ubiquitous insect foes. Insects are 

 so small, their ruin so great, their life 

 history so complex, that it is very wise 

 to employ the very best talent to in- 

 vestigate them, and report the best ways 

 to cope with them. 



Think of it ! We produce an annual 

 crop, in our agriculture, of about $7,000,- 

 000,000. It is said by the best authori- 

 ties that one-fifth is sacrificed to our 

 insect foes. It is certain that much of 

 this could be saved had we more knowl- 

 edge. Should not this urge that we have 

 a State entomologist in every State, and 

 that in large states, or in such States 

 as California where fruit is of such 

 great importance, that we have even 

 more than one? 



I have no ax to grind, or any direct 

 personal interest in this niatter, yet I 

 am sure that a wise expenditure of dol- 

 lars, in this way, would mean a harvest 

 of thousands. Who could estimate the 

 cash returns from the researches of 

 Harris, Fitch, Walsh and Riley, and 

 many more of later date? I believe that 

 no wiser course could be followed, than 

 to secure an able, competent entomolo- 

 gist in every State. California is to the 



fore front in this matter of insect con- 

 trol, and I doubt if any other section 

 of the world could show such financial 

 results. It simply shows that it pays. 



The Present Season. 



We have had good rains, and very 

 timely ones, but the prospects for a 

 honey crop are most discouraging. The 

 cool days, like those of our last two 

 seasons, are hindering brood-rearing, are 

 holding back the nectar of the bloom, 

 and are holding the bees in the hives. 

 We thought we were sure of a great 

 honey-year, but now we fear at best 

 that we shall get but a very meager 

 crop. We can only hope that the damp, 

 cool weather, that is so delicious to our 

 feelings, may be speedily cut short. 



Claremont, Cal., May 6. 



Transferring of Larvae in 

 Queen-Rearing 



BY TH. REIDENBACH. 



A most important point to be looked 

 after when rearing queens, which is 

 necessary in every extensive apiary, is 

 perfect, vigorous, and long-lived queens 

 from our most industrious and profit- 

 able colonies. If the apiarist can ob- 

 tain natural-swarming cells from such 

 colonies, he is unquestionably very for- 

 tunate, for such matured queens are of 

 highest quality, but unfortunately such 

 colonies swarm seldom. For this rea- 

 son, it is considered a good practise 

 to utilize even swarming cells of more 

 inferior colonies by grafting them with 

 minute larvae from a breeding-queen, ac- 

 cording to Weygandt's excellent discov- 

 ery by which queens are reared equally 

 as good as those reared under natural 

 conditions. Such queens are far su- 

 perior to those resulting from post-con- 

 structed cells. 



A strain of bees constantly bent on 

 swarming, like the Krainer or heather 

 bee, gives the apiarist very much trou- 

 ble, and he has it in his power to trans- 

 form them into a more peaceful breed 

 by grafting his swarming cells with 

 larvae from more desirable stock, and 

 in due time he will have bees of alto- 

 gether a different nature. 



It is sometimes asserted that the in- 

 ferior blood of the foster-mother col- 

 ony crops out in the young, but in no 

 way does experience confirm the asser- 

 tion. 



What course we would better pursue 

 to perform this work, is a question. A 

 good way is this : When an inferior 

 colony is found having queen-cells un- 

 der construction the queen is impris- 

 oned, and from all queen-cells with 

 young larvas the latter are removed, 

 then replaced with other young larvae 

 from 24 to 48 hours old, of superior 

 stock. A fine camel's-hair brush drawn 

 to a point is used for this work. Lar- 

 vae may be removed the easier if the 

 cell-walls are cut down from the brood- 

 comb before trying to remove them. 



Sometimes a colony will construct 

 queen-cells over their own brood be- 

 sides ; they should be destroyed, for it 

 has been found in practise that such 

 post-constructed cells which are usually 

 found nearer the center of brood-combs 

 are not finished up when grafted. 



