1910 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



69 



BEE-KEEPING AMONG 

 THE ROCKIES. 



By Wesley Foster, Boulder, Col. 



sagging of section-holders. 

 When a super gets full of honey the sec- 

 tion-holders sag in the middle and destroy 

 the correct bee-space above and below, and 

 also throw some of the sections out of shape. 

 A section-holder slat should be Vs in. instead 

 of '4 to overcome this fault. I have seen the 

 holders sagging nearly the full bee-space, 

 and resting on the tops of the frames. 



A HARD WINTER. 



On Thanksgiving day the weather chang- 

 ed from the usual Colorado fall, of perfect 

 days, to regular severe cold of the Eastern 

 State variety, with no warm weather up to 

 this time, except for a few days about Christ- 

 mas, when the bees had a cleansing flight. 

 Few stores have been consumed, and the 

 dead bees have not shown up much on-the 

 bottom-boards. On the whole I think out- 

 door-wintered bees are doing just as well as 

 the most hopeful could expect. The pro- 

 longed cold may tell on the vitality of the 

 colonies later on, but we are not grieving 

 yet. Hot cakes and biscuits are being eaten 

 these cold snappy days, and I can see where 

 last year's crop is fast passing to the "ulti- 

 mate consumer." The glucose people seem 

 to profit also by the hot-cake weather, and 

 no wonder; for a gallon of corn syrup costs 

 but fifty cents, while honey is a dollar and a 

 half. Many do not object to poor food if they 

 can get it cheaper. What we bee-keepers 

 must do is to educate the public to use the 

 best and purest foods. 



Comb honey still unsold which has com- 

 menced to granulate is the most serious dif- 

 ficulty to be met in the rapid spread of hon- 

 ey consumption; so all cases should be gone 

 over, and the slightly candied combs remov- 

 ed. This can be melted down, or sold to 

 those who like the candied article. 

 -^ 



THE RANGE OF FLIGHT VARIES. 



This question of the distance bees fly for 

 honey depends much on differing conditions, 

 topography of the range, direction the pre- 

 vailing wind blows, fragrance and abundance 

 of the honey flora, position and facing of the 

 bee-yard. All these factors enter in quite 

 largely before one can say when a location 

 is worth any thing or is already overstocked. 



First, taking up the topography of the dis- 

 trict over which the bees have to forage. 

 An apiary which we bought was located in a 

 sort of hole. Dry hills rose on each side; 

 and, though the distance to a good number 

 of alfalfa fa elds was not far, those bees did 

 only about half as well as some which were 

 only three-quarters of a mile distant. I can 

 come to no conlcusion but that those bees 

 could not see, smell, or hear of the blossom- 

 ing fields till too late to do really good work. 

 The odds were too much for the bees to com- 



bat in some particulars. Whether I have 

 offered the real solution I can not say; but 

 the fact remains that bees but a short dis- 

 tance away gathered a good surplus. 



As to tne wind affecting the direction 

 bees fly, I think this would apply only where 

 the wind is very constant, making it almost 

 impossible for flight in other directions. One 

 would think bees could see that, if they fly 

 against the wind, the wind will be at their 

 backs on the home stretch; but if the wind 

 continually blows them back, making access 

 to the desirable fields difficult, they are not 

 likely to persist against the odds. 



One reason the sweet clover is visited by 

 the bees so plentifully is that it is so much 

 more pronounced in odor than alfalfa. I 

 would not admit that sweet clover is more 

 fragrant, but it has more odor. 



As to bees guiding their flight according 

 to the way they get started from the apiary, 

 I think this depends very largely on the 

 abundance of nectar in the flowers straight 

 ahead If a long dense grove of trees cuts 

 off sight and flight to the west while there 

 is an abundance of virgin territory to the 

 east it is reasonable to suppose that very lit- 

 tle work will be done through that grove 

 barrier till the district to the east begins to 

 fail. 



THE ANSWER TO CROWTHER'S PROBLEM; 



THE DISTANCE OF A GOOD WATER 



SUPPLY. 



Giving my ideas on Mr. Crowther's prob- 

 lem, page 22, Jan. 1, I will say that I think 

 the bees located three-quarters of a mile 

 above the irrigation canal were so far remov- 

 ed from the good honey acreage that much 

 energy was wasted in gathering a surplus. 

 Bees do not fly at all profitably for honey 

 more than a mile and a naif, and that three- 

 fourths mile of barren ground discouraged 

 the more timid bees, if there were such, and I 

 do not see why we can not say this, for some 

 bees are out in the morning as soon as the 

 sun rises, while the large majority do not 

 start to work till encouraged by the success- 

 ful efforts of the early ones. 



The distance from a good water supply 

 would account for some of this difference in 

 yield. I do not imagine that a great barren 

 plain looks very inviting to the bees, for it 

 is their nature to live among trees and grass 

 and flowers. I wonder how many of the 

 readers know the lost and lonesome feeling 

 that comes from being alone on a level stretch 

 of buffalo grass and sand. The only thing 

 bearable is knowing the distance to water, 

 grass, and civilization. But suppose one 

 were a bee, and did not know whetner there 

 was anything green on earth; then he would 

 feel like curling up in a ball and giving up 

 this world as a great mistake. I imagine 

 that bees placed out a mile from any irrigat- 

 ed 'and feel like doing this very thing. 



Whether bees will fly seven miles down 

 from the mountains to the valley and gather 

 alfalfa honey, I must say that I think the ter- 

 ritory nearer home should be scrutinized 

 very carefully before placing a great deal of 

 confidence in the seven-mile flight. 



