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GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



Sept. 1 



Heads of Gt^ain 



from Different Fields 



Preparing Early for Winter. 



The first week in Sei>tember we take oflf all of the 

 supers not previously removed from the hives, and 

 allow the bees to siore what honey they can from 

 then until winter in the brood-combs. About tlie 

 first of October we oj)en and insi)ect every hive — 

 first, to see the queen: second, the number of bees: 

 third, the condition of the brood: fourth and most 

 Important, tlie amount of stores, wliich we estimate 

 by lifting the frames one at a time, and judging, by 

 holding them, how much honey they contain. In 

 our locality a good-sized colony should have be- 

 tween 35 to 40 lbs. of stores, while a smaller colony 

 requires from 25 to 30 lbs. Last fall I had a number 

 of colonies that had over 50 lbs. of honey. Should a 

 colony not have enough, and some other colony 

 have too mucli, we equalize; and if we have no 

 frames of honey to give we feed sugar syrup till we 

 judge they have enough to winter. 



About November first we put the colonies into 

 winter quarters. We have all of the hives in two 

 bee-sheds, a picture of which was in (Ilkaning-S for 

 Dec. 1, 1909. These are boarded tight on three sides 

 with the long open side facing the sun. In these 

 sheds the hives remain, winter and summer. 



Most of the colonies are in chaff hives, and from 

 these we simply pry oflf the cover, put on an empty 

 super, lay three sticks on the frames crosswise, and 

 over these three another stick lengthwise. Then 

 we put on a sheet of enamel cloth or table oilcloth, 

 and over this a chaff cushion, and finally the cover. 



The part that we wish to emphasize Is about 

 sealed covers. At first we always put the cover on 

 tight, the result being that the cushions were wet, 

 the frames and honey moldy, and a rank smell in 

 the hives. We soon overcame that difliculty: and 

 now after the cushion is on we lay several strips of 

 broken section on the super and put the cover on 

 them. This leaves an opening about Y?. inch all 

 around the top. Our hives and cushions are now 

 dry, and the frames are no longer moldy. We for- 

 merly contracted the entrance; but by experience 

 we found that the bees wintered better with the 

 entrance not contracted. 



We winter some colonies also in single-walled 

 hives. Over these we put a rough box or oviter 

 case, and pack the space between with old newspa- 

 pers. We like much better a telescoping winter 

 cover that goes over the outer hive, leaving a dead- 

 air space between the inner and outer hive. 



Stetlersvllle, Pa. George Rex, Jk. 



A few Questions on the Selection of a Motor Cycle 

 for Bee-keepers' Use. 



I have read with much interest your articles on 

 autos and motor cycles. 1 operate five bee-yards 

 from five to fifteen miles from home. Thus you see 

 ray interest. In your motor-cycle article I wish 

 you had discussed the magneto type versus battery, 

 and also the free-engine clutch, their merits and 

 demerits. All the motor cycles 1 have had any 

 thing to do with so far are very liard to start, and 

 the equipment that overcomes this as much as po.s- 

 sible is the kind I want. Also please give factory 

 address of Harley-Davidson and Yale machines. 



Wolfe City, Texas, Aug. 11. V. Ukeen. 



[We would not advise you to use a magneto on a 

 motor bicycle. It adds considerably to tlie expense 

 and to the complication. The amount of current 

 which a motor cycle uses is very limited, and you 

 will find three cells of a common battery quite suf- 

 ficient to run you for two or three months. Of 

 course, if you use the machine constantly you may 

 have to renew the batteries oftener. You can usu- 

 ally buy dry cells at retail at 20 cents apiece. 



Neither would we advise you to get a two or four 

 cylinder machine. Tiiey add greatly to tlie weight, 

 and have no advantage over the single cylinder ex- 

 cept that they will permit of a little faster speed. 

 The single-cylinder motor cycles are heavy enough 

 witli a simple battery eq\iipment; and to add cyl- 

 inders or a magneto, or l)oth, only adds to the 

 weight and to the difficulty of starting. In the line 

 of a clutch we could not advise any thing better 



than a belt-tightener of the Harley-Davidson or the 

 Yale tyi)e. and by all means get a belt-driven ma- 

 chine. Do not let any agent talk you into buying a 

 cliain-driven outfit. Except for racing purposes 

 the chains .are going out. A belt-tightener outfit 

 will give you all the advantages of a clutch system. 

 In other words, you can loosen the belt and let the 

 engine run free if necessar.v. This is an advantage 

 when one is carrying mail in rural-delivery routes 

 •and in making frequent stops. All he has to do is 

 to throw the lever, loosen the lieit, throw on the 

 brake and stop the machine, letting the engine run: 

 deposit his mail, gradually tighten the belt, and 

 start off again. 



You will find the Harley-Davidson a little higher- 

 priced, but enough better than the Yale to compen- 

 sate for the diflference, although the Yale is a much 

 tietter machine in heavy sand or in excessively 

 hilly country. The Yale is a lighter machine, but 

 can not be run as slowly on a level as the Harley- 

 Davidson, nor is it quite as easy riding. 



The Harley-Davidson Is made by the Harley-Da- 

 vidson Motor f'o., Milwaukee, Wis., and the Yale 

 by the Consolidated Mfg. Co., Toledo, Ohio.— Ed.] 



Hydrogen Peroxide for Stings. 



Have you ever tried hydrogen peroxide for bee- 

 stings? I have been using it for some time, and 1 

 must say I am more than delighted with its effect 

 on them. The way we came to use it was this: Our 

 two-year old one day got a sting on the end of his 

 thumb, which, of course, made him cry. My wife, 

 anxious to do .something for him, poured some of 

 the solution into a cup and put the thumb into it. 

 and, to our surprise, he almo.st immediately stop- 

 ped crying. A few days after, a neighbor's boy who 

 was playing around the hives got stung, and my 

 wife applied it again, with similar results. In the 

 mean time I remained skeptical, but have tried it 

 since on myself quite frequently, and find it relieves 

 the pain wonderfully, and there is but little or no 

 swelling if It is used soon enough. 



Stratford, Ont., July 11. E. H. Eidt. 



[Despite the testimony of you and the children, 

 we would doubt very inuch whether hydrogen per- 

 oxide would have any more efTect than so much 

 water. As one of our local physicians says, it is 

 about as near water as any thing there is found In 

 materia inedica. It is only ver.v slightly acid, while 

 the sting of a hee is violently acid. If hydrogen 

 peroxide were an alkali, it is conceivable that a 

 liberal ai)plication of It might neutralize the acid 

 of the sting. Its chief value lies in the fact that it 

 Is a germicide, and therefore valuable for prevent- 

 ing infection, etc. 



The only thing that will relieve a bee-sting is an 

 api)lication of either hot or cold water. Cooling 

 api^lications of any thing will bring relief; and as 

 hydrogen i)eroxide is nearly water it could hardly 

 liave more than the eflfect of so much water. — Ed.] 



A Colony that Persisted in Killing Queens. 



I have kept bees from boyhood, nearly all of tlie 

 time: but I liave run up against something that 

 beats me, and I should like to have you or some 

 reader explain why tills particular colony should 

 be so stubborn in the way of accepting a queen To 

 CDinmence with. I gave this colony a queen that I 

 had sent away for. As soon as they liberated her 

 they bailed and killed her. I then introduced an- 

 other, w^hich shared the same fate. Then I gave 

 them a frame of brood. They raised a queen, and 

 as soon as she hatched 1 found her balled, and, 

 later, dead. Tlien 1 tried ripe queen-cells at two 

 different times. Both these queens met the same 

 fate. There was not an egg in their combs, so no 

 ch.ance for fertile workers, They stored their combs 

 full of honey and pollen. I have at this writing 

 broken up the colony, dividing the frames and ad- 

 hering l)ees, giving them to several other colonies 

 in the bee-yard. 



Bakerslield, Cal., .July 27. E. I>. Dickin.SON. 



[Once in a great wiilie we find a colony th:it has a 

 mania for killing queens. We had one such that 

 would kill every queen we attempted to introduce 

 to it by all the different methods described in the 

 various l>ee books. We gave them cells, liut the 

 bees destroyed them. They would kill the freshly 

 hatched virgins. We cave them a frame of freshly 

 laid eggs from which they raised a cell or two, and 

 finally a queen: then when she was about ready for 



