102 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Feb. 1 



should have, or from sickness or a pressure of 

 business, how are we to guard against the bees 

 starving? As I object to feeding bees during 

 the winter months unless absolutely obliged to 

 to keep them from starving, I adopt this plan 

 along the line of " guarding." 



On some mild day when It thaws a little, 

 without the sun shining (can see best on a 

 cloudy day), go over all the colonies outdoors 

 by removing what you have over the quilt or 

 cloth covering to the frames, and then gently 

 roll this covering up till you come to the cluster 

 of bees, when you will carefully note the 

 amount of sealed honey you can see not cover- 

 ed with bees. We will say 'it is about the first 

 of February when you do this. If you find 

 plenty of sealed honey along the top-bars of the 

 frames, you can set that colony down as hav- 

 ing enough till April. If plenty in half the 

 combs, then it is good till March. If very lit- 

 tle, then it should he looked after in two weeks; 

 and if none at all. it should be fed at once. All 

 not needing feeding at once should be left with 

 the hopes that a day warm enough for the bees 

 to fly may occur, when all needing attention 

 should be attended to; but should no such day 

 occur, then they should be attended to before 

 they starve, no matter what the weather. 



Well, how shall we feed at this time of year? 

 My way has been to take frames of honey from 

 those in which I see much sealed honey, and 

 give to those about to starve, taking out the 

 outside combs of honey on any day when I 

 could best do so, and putting division-boards in 

 their places. I now place these combs of honey 

 in a warm room for four or five hours till they 

 get thoroughly warmed through, when I go to 

 the destitute colony, take out one or two empty 

 combs on the outside, divide the frames near 

 the center of the cluster of bees, using smoke to 

 keep them from flying, and set in the warmed 

 combs. In this way any apiary which was not 

 in nearly a starving condition In the fall can be 

 brought through till we can feed in the spring. 

 If the colonies are in the cellar, and are where 

 the combs can be got at, they can be looked 

 after in the same way. In the spring the feed- 

 ing is done with feeders in the regulation man- 

 ner, but feeding with anything but combs of 

 sealed honey during the winter months is very 

 unsatisfactory, as a rule. 



AN INVESTMENT THAT PAID. 



Early last spring it was my good fortune to 

 receive an oft'er from a party living about ten 

 miles from here, to sell me her entire outfit of 

 bees, hives, tools, etc., for $40. I went to see the 

 "outfit," and found fifteen colonies of bees. 



pretty fair Italians, an extractor, two honey- 

 knives, Bingham smoker, several hundred sec- 

 tions, and about 2.50 brood-combs, together with 

 nearly 100 old hives that were fit for nothing 

 but kindling-wood. The trip resulted in my 

 accepting the offer, providing they would de- 

 liver the whole lot at my place, which they did. 

 During the season they threw off several new 

 swarms, only two of which I secured, the rest 

 going off, owing to my absence from home. 

 They stored 500 lbs. of honey, which I sold at 

 an average price of fifteen cents per pound. 

 From the old hives, musty and broken combs, I 

 secured "'> pounds of wax, which I sold at 24 cts. 

 per pound. 1 transferred them from the old 

 Quinby frames to the new Hoffman, and in the 

 two-story chaff' hives. In preparing them for 

 winter I doubled them up and now have 12 

 colonies in fine condition ; enough kindling- 

 wood for the winter; 100 brood-combs, Quinby 

 size; 500 pounds of honey at 14 cts. per pound, 

 *70; 75 pounds of wax at 24 cts., *18; total, $88. 



First investment, $40; new hives, $18. Bal- 

 ance on hand, notwithstanding the "bad sea- 

 son and locality." the pleasure and experience, 

 $2C|.;K). Van E. Freeman. 



Joilet, 111.. .Jan. 5. 



THE READING OF FOREIGN BEE-PAPERS AT THE 



convention; what the editor of THE 



" BIENENZEITUNG " THINKS A150UT IT. 



In regard to the reading of the foreign papers 

 at your St. Joseph convention, I am of the 

 opinion that Mr. Hutchinson, in his Review, 

 is somewhat astray in his position. INIr. Ab- 

 bott, I think, sees the matter from the right 

 standpoint. I would not have written my 

 article, to be published only in your bee-papers, 

 without payment. Reading my paper in a 

 more condensed manner would have made it 

 worthless. I wrote it as an honorary member 

 of your association, honoring your association 

 and not myself the least. What my friend 

 Frank Benton has said in regard to the inven- 

 tion of the movable-comb hive by Dzierzon, I 

 appreciate. But I have not expressed myself 

 in the right way. I should have said: "Dzier- 

 zon invented (as Langstroth in America) the 

 only first praeticable movable-comb hive — a 

 hive that could be used better than any other 

 invention before, and therefore they were 

 starting a new era." 



I have read Gleanings with much pleasure, 

 and not the least the Notes of Travel by your 

 father. C. J. Gravenhorst. 



Wilsnack, Germany, Jan. 3, 1895. 



MONEY candying BEFORE COLD WEATHER, 

 AND WHY. 



I wonder if you have had an experience like 

 mine. This year, when I extracted in Septem- 

 ber, combs that were built and filled in August 

 contained many cells of candied honey, just as 

 taken from the hive; and all extracted thick- 

 ened soon after, before any cold weather came. 



