684 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Sept. 1. 



combs in so small an extractor, but I have 

 made such progress that we shall try to finish 

 the job without the large machine, as I intend- 

 ed. I think that, in making a large machine, 

 I wou'd have the pan square or oblong, with 

 only the highest side made sloping to reflect 

 the sun's heat, as, by the aid of the revolving 

 stand, the machince could easily be kept fac- 

 ing the sun. The advantage of the oblong pan 

 would be in more easily making the glass cover. 

 However, a 30-inch dishpan will make an ex- 

 tractor large enough for most bee-keepers' use. 

 Forestville, Minn., Aug. 13. B. Taylor. 



[A detailed description of how to make this 

 extractor, as above illustrated, is given in our 

 August 15th number, page 634.] 



LANGDON NO'N-SWARMING DEVICE. 



Your welcome favor of May 29th from Switz- 

 erland was received in due time, and now that 

 I have had the present year's experience and 

 the benefit of the few reports that I have re- 

 ceived from those using them, I will make a 

 report to you about the non-swarmer. You 

 have my thanks for the manner it is shown in 

 the B. B. J., and for the information and advice 

 in your last letter. 



I regret to say that the non-swarmer does not 

 do for me just as well as it did last year. How 

 much this depends on a difference in the season 

 is hard to tell. There has been some swarming, 

 a small per cent, from the sixty non-swarmers 

 In operation in my house-apiary, and I find from 

 my experience, and the few reports from those 

 using them this season, that there are at least 

 three points that it will not affect; viz., once in 

 a while a queen is killed, and hatching cells 

 make some trouble afterward. If the queen is 

 old and the bees try to supersede her, they will 

 build cells in the closed hive; and then if it is 

 opened soon after she will lead out a swarm. 

 This can be stopped by keeping all queens in 

 their prime, as all bee-keepers ought to do. 

 Also, it is known that they will sometimes 

 swarm with only eggs in the queen-cells that 

 they leave. Running so many bees into the 

 same hive seems to encourage this extreme of 

 the swarming fever, and it has been done more 

 frequently with the non-swarmer in place than 

 before. To what extent shading the hives would 

 help this is yet to be seen. Also, there might 

 be a great difference in races of bees as to that 

 point. I have only Carniolans, and so can not 

 tell about the Italians yet. 



These are exceptions; but they may stand in 

 the way of having the plan largely adopted by 

 those who can make self-hivers a success, or 

 those who can care for their bees in swarming- 

 time. I have over 500 on trial in different parts 

 of the country this season, and will know more 

 about its success before long. I can make it of 

 important use to me in my house, even as it is 

 now, and have set the ball rolling, so that if 

 there is any possible way to bring it to absolute 

 perfection the way is clear and a good track 

 laid. 



It was late in the season before the non- 

 swarmers were put on the market, and for that 

 reason may be explained the failure of some; 

 but I made one mistake in instructing them to 

 make the change of bees and cases from one hive 

 to the other once in seven days instead of not 

 over five. A natural queen-cell hatches at an 

 average of nine days. Now, if the bees have 

 the swarming fever very badly, and start a cell 

 from a larva just hatched from the egg, or one 

 day older, they can seal it and swarm on the 

 fifth or sixth day if they start it the same day 

 they are turned into the other hive. I think 

 that is where the most of the failures lie, and 

 that by a careful working-up of these points, 



and not taking too much for granted (as I am 

 afraid I did last year) the plan will finally be 

 brought out so that it will work with but few 

 exceptions. 



Thanking you for your kindness, and hoping 

 to see this plan help all the bee-keeping fra- 

 ternity, I am yours truly, H. P. Langdon. 



East Constable. N. Y., July 30. 



—British Bee Journal, August 10, '93. 



High-pressure Gardening. 



GARDENING FOR SEPT. 1, IN A DRY TIME. 



Well, friends, I have not any thing very en- 

 couraging just now: and. to tell the truth, I 

 am afraid I have been losing enthusiasm. The 

 drouth continues, and almost every thing is at 

 a standstill. It is true, we have had local 

 showers; and about once in ten days we have 

 had rain enough so the water would run down 

 the roadsides— that is, where the roadsides 

 were favorable. But not one of these showers 

 seems to have got down to the roots of the 

 plants. Push a spade into the ground, and the 

 dry dust comes up every time, even immediately 

 after a shower. I suppose the showers do some 

 good, and very likely we are better off here 

 than the folks in some other places. We have 

 no lack of water for man and beast, and we 

 have some to spare for irrigating; but what 

 perplexes me most is, even the use of water 

 does not seem to work as it ought to. There is 

 plenty of manure, and the weather is warm 

 enough, sure. But even when we put on the 

 water without stint, a good many things do not 

 grow as I want them to. For instance, we put 

 out a lot of celery, and used a hundred barrels 

 of water to wet the ground up thoroughly. 

 The plants do not grow; and when I dig into 

 the rows to fill up vacancies, I find the ground 

 almost as hard as a brick, where I put the 

 water. Why. before planting it was worked up 

 as fine and soft and deep as any one could wish. 

 Perhaps the result was owing to the fact that I 

 did not throw some dry earth over the surface 

 where the water had been applied, as I usually 

 do. I felt sure it was going to rain, and per- 

 haps this is one reason why we have not used 

 more water. The use of water on the straw- 

 berry-beds has worked nicely. We have filled 

 all our orders with nice strong well-rooted 

 plants. I only hope the friends who received 

 them have had water to keep them growing. 



Now, there is a big moral to look after right 

 here. Gardeners are becoming discouraged by 

 the wholesale— or, perhaps I should say. the 

 young gardeners are. The old. veterans have 

 learned better. We want to keep right at work, 

 and we can prepare the ground and sow spin- 

 ach now. We want to sow seeds of lettuce for 

 plants just right for forcing under glass, and 

 we want to put out plenty of seeds for cold- 

 frame cabbage-plants. Remember how much 

 cold-frame cabbage-plants were worth last 

 spring, and nobody had any. Sow rye on all 

 your vacant ground. Why, my 47 bushels of 

 rye to the acre that has nearly all been sold at 

 65 cts. a bushel (taking out the price of bags) 

 has been a more profitable crop than much of 

 my market-garden stuff. A general scarcity 

 and a general abandoning of the business only 

 means big prices for those who have something 

 to sell when there comes a great demand. We 

 are getting excellent prices for what we have 

 to sell, even now; and wax beans, lima beans 

 of all kinds, and several other vegetables that 

 stand drouth, are yielding quite a fair crop that 



