278 



f4 li E \ N r N G S IN BEE U Ij T O R E 



MiW, 1918 



FROM THE FIELD OF EXPERIENCE 



fool thing — burn out the inside of your 

 hives, for it does no good and it spoils the 

 hive. Do this: (1) As fast as possible work 

 into a good strain of Italian stock, getting 

 rid of your blacks: (2) Dispose of your poor 

 queens; (3) Examine all colonies frequently 

 and do not permit any to become badly af- 

 fected; (4) If you find a colony with Euro- 

 pean foul brood, nip off the queen 's head 

 and contract the hive entrance. In 10 days 

 destroy the cells, and a week later set the 

 hive and bees on top of another colony, pre- 

 ferably a strong one of Italian stock, with a 

 sheet of pai>er between to prevent fighting. 

 That is all, the bees will do the rest. 



Of course, if your bees are nearly all dis- 

 eased, as mine were once, the thing to do is 

 to stack them up and keep them strong while 

 you get in some Italian stock. Eemember 

 that the germs of this disease may be any- 

 where, but Italian bees of a good strain are 

 not likely to become infected unless the 

 larvse are fed from the remains of diseased 

 larvae, those that have died recently; for it 

 is probable that the decomposed or the dried 

 up matter could not be so utilized, and it will 

 in most cases be cleaned out by the bees 

 within a few days. After an interval of 

 two weeks there will be little or no danger 

 of infection. 



You cannot get rid of European foul brood 

 by any known method and keep black or de- 

 generate bees. Don 't try it. 



Valparaiso, Ind. " E. S. Miller. 



PACKAGE BEE EXPERIENCE 



Water or Liquid Feed Very Necessary for Long 

 Shipments if Bees Are to Live 



Having received perhaps more package 

 bees at our Utah and Idaho apiaries during 

 the season of 1917 than were handled by any 

 other buyer in the United States during the 

 same period, our experience may be of value 

 to those who are now preparing bees for ship- 

 ment in this manner. 



First we would advise shipments before 

 the hot summer weather is at hand, as our 

 early packages were received in better con- 

 dition than our late packages. If properly 

 prepared for shipment, deliveries up to tJie 

 middle of June ought to be in good condi- 

 tion. The risk increases during the hot 

 days of July. 



At no time during 1917 did bees reach us 

 in good condition when shipped with feed 

 candy only. Where candy is used it is of the 

 utmost importance that water cans be used 

 also, especially where packages require four 

 to seven days for delivery to distant points. 

 Sugar syrup, however, may prove to be the 

 ideal feed, replacing candy and water. We 

 received a few such sliipmeiits and in very 

 satisfactorv condition, considering the warm 



weather prevailing at that time. At this 

 particular time packages containing candy, 

 without any water supply, were arriving in 

 very poor condition, many such shipments 

 being entirely dead on arrival. Shipments 

 with the syrup cans showed a decided con- 

 trast, as did also those with water cans, 

 which proves to us that either water or 

 liquid feed is absolutely necessary, except 

 on shipments moving only a short distance. 

 For experimental purposes we have shipped 

 a carload of bees to California this year, 

 where they will breed up earlier than in 

 Utah. We propose to draw package bees 

 heavily from them about the last of May, 

 shipping them back to Utah with sugar syruj) 

 as feed. 



Tags with printed instructions would be of 

 considerable value. These should be of good 

 size, with such wording thereon as follows: 



DO NOT COVEE WITH PACKAGES IN CAR. 

 DO NOT ALLOW BEES TO STAND IN SUN. 

 LO NOT DELAY EN ROUTE; BUSH DELIVERY. 

 SPRINKLE FREQUENTLY WITH WATER. 

 BEES MUST HAVE VENTILATION AND MUST 

 BE KEPT AS COOL AS POSSIBLE. 



If the above suggestions are followed out, 

 we are satisfied losses on express ship- 

 ments will be largely overcome. Such loss- 

 es should at least be cut in half, if not al- 

 most entirely eliminated. The construction 

 of the package itself is of far less impor- 

 tance than the food supply given the bees 

 during the journey. If properly provision- 

 ed to stand the trip, the bees should arrive 

 in good condition in almost any kind of a 

 package, so long as it is well ventilated. 



Our receipts during 1917 were several 

 thousand packages, to help offset a severe 

 winter loss of about 60 per cent the previous 

 winter. Packages to help replace this loss 

 were received from such points as Texas, 

 Georgia, Mississippi, Tennessee, California, 

 etc., so that we have had ample opportunity 

 to observe results. We have decided that the 

 vital point hinges on the water supply, either 

 in syrup form, or separate from the feed. 

 Do not overlook the placing of proper hand- 

 ling instructions on the express shipments. 

 The express employees should be educated 

 as to the proper care that the bees should 

 receive enroute to destination. 



Ogden, Utah. F. W. Eedfield. 



BEEKEEPERS' BOOKKEEPING 



Directions as to How Keep Account of the Income, 

 Outgo, and Capital Involved 



Now that the Government demands a 

 statement of the finance^ of every citizen 

 with an income above $1,000 for a single 

 person and $2,000 if married, every bee- 

 keeper shouhl keep an accurate account of 



