1874. 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



53 



been there a week. We have kept the heat 

 constantly at a summer temperature, and the 

 bees and Queen crawl to all parts of the hive 

 at pleasure, but there are no eggs, and no 

 brood-rearing ; something besides warmth 

 must be wanting. To be sure many will say, 

 she can't lay eggs, and brood can't be reared 

 without more than eighty-two bees ; but why ? 

 her whole hive is kept as warm as the centre 

 of a populous colony in June. 



Again ; the combs of the hives from which 

 the bees had died, almost without exception 

 were destitute of pollen, see problem 12 and 13 

 last year. No one has yet applied for the $5.00 

 although several have suggested, corn-starch, 

 corn-bread soaked in honey etc., etc., and our 

 " Ambrosial" friend Flick gives to JB, K. M. a 

 recipe for " bee food" composed principally of 

 corn-starch. As it is not so very mitch trouble 

 to try the experiment, we made a small heap 

 of corn starch, in the rye and oat-meal in our 

 feed house, and they seem to dislike it more 

 than any of the various substances with which 

 we have experimented. We wonder if it ever 

 occurred to Mr Flick and some others, to try 

 whether their receipts are valuable. 



How can we supply bees with pollen in the 

 spring, that brood-rearing may proceed when 

 the weather proves unfavorable V Have some 

 of our readers a Green-house or conservatory, 

 and does any one know of an experiment ever 

 having been made to see if bees will fly out 

 and regain their hive agaiu, in such a place? 



If so, they would certainly work on rye meal, 

 and thus enable us to be independent of bad 

 weather. The bees we have lost this spring 

 would pay for one large enough to make the 

 experiment, and if it cannot be demonstrated 

 otherwise, we have a strong fancy to see for 

 ourselves what can be done. 



Some friend suggests that a field of hemp 

 would furnish pollen enough, and thus enable 

 them to keep a supply over winter. We strong- 

 ly suspect this lack, is one of the drawbacks 

 in our locality, and may possibly be in others 

 also. Friend Hosmer says in A r . B. J. that he 

 thinks the great advantage of the Western 

 over the Eastern States for bee culture, is on 

 account of the greater abundance of pollen 

 yielded. 



April iQth — A part of the day being some- 

 what warm, a little natural pollen was gather- 

 ed. Two more colonies are dead and no favor- 

 able change in the weather yet. After the 82 

 bees in the Lamp nursery had dwindled down 

 to nine bees, we sent them Queen and all in an- 

 swer to an application for the " cheapest queen 

 we could furnish, hybrid or otherwise." 'Tis 

 our first sale of queens this season and bids 

 fair to be our last also. 



April 20 : — Although yesterday was Sunday, 

 as it was the first really fine day since March 

 2nd, we, and "Blue Eyes" anxiously watched 

 the remnants of our Apiary's laborers, as they 

 brought in the different colored loads of pollen. 



The manure had been removed from a few 

 of the hives, and we were curious to observe 

 which would commence work soonest. Sure 

 enough, the warm sun shining directly on the 

 tops of the uncovered hives, sent them to the 

 fields, an hour earlier than the rest; the ma- 

 nure having the same efl'ect as double walled 

 hives, since fermentation has ceased. 



Several more colonies were found so weak 

 that they had to be broken up, and worse than 

 all the rest, our Argo Queen is among the miss- 

 ing; we would not have sold her for $25.00. 



We noticed about church time, that the bees 

 were very feebly resisting the attacks of some 

 black robbers; and, although they hud been 

 working briskly on meal but a few days before, 

 an examination showed very few bees, and no 

 queen. 



Another colony about the same time, showed 

 symptoms(individual bees whirling around ex- 

 citedly, at the entrance)of swarming out (they 

 have, once before) although they had a fair 

 number of bees ; these, were given a comb of 

 eggs and some pollen from another, and after 

 that, abandoned their project. All the stocks 

 that have failed were found nearly or quite 

 destitute of pollen, and none contained eggs 

 or brood. The manure answered perfectly in 

 keeping them at an even temperature, above 

 freezing, and vegetation was found to have 

 started briskly, about and beneath the hives, 

 when the manure was removed. The few lines 

 below just received from Mr. Curry, will prob- 

 ably explain why the manure answered, in 

 place of warm weather, in his experiment, and 

 has not in ours. 



Pollen seems rather scarce, on account of the severe 

 frosts I suppose. I am not sorry, as it gives them a 

 chance to clear out the old pollen lrom the combs. 



We cannot remember to have seen any old 

 pollen in the combs in the spring, for the past 

 three seasons ; last season we looked over more 

 than a hundred combs before we could find just 

 enough for a simple experiment. What shall 

 we do for pollen when we have weather like 

 that of the past six weeks? 



P. S. — We didn't go to church last Sunday, 

 and it is to be feared we were not in a very 

 "devotional" frame of mind either, at least a 

 part of the day. 



• ♦ * 



CHEAP FAINT FOR HIVES. 



You advocate all economical articles and processes, 

 what do you think of the cheap paint recipe given in 

 Winder's circular? I find the same recommended in 

 Robinsons "Facts for Farmers." 



J . H. Martin, Hartford, N. Y. 



We think of it as we do of many other re- 

 ceipts given by thoughtless people because they 

 had "heard 'twas good" but never once thought 

 of trying it themselves. As a white-wash, it 

 may do very well, but if we really would pro- 

 tect lumber from the evil effects of moisture, 

 the wood must be thoroughly treated with 

 good oil paint. The cheap paint will not stick 

 unless it be used on rough, undressed boards, 

 and we do not think it possible to make hives 

 sufficiently accurate of such material. 



We once made 50 such and used them sever- 

 al years; the paint adhered very well, but the 

 boards warped and drew the nails out, nearly 

 if not quite as bad as if unpainted. After they 

 had been in use three or four years, we in des- 

 peration nailed them over, and then wasted 

 more good oil paint on them in the attempt to 

 make the old weather beaten wood impervious 

 to water, than they were all worth. The Sim- 

 plicity style of hives, requires but little paint, 

 and their form offers every facility for giving 

 them an additional coat whenever they may 

 need it, as they remain on their summer stands. 

 One coat at first, on new hives will do very well. 



