mi. 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Go 



May 22nd — We have had a week of cold, wet 

 weather, and our two weak "clusters," are 

 ■Queenless. One of the Queens died three 

 times, and the last time she "stayed" dead in 

 spite of persistent efforts to coax her back to 

 this world of care. 



Truly : 



"This world's a wilderness of woe." 



"Why it's really aggravating to hear from 

 others who haven't lost any. We know how to 

 take care of bees, every body knows, especially 

 "when they are all strong stocks, and it's warm 

 weather with no cold storms. We have kept 

 saving to ourselves all along when the weath- 

 er was bad, that friend Boliu would be sure to 

 lose some of his 99 colonies now, at any rate, 

 but imagine our disappointment at learning he 

 has not. We believe we shall have to let him 

 stand "clear up to the head," in the "Roll of 

 Honor," while we shall have to be put down to 

 the extreme foot, or perhaps placed a yard or 

 two below all the rest. 



The advice given in the following, for spring 

 treatment, we heartily commend. 



HOW TO "SPRING" tOO COLONIES 

 WITHOUT LOSING ANY. 



^fjJRIEND NOVICE:— I'll tell all I know 

 JlL| about the pollen, provided you don't talk 

 of putting me in the Editorial chair again. 

 The mere thought of occupying such an exal- 

 ted position makes me feel nervous; more so 

 than it would to have a lot of cross hybrids 

 "go for" me, although they can sting a little, if 

 they try. 



Some stocks had considerable pollen when 

 put into winter quarters, others very little, and 

 in several of them the supply was nearly or 

 <juite exhausted, when they were put on the 

 summer stand; yet the rye flour they carried 

 in, seems to have supplied all deficiencies in 

 that respect. As many of the best stocks I 

 now have, are some of those having the least 

 pollen, when taken out of winter quarters, I 

 think the} r should have some pollen when put 

 into winter quarters, as I do not think they 

 can raise brood without any; still of the two 

 ■extremes, I should prefer their not having 

 • piite enough, to a large surplus, as it is easier 

 Furnishing what they need in the spring, after 

 they are put on the summer stand, in the shape 

 of rye flour, than it is to get the old'clry pollen 

 out of the brood comb, where there is too 

 much. Rye flour is undoubtedly one of the 

 best stimulants we can give our bees in the 

 spring, as it gives a greater impetus to breed- 

 ing, tatly in the season, than anything else I 

 have.tried, and at the same time it keeps them 

 out ol :', by keeping them busy. It 



1 • • the lives of hundreds of industrious 



workei ing them employment at home, 



instea .ing the fields and woods, in 



quest of natnral pollen, 



My b es carried in the flour from about four 

 bushels of rye, ng. They worked on 



it, to some extent, the first week in March, 

 then no . . in, owing to the cold, until the 

 third week; and after that whenever the 

 weather was warm en ' until about il 



25th, erhei ether foi ; 



□ broi 



being a moD 

 than a 



My losses this spring have only been the 

 swarm that starved, (t am almost inclined to 

 say for want of sense as they had plenty of 

 honey in the hive, the second week in March,) 

 and one Queen in April, the rest are doing well. 

 The Queen that died was not quite two years 

 old, yet she was one of those "natural, long 

 lived, prolific Queens," of which we read so 

 much a few years ago; whilst a forced artific- 

 ial Queen that was hatched May 6th, 1870, is 

 as full of life as ever, notwithstanding part of 

 her lungs are gone — one wing clipped. She 

 led out a swarm May 1st, 1872, and one May 

 20th, 1873, being the first natural swarms I bail 

 each season. The summer of 1871, I took from 

 the old stock, and the two swarms that came 

 from it, 216 pounds of box honey ; in '72, 120 

 lbs. from her colony ; and in '73, 150 lbs. from 

 old stock and swarm. If clipping a Queen's 

 wings gives such results I think I shall be 

 guilty of more of it, even if it is "impertinent 

 interference." 



For several years I have practiced stimulat- 

 ing my bees, in the spring, by giving them a 

 spoonful or two of syrup every evening. It is 

 considerable trouble, it is true, but it pays, and 

 that is what most of us work for. I have not 

 found, in my experience, that having plenty of 

 sealed honey, or even feeding a large amount of 

 syrup at one time, answers the same purpose, 

 so far as breeding is concerned, as regular, dai- 

 ly feeding. 



The worst, and in fact about the only trouble 

 I have with my bees during the winter and 

 spring, is to keep them from leaving their hives 

 in quest of honey or pollen, when the weather 

 is too cold, after they are placed on the sum- 

 mer stand in the spring. The remedy is sha- 

 ding the entrance ; and in a few instances, 

 during the bright but cold weather of*the last 

 two months, when they would perish in com- 

 ing out, when I knew it was too cold, and the 

 ground' was covered with snow, I shut them 

 in. Covering the hive with manure at such 

 times, only makes a bad matter worse, by in- 

 creasing the heat and making them still more 

 anxious to be out. 



I have not lost a swarm for several years, by 

 the bees swarming out and joining other stocks 

 Where such losses occur, they are generally 

 owing to either queenlessness, want of suffic- 

 ient Ipees to .care for brood, want of honey, or 

 mouldy combs. The first two causes may be 

 remedied in the fall, by giving to all stocks 

 that need them, young prolific Queens ; the 

 third at the same time, by feeding until they 

 have sufficient stores, and the last by giving 

 upward ventilation, during the winter. 



lam sorry to hear of your loss, but I have 

 one consolation; Novice knows how to build 

 them up again, on the double quick, and icill, 

 doit. Tell "blue eyes" that we have a little 

 three year old blue eyes here, who would part 

 with anything else on the place sooner than 

 she would with a swarm of bees. No amount 

 of reasoning will make her believe the bees 

 will sting her, intentionally, and she acts ac- 

 cordingly, aud they seem to respect . her faith 

 in their i*ood behavior. Ja^ies eolin. 



, I Lodi, O. May 20th, 1874. 



P. S.- i osses have been heavy in this section, 

 inter and spring, where in es 

 arc of bhemselves, amounting, in 

 some ca i the entire stock. 



