1874 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



117 



FROM DIFFERENT FIELDS. 



^psjiRIEND NOVICE :— You ask me if 1 like, the two 

 fjpr story hive best ? I have not tried the New Idea 

 ■==1 yet, but thought that I would next season. I 

 hardly think for my locality the long hive is as good 

 as the two story; I shall give them a fair trial next 

 year, but think they would only do for summer. I 

 can't see how thev would be any improvement on the 

 Simplicity for spring or winter. I have had splendid 

 luck with $1.00 Queens, got one of J. H. P. Brown, one 

 of Hosmer, two of J. Shaw & Son, and all pure; all 

 came safely by mail. Those from Shaw & Son were 

 packed best of any Queens that I ever got. 



Bees have been'doing very well here for the last two 

 weeks, Buckwheat is in full blossom now and my 

 hives are getting so strong that I think I shall have 

 to divide them more. There have been 3 swarms of 

 Italians in the neighborhood in the last few days. 



I had 9 swarms of black bees and 3 of Italians in the 

 spring, about as many bees in them as there would be 

 in 4 good hives, had to feed them until the 10th of 

 May to keep them alive ; have now '20 good ones from 

 them; all Italianized and got 486 lbs. honey which I 

 have sold for 25c per lb. Had an order last week for 

 4 doz. quart jars for Pittsburgh. Sold most of it in 

 Muth's quart flint glass jars, could sell Ave times the 

 amount of such honey if I had it. Had two hives giv- 

 en me yesterday, the man who had them said they 

 would die with "him and if I would take them home I 

 might have them. Had to haul them 15 miles over 

 bad roads, broke down the combs some but the bees 

 were all right ; have two good Italian Queens to put 

 in them now and they will make two more for me 

 next spring (if thev don't die). 



E. W. Hale, Wirt C. H. West Va. Sept. 4th, 1874. 



There now we've "ketched it." Our Extract- 

 ors have been so universally praised on all 

 sides, that we began to think our head was 

 clear on one point any way, and that we knew 

 how to make an Extractor properly if we didn't 

 know anything else. Therefore imagine our 

 consternation on unfolding the following: 



MESSRS A. I. ROOT & CO.. Gents:— I busted up 

 my extractor on first trial. The shaft broke oflf just 

 below the wings while in full motion and the racket 

 that ensued caused a rapid getting away of the curious 

 spectators who had congregated to see the thing work. 

 Of course I had to carry back my frames, much to my 

 chagrin but to the evident delight of the bees, for 

 they gathered rapidly upon the comb and sipped the 

 uncapped honey with great gusto. Those who had 

 come to witness the operation, with one accord pro- 

 nounced it a failure. I was forced to admit that there 

 had been deception or carelessness in the making of the 

 machine, yet I insisted that the principle was correct 

 and that honey had been and could be extracted from 

 combs by machines of this kind. But I could not dem- 

 onstrate* it. The machine was quiet enough now. 

 The spectators, one by one, had returned, the boldest 

 first, the timid later; "the poor machine was limp and 

 powerless, with its "in'ards" jumbled up like it had 

 had a severe exercise with the cramp colic. I tender- 

 ly gathered it up and bent my way to the tinners, fol- 

 lowed by the jeers of my valiant friends. 



Wm. C. Gkier, Lamar, Mo. Sept. I'2th, 1874. 



P. S.— The tinners fixed it up and nothing could 

 work better. It is just fun to throw out the honey (it 

 cost me two dollars). My friends still pronounce it a 

 humbug because I can't get them to look again to see 

 it work. I suppose they are afraid of another "bust 

 up." 



We dropped friend G. a postal "instanter"' 

 telling him to make out a bill for all his troub- 

 le and chagrin, besides the tinner's charges and 

 we would remit at once ; we tell the rest of 

 our readers the same, if they have had any 

 trouble through our carelessness. "We have 

 improved and strengthened our machines in 

 several ways since that one was made, and 

 invite reports in regard to their working, for 

 it is only by experience that we can tell where 

 to improve them without adding materially to 

 their weight. 



In two story hives, does the Queen occupy only one ? 

 Do the top bars of the lower story, the bottom bars of 

 the upper and the space between prevent brood-rear- 

 ing in both stories? That is. if room is given, will 

 the Queen pass these bars and occupy both stories the 

 same as if no bars were there ? 



Peter Mover, Sharpsville, Pa. Sept. 15th, 1»74. 



The Queen generally gets up into the upper 

 story after a while, and eventually we often 

 get the bees, brood and all above. We suppose 

 it is because the warm air from the cluster 

 rises until it is confined by the roof. This fact 

 we consider the greatest objection to two story 

 hives viz : the lower combs get cold and art- 

 apt to be deserted late in the season. The ad- 

 vantage of shallow frames (where they are 

 covered closely) for rapid brood - rearing in 

 spring, is probably owing to this same fact. 

 We always expect in using a two story hive, 

 that the Queen will use both stories. 



MESSRS NOVICE & Co.:— I am in a quandary, will 

 you please lend a helping hand ? Here is my condi- 

 tion ; a short time since I ree'd from Mr. H. Alley, a 

 nice Queen, I got ner safely into a very strong colony 

 of hybrids, have fed freely since her introduction, oh 

 syrup ; she is now laying. In this climate I have plen- 

 ty of time to raise Queens from her, but there is not 

 a single drone or any drone drood in any of my hives, 

 or within five miles of me that I am aware of. Forage 

 failed long since, and all drones were at once disposed 

 of. How shall I proceed? Shall I try first to rear 

 some drones to fertilize Queens this fall ? or shall I 

 rear one or two Queens, let them remain unfertilized 

 and try to keep them over winter in a strong colony 

 to be used as drone layers early next spring, id est, if 

 they should lay at all. A dozen or more laying work- 

 ers," (so some say), are found in one hive at same time, 

 would two or three drone laying Queens live upon 

 equally peaceable terms in the same hive ? Mrs. Tup- 

 per I think reports one case at least, where a Queen, 

 reared very late in the fall, when there were no 

 drones, was impregnated the following spring. We 

 are told, that after a Queen attains a certain age with- 

 out being impregnated, she cannot be fertilized. This 

 may be true in relation to Queens hatched in the prop- 

 er season. Gen'l Adair tells us that workers hatched 

 late in fall, remain in the adolescent state until next 

 spring, that is, capable of performing all the work 

 proper to young bees for a much longer time than if 

 they had been hatched during the working season. 

 Might not the same thing be true of young Queens, 

 hatched very late in fall, f Remaining in Gen'l Adair's 

 adolescent or immature state through the winter and 

 still being capable of impregnation on the return of 

 spring. J. H. Wilson Sen'r, Lexington, Texas. 



If Mrs. Tupper made the statement you men- 

 tion, we presume she thought such was the 

 case, but a great number of experiments seem 

 to indicate it an impossibility. Does not 

 Adair's remark like a great part of his writing 

 seem to imply that he is more familiar with 

 long words than with the interior of bee hives ? 

 Your only hope is to rear drones by liberal 

 feeding which you should be able to do any 

 month in the year there, for we can rear them 

 here in Oct. When you get sealed drone brood, 

 raise a new lot of Queens. If a Queen is not 

 laying at one month old, you are safe in con- 

 sidering her of no value. Even if rare instan- 

 ces do show certain things possible, 'tis very 

 unwise to calculate on a recurrence of such 

 improbabilities. 



While two young Queens are occasionally 

 known to have existed for a time in the same 

 hive, on the other hand 'tis almost a daily oc- 

 currence (at the proper season) in large Apia- 

 ries to have the first hatched kill all the rest. 

 Even in our lamp nursery when they are 

 without bees, they invariably kill each other, 

 unless quickly caged. 



If your bees have not already food for win- 

 ter, even "Teakettles" may not save you now. 



