5S 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



1875 



I winterel 20 colonics of br-es on their summer 

 standi, alielterert on the north side and covered on 

 the top with quilts; they are all in good condition, no 

 aliens of dysentery. I think bees arc not subject to 

 dysentery' when wintere'', on their summer stands. 

 I think your plan of quilts on top an excellent one. 



\. X. IlESS, Tarrytown, Md. 

 We should be very glad indeed to learn that 

 out-door -wiutering was even as safe as the 

 other, but alas for stubborn facts. 



i;je9 aroun'l here are wintering extremely well. 



Adam Guimm, .JeQ'erson, Wis. March l-2th, '7-5. 



Riijht i^lad are we to hear it friend Qrinini. 

 Do you know our next hobby will probibly be 

 having plenty of baes, plenty of sealed stores, 

 and let 'em alone from the 1st of Nov., until the 

 middle or last of March. Under the conditions 

 mentioned, we are not sure but they would 

 winter o>/', doors safely during a long cold win- 

 ter like this last. All of our experiments so 

 far have only demonstrated that '-tinkering'' 

 1)303 in cold weather not only does no real 

 good, but often th e reverse 



standard hive arrived all ri'rUt. Think it very fine, 

 hut not beinar acquainted with movable comb hives 

 would like to ask a few questions How do you pre- 

 vent bees from going un above frames and attaching 

 comb to top of hive ? What is a quilt used for i* 



Friend B. do you know that you have perpe- 

 trated a "big joke V" At least it looks so to 

 those of us "who have for years been familiar 

 -with quilts, and \re presume some of us would 

 like to indulge in a huge smile but we want 

 you all to keep your faces straight (for Mr. B. 

 is a new member of our family) while we ex- 

 plain Ihat the (luilt is expressly to keep the 

 bees from getting up into the cover. Spread it 

 on evenly, and tuck down the edgas so care- 

 fully that no bee is ever permitted to get above 

 it. *If they do, they will cement the cover 

 dosvn so that you can never sjet it to work 

 without sticking afterward. The quilt is made 

 sofc, so as not to hurt them. 

 Din't vou think hives need a ventilator? 

 No more than what the quilt, and the joint 

 around the cover allow. On the contrary we 

 think ventilators often do a great amount of 

 mischief. In very hot weather, if the bees seem 

 disposed to cluster on the outside, shade the 

 hive, and give them room to go to work inside. 

 If you cannot make a cluster of bees go to 

 AVoVk somewhere, when honey is to be gather- 

 ed, we shall have to call you a i)Oor bee-keeper. 

 Are not the bees apt to put bee bread and broo<l in 

 all the frames? J. D. Be^.tamik. Brightseat, Md. 

 Not usually unless the frames are purposely 

 spread so as" to secure this, which is just ex- 

 actly what we should want them to do, for the 

 Standard hive was arranged exclusively for 

 the extractor, without any thought of box 

 honey. However, you cm put a second story 

 on top and put boxes above as on other hives, 

 or you can put about ten of the combs contain- 

 ing the brood in the middle and arrange boxes 

 on both sides of these. In the latter case it 

 may be advisable to make the entrance in the 

 middle of the back side of the hive. If you 

 have an idea that they will work in boxes bet- 

 ter at the e/ufo of the frames, simply turn the 

 10 brood combs lengthwise of the hive ; hang- 

 ing them on thin strips laid across from one 

 rabbet to the other. 



Oon't vou think carbonic acid gas is playing hob in 

 our bee rooms ^ We made a paseage wav for it to es- 

 cape through Mil' bottom nmler the wall into a ditch 

 but instead of passing out the air is coming in so 

 strong that 1 think the carbonic acid slays in the room 



and perhaps mixes to some extent with the warm air 

 in the room. Our bees are dying more than I think 

 they ought to— no signs of dysentery whatever— beegA 

 dry anil lively. We have swe))t out abou; onfi and lu 

 half bushels of dead bees from li:i colonies. We feel 

 1 that that is too much loss. P. W. McFatkiuge & SON- 

 Cartilage, Ind. March Ist, 1875. 



We do not think the above average, (a little 

 more than ij pint de:\d bees to the hive), bad 

 at all. Our own have died fully as badlj' and 

 yet we think they have wintered -well. We 

 think carbonic acid has nothing to do with it ; 

 it is almost impossible for it to collect in any 

 ordinary room and rarel.v in cellars, if there is 

 movement of the air in the apartment. In wells 

 or pits, where the area is small, and nothing to 

 make a current of air, it may in time fill up 

 like water, but even then it is easily stirred itp 

 with the air, by burning a wisp of straw ot 

 even dashing in a bucket or two of water. If 

 it troubled the bees, those nearest the floor 

 would die most, but we have never yet found 

 such to be the case. Your ditch works back- 

 ward because the warm air inside rises, and 

 escapes through the ventilators and crevices, 

 as it always must when the interior is warmer 

 than the outside, (see page 1, Jan. No.) 



Enclosed find inv photograph which if you see fit to 

 place in your MmUcv iilease put on the Quinby side of 

 the picture. Not that I love Ca?sar less biit Kmne 

 more. 1 am glail to see that you are letting ui) a little 

 on the (^ninby hive and box honey, but for that matter 

 the i}. hive is bettor adapted to the use of the extract- 

 or than any other hive of which I have any kno wledge^ 

 not even excepting the simplitied dollar hive wittn 

 "tin ears." 



There h-is been much writing from time to time in 

 Gleaxinos, on the subject of pollen and pollen pro- 

 ducinar iilants. If I recollect aright, the Wistaria has; 

 never been mentioned as one of them. Having had a 

 vine growing vvithin a short distance of my Apiary 

 for the last three years I liave liad an opportunity of 

 watchintr the bees at work on it. The first time I saw 

 them I thought a swarm had settled on the vine. I 

 believe it to be one of the best pollen producing plants 

 in the country. The Chinese [Sinensis] is the best of 

 the Wistaria familv. It grows to an enormous size 

 and will attain under good culture 15 to 20 feet. I 

 quote from Balfour's manual of Botany. (London, lf51). 



'■The Wistaria produces bunches of lilac colored 

 flowers of great beautv and numbers. On one vine 

 there have been estimated in one season, 9000 bunches. 

 ()75,O00 single flowers, ."5,375.000 stamens, and 4.0.50.noo 

 ovules, and for the purpose of fertilizing these ovules, 

 the anthers, if ijerfect, would liave contained ^700/ 

 millinns of pollen grains, or about 7000 to each ovule." 



Aside from the benefit to the beos. Wistaria is one 

 of the most elegant of all climl)ing vines and its rapid 

 growth and virofuse clustei-s of gorgeous purnle flow- 

 ers commend it to all who wish to make their homes 

 beautiful by surrounding them with nature's choicest 

 gifts. John C. McElkath, Asbury, N. J. 



My bees were left on their summer stands in a shed 

 facincr the south, with straw packed in between and 

 behind them ; movable frame liives with honey-board 

 on, holes in honey-board open, rags or cobs 

 placed in to)) box on honey-board, small ventilation at 

 bottou), and those bees were diseased before January, 

 vet it had not been very cold. And now live of the ten 

 are ilead, died of dvsenterv. Thev liad a large quanti- 

 ty of honev earl v in the fall, and left from 20 to +0 lbs. 

 when dead. Did the great amount of honey injure 

 them l)v previ'uliuj- breeding in Ihe fall? Was the 

 ventihition riudit ? There are men in this vicinity who 

 have kei)t bees -20 vear.- who claim upward ventilation 

 is wrong, while others ci|ual!v as well cxucrlenced fav- 

 or it. Did 1 keei) them (oo warm in the forepart of 

 winter, thereby causing them to eat ti>o much honey? 

 Mv bees arc losing badlv on the snow now. Is it best 

 to" shade them from the sun at all times when they 

 cannot Ih- safi-lv ? 



I am willing to pav anv one liberally for information 

 that will cnoble me to winter my bees safely on their 

 summer stands. •'• ''• Wnrrii;, 



i:i>clid. Ciivahoga Co., < ». 



March '22d, 1S7.^. 



The la!-g<' aiuo\nit of honey in thejct>mbs in 



