244 



July, 1916. 



American l^ee JoarnaiJ 



percent as to health. If thev are below the 

 average as to health, then you will mark 

 them 75 percent, oo percent, or whatever it 

 may be. but don't ask me to say how you 

 will tell when the colonies of an apiary are 

 half as healthy as the average, so as to be 

 marked so percent. I don't know how You'll 

 iust "have to guess the best you know 

 how. As to strength, you can be more defi- 

 nite if you have kept a record for a number 

 of years and know that during that time the 

 average has been a certain numberof frames 

 of brood at a certain time, say 5 frames. If 

 this year it's sH frames, then it will beuo 

 percent. If it's 4 it will be 8o percent, and so 

 on. If you have no such record, you can 

 only guess, and I don't begrudge you the job. 

 2. "Ves. it will be all right if no foulbrood is 

 in the comb. 



Robbers— King-Birds— Waxmoth 



I. I had six colonies of bees and one of 

 them was not working like the rest I saw a 

 bee go in. and in about a minute or two bees 

 came out clung together, and rolled off on 

 the ground, and then both flew away, and in 

 about five minutes 25 or 3" bees went in. car- 

 rying pollen on their feet; then some came 

 out and flew away again, while another two 

 came out fighting Can you tell me what is 

 the matter? , , , , , , 



2 'Will a bee-bird destroy a colony of bees 

 or will they iust destroy the drones ? 



1. As I was inspecting one of my swarms 

 this spring. I found some white worms on 



Honey-Plants of the South— Transferring 



1. Do bees gather honey from California 

 and Japanese privet ? 



2 Which kind of poplar is the honey- 

 plant? 



%. Where can I get a book on honey-plants 

 of the South ? 



4. I hived a big swarm and put on a super 

 at once, but bees are laying out. Do you 

 think they will swarm again ? 



5 The swarm I hived came out of a box- 

 hive. Would it be all right to transfer the 

 bees from the box hive into a frame hive? 

 The box-hive is full of honey. Texas. 



Answers.— I. I don't know, but have an 

 impression that privet is not an important 

 honey-plant. 



2. IJriodendroii tulil'ifcra is the botanical 

 name of a honey-tree that goes under the 

 name of poplar, also whitewood, and tulip- 

 tree. 



3. You may find what you want by inauir- 

 ing of the Agricultural College of your State. 



4. Not very likely. 



S Yes. although the honey is in the way in 

 transferring. 



Ants— Distance Bees Go 



1. What causes ants and moths to get into 

 hives ? 



2. How far have bees been known to go to 

 gather honey ? 



3. Should bees have fresh water given to 

 them every day ? Kansas 



Answers.— I. .Ants enter hives because it 



beginning to lay; and it is a good plan t° 

 make a business of hunting up the queen in 

 each colony every year, at least a litile be- 

 fore there's any danger of swarming, and 

 clipping any that are found undipped. 



3. That depends A good many, like my- 

 self, never trap drones. They prefer to 

 destroy them in the form of brood, or, still 

 better, to suppress all. or nearly all. drone- 

 comb. But if you want to trap them after 

 they are mature, you can have traps on at 

 any time when there are drones to be 

 trapped. 



4. All but those that you consideryour best 

 drones in one or a few colonies. 



5 The residue that is left after wax is 

 pressed out of combs. 



6. There are a number that are good, the 

 two most in use being Dadant's-Langstroth 

 and Root's ABC and X Y Z 



MISSOURI BEES ARE BOOMING THIS YEAR, THE FIRST CROP FDR A 

 GOOD WHILE-S. J. KNOX APIARY AT BOWERS' MILL, MO. 



top of the frames; they were about half an 

 inch long. Can you tell me what kind of a 

 worm it was? , j j 



4 What does a honeybee get from dande- 

 lion? Do they get any honey? 



5. Do bees gather honey from apple blos- 

 soms ? , . • t 



6. What do bees get from pumpkin, squash, 

 cucumber, and melon blossoms ? 



7 Do bees work on black and red raspber- 

 ries, and what do they get ? 



Pennsylvania. 



Answers.— I. Bees from other hives try to 

 enter and steal honey, and are pounced 

 upon by the guards at the entrance. 



2, King-birds, or bee-birds, have the repu- 

 tation of killing both drones and workers, 

 although it is said that the workers are not 

 swallowed, but the juices are extracted and 

 the carcasses spit out. 



3. It was probably the larva of the wax- 

 moth, commonly called wax-worm. 



4 Both honey and pollen, lots of both. 



5 Yes. 



6. Both nectar and pollen. 



7. Yes; thev gf ( both nectar and pollen. 



is a warm place to have their nests, and 

 sometimes to get honey or bees. Moths en- 

 ter to lay eggs where their young can have 

 their proper food, wax. 



1. I think the farthest ever reported was 

 seven miles; but probably none of your bees 

 go farther than two or three miles. 



3 No; keep a tub standing with cork-chips 

 in it, and fill it with water only as often as it 

 needs replenishing. 



Miscellaneous Questions 



1. Should 1 have double-walled hives here 

 in northwestern Ohio? 



2 'When should queens be clipped ? 



3. When should drone-traps be put on the 

 hives ? , , , 



4. Should all the drones be destroyed? 



5. What is slumgum ? 



6 What is the best book for the beginner ? 



Ohio. 



Answers.— I. Opinions differ; but I think 

 the majority in our region prefer single- 

 walled hives. 



2. They may be clipped any time after 



Shipping Bees from the South, Etc. 



I Would it have any effect on bees if I 

 had them shippe d to me from the South; 

 that is, the climate conditions ? 



2. Will two different kinds of bees bother 

 each other if kept in one apiary ? 



3. Can honey be expected from a colony 

 that was started from a pound of bees in 

 the spring ? 



4. How far apart should beehives be 

 placed ? 



5. How would you recommend wintering 

 bees as far north as I am ? 



6. If in the cellar should any screen be 

 placed in fron[ of entrance ? Minnesota. 



Answers.— I Other things being equal, 

 the shorter the distance bees are shipped 

 the better, but the bees are no better or 

 worse for the southern climate. 



2. If you mean will bees of different kinds 

 quarrel, no. Several kinds will live just as 

 peacefully in the same apiary as if they 

 were all of the same kind. If you mean 

 whether they will bother about mixing, yes. 

 You can keep only one kind in your apiary 

 if you want your bees to keep pure. 



3. That's asking a good deal of them; but 

 it is not at all impossible with a good honey 

 flow, and especially a good late flow. 



4. That depends. On an entirely level sur- 

 face, with no trees or other objects. 10 feet 

 is none too close. If there are trees, build- 

 ings, or other objects by which the bees can 

 mark their locality, then all that is needed 

 is have enough room between hives so that 

 the beekeeper can work comfortablv, say 

 two or three feet. But if you want to econo- 

 mize room, set your hives in pairs, the two 

 hives of the same pair almost touching, and 

 then a space of two feet or more between 

 that pair and the next pair. 



3. In the cellar. 



6. No; unless it be a screen of wire-cloth 

 having three meshes to the inch. That will 

 bar the passage of mice, but not bees. 



Feeding Capped Honey to Bees 



I. If you had combs of old honey, either in 

 hives where bees had died or if you had 

 combs of honey that were kept over, would 

 you uncap the honey before putting it in the 

 hives where there were bees? Do you be- 

 lieve bees would ever uncap this old waxy 

 honey and clean it out of these combs ? 



2 In forming colonies with bees in pound 

 packages, would you give them honey capped 

 or uncapped ? 



3 I notice where a colony dies that robber 

 bees will rob out around the brood-nest and 

 leave combs of honey nearly or quite full at 

 the sides and along the top bars. This honey 

 is not granulated altogther, but there seems 

 to be some reason why the bees do not take 

 it while it is capped. Nehraska. 



Answers.— I. I don't believe there will be 

 any trouble but what the bees will use that 

 honey all right, and there will be no need of 



