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GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Aug. 



I send 3 different kinds of bee-killers. No. 1 is an 

 insect that will catch a bee while on the wing, then 

 fall to the ground and eat out the inside of it. No. 

 2 is an insect which is generally from 1 inch to l 1 ? 

 in. long. It catches a bee on the flowers, or where 

 the bees water. They will watch a bee just as a cat 

 watches a mouse. They will grab the bee by the 

 wing, and bite it off, then kill and eat it. No. 3 is a 

 bug which will catch bees wherever it sees them, 

 even at the entrance of the hive. It will kill them 

 and suck their honey. Johan Jackel. 



Bell Plain, Wis., June 14, 1830. 



No. 1 is the bee hawk, Ana.r Junius. This large 

 dragon fly or darning-needle is widely distributed 

 in the United States. Like all of its family, it is 

 very predacious, and is so savage that it dares even 

 to attack the bee. 



No. 2 is a rose beetle of the genus StapMltnus. 

 There are many species of these beetles in 

 all parts of the United States. They may be told 

 by their short wing covers. They usually feed on 

 dead animal and vegetable matter. I should not be 

 surprised to see them devour a dead bee, but should 

 be surprised to see them kill a bee. 



No. 3 is Sylpha marginatus, a flat beetle, nearly as 

 wide as long. This too is a scavenger beetle. I have 

 never seen any of them attack a live insect. They 

 feed on dead animals. Prof. A. J. Cook. 



Agricultural Oollege, Lansing, Mich. 



BOMBYLIUS MEXICANUS. ALSO A GREAT YIELD OF 

 HONEY FROM MONARDA ARISTATA. 



Prof. Cook: — Enclosed find three flies which I send 

 to you that you may tell me more about them. They 

 are thick in my apiary, and look suspicious. They 

 make a sharp, drone-like, buzzing noise on the wing, 

 and stand near the entrance of hives on wing, a la 

 humming bird. I have never seen them depredate 

 upon anything, nor do I ever see them at work, 

 which arouses my suspicion. As many as a half 

 dozen will buzz and peep into the entrance of the 

 hive at the same time, and not more, at times, than 

 an inch from the bees. The bees do not seem 

 troubled at their presence. 



I also send you a specimen of our best honey 

 plant. We call it here wild mint. It yields very 

 abundantly of excellent, light colored, thick honey, 

 beginning about the middle of May, and ending last 

 of June, — say 5 weeks. It- grows spontaneously 

 here, and best where the prairie grass has been 

 burnt in the summer, or otherwise destroyed. I 

 think it will grow anywhere, and the seed are easily 

 gathered. They are about the size of turnip seed. 

 There are several varieties, some more productive 

 of honey than others. This I send you is the best. 

 Bees refuse to work upon Indian corn while this 

 mint is in season. In fact nearly all of my honey Is 

 from the mint, and I have several hives which have 

 already yielded 100 lb., at two extractings, and are 

 ready again for the third. Answer through Glean- 

 ings, and oblige— J. L. Caldwell. 



Marlin, Falls Co., Tex. 



The insects sent by Mr. Caldwell are referred to 

 on page 32, of my Manual. They are Bombylhis 

 Mexicanus, Weid, of the family Bomhyliidw, and 

 order Diptera. These two-winged flies illustrate 

 mimicry, as they closely resemble bees, though their 

 darting flight and noiseless poise are quick to re- 

 move the deception. Their long proboscis is anoth- 



er bee-like characteristic. These bombus-like flies 

 have long been known to be parasites on wild bees— 

 to lay their eggs in the nests of wild bees. The 

 maggots which hatch from the eggs feed on and de- 

 stroy the young or larval bees. From the above it 

 would seem that B. Mexicanus practiced the same 

 on our common honey bees in Texas. Probably if 

 Mr. C. examines, he will find these parasitic larva? in 

 his hives. lie will do me a favor if he will wrap a 

 dozen or two in cotton and mail them to me in a 

 strong box. 



The plant is Monaida aristata, nearly alied to our 

 bergamot of the north, M. fistulosa, which is also a 

 fine honey plant. In fact, few families of plants do 

 more for the bee-keeper than do the mints. 



Lansing, Mich. A. J. Cook. 



HOW TO REALIZE THE MOST MONEY, 

 WITH THE MULLIMIVIMiMHTIIli; 

 OF CAPITAL AND LABOR IN THE CARE 

 OF BEES, RATIONALLY CONSIDERED. 



QUEENS AND BEES, OR HONEY? 



SEE in Gleanings that your friend, H., says it 

 doesn't pay to sell young Italians for $1.25 per 

 lb.; that it spoils his whole apiary for queens, 

 honey, or anything else; and you remark that, if his 

 apiary is spoiled, he has the money for it in his pock- 

 et, &c. Very likely H. expects, or wishes, to con- 

 tinue with his apiary, and if he spoils or weakens it 

 so much that he can't rear queens or get any honey, 

 surely it will be in bad shape to winter, and worse 

 next spring. It seems that he don't believe as the 

 old lady did, who had the goose that laid the golden 

 eggs. If you will turn back to the first copy of 

 Gleanings, Jan. 1, 1873, you will And the following 

 heading: Novice's Gleanings in Bee Culture, or 

 How to Realize the Most Money, with the Smallest 

 Expenditure of Capital and Labor in the Care of 

 Bees, Rationally Considered. In those days the lit- 

 tle Gleanings of only eight pages was called by 

 some, "Smoky Paper" and "Elephant Eggs;" but 

 Gleanings has outlived it, I believe. 



Now, under the above heading, I would like to ask 

 this question: How are we to make the most money 

 with our bees? Is it made by selling bees and 

 queens and working for increase, or by working for 

 honey? I think this question could be talked over, 

 and figures and facts given that would benefit all your 

 readers. There may be some who will not care to 

 say much either way through selfish motives, but I 

 think they will be very few. Could not you, or some 

 of the older "hands" who have had experience in 

 working bees both ways, give us some figures on 

 this question? For instance, A and B are neigh- 

 bors ; both commence the season with 40, 60, 100, or 

 any number of colonies equally strong; in fact, ev- 

 ery thing is equal; both pay the same prices for 

 hives, frames, &c, and both get the same price for 

 sales, as far as honey goes of course. We will sup- 

 pose they run for 3 years, both succeed in wintering 

 without loss, and that A works his apiary for bees, 

 queens, and increase, and B works for honey, box 

 or extracted, whichever brings him the most mon- 

 ey; we will suppose also that A finds ready sales at 

 present prices for his queens and bees, and the 

 same with B for all the honey he sells, or gets to 

 sell, and that both have good honey seasons, &c. 

 Which will have made the most money, at the end of 



