442 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTUEE. 



Sept. 



KILLING BEES FOR THEIR HONEY AND WAX. 



I have 178 hives of bees, and intend to kill about 

 100 of them this fall. It has been altogether too wet 

 for a good honey season so far. The rest of the sea- 

 son may be better. O. C. Blanchabd. 



Ironton, Sauk Co., Wis., Aug. 3, 1580. 



[Cannot some one who lives near friend B. make it 

 more of an object to him to sell his bees than to kill 

 them? With the great demand there is for bees 

 from almost all parts of our land, it surely seems 

 that it would be a loss of money, to say nothing of 

 the cruelty of the act, to kill a hundred colonies. 

 The honey obtained by killing bees is not in a desira- 

 ble shape, and the labor of trying out the wax, un- 

 der such circumstances, is certainly no small one, 

 for so little pay as it will bring. It occurs to me I 

 am speaking rather mildly in regard to an important 

 matter, but perhaps mildness is best.] 



honey report. 



In April, 22 stocks; now, 40 stocks. Extracted up 

 to date, 285 lb. ; no comb honey. Bees are now at 

 work on Boneset, Queen of the Meadow, Golden Rod, 

 and Fire Weed. Forepart of season was too wet; 

 now it is too dry. It is doubtful about any more 

 surplus. J. Chapman. 



Home, Mich., Aug. 14, 1880. 



GOLDEN ROD. 



Bees are now bringing in considerable honey from 

 golden rod, etc. It is rather early for the golden 

 rod, 1 think. Jas. A. Green. 



Dayton, 111., Aug. 16, 1880. 



Am much pleased with the honey prospect, but 

 was quite discouraged until recently, as the bees 

 gathered but little honey from clover; but now, I 

 hope they will st»re enough for winter use. 



C. Winchester, O., Aug. 17, '80. I. E. Stevenson. 



SAVING TIME THAT WOULD OTHERWISE BE WASTED. 



Friend Nov ice:— You have no idea with what anxie- 

 ty I look for each No. of our Gleanings. I receiv- 

 ed a copy through a friend in 1877, and since that 

 time 1 have been more deeply interested in the hon- 

 ey bee thanl had ever been before. In pursuing my 

 favorite study, I find a healthy pastime, inestimable 

 pleasure, and, last but not least, a profitable employ- 

 ment for hours and even days that might otherwise 

 be idled away. Millard Berry. 



Duck Creek, Dallas Co., Tex., Aug. 7, 1880. 



Other business has kept me from the care of bees 

 for 3 years past, but I took a colony this spring for 

 debt, and they have done so well that I feel the old 

 bee fever coming on again. J. M. Hill. 



Denison, Grayson Co., Tex., July 2(5, 1880. 



FOUR BANDED ITALIANS. 



Look among your Italian bees, and I think you can 

 find many of them having 4 yellow bands. We have 

 them, and have often shown them to visitors. 

 About the red-clover bees: our Italians have always 

 worked on the red clover, and on the first crop as 

 well as the second. Rulison & Simpson. 



Flushing, Genesee Co., Mich., Aug., 1880. 



[We find plenty of them, friends R. and S., having 

 four or more downy bands, but do not find any hav- 

 ing four bands in the hdrny scale, as mentioned in 

 the ABC. It is true there may be such, but as yet 

 I have never noticed any, except on one specimen 

 sent by friend Jones.] 



BEE HUNTING WITn A SURVEYOR'S COMPASS. 



I wish to tell you something about our bee hunt- 

 ing which you did not tell in the ABC. We take a 

 surveyor's compass, get as direct a line as we can 

 by watching the bees fly, then set the compass by 

 the line and follow the line with compass. By this 

 method, I can move the bait from the top of one 

 mountain to the other. We hunted a few days this 

 summer in that way, and did not miss the tree ten 

 steps. S. H. Blosser. 



Dayton, Va., July 14, 1880. 



HOW LONG IT TAKES A QUEEN TO GET TO LAYING 

 AFTER A JOURNEY. 



I received the queen on the 8th, all right. I had 

 no trouble in introducing her this time. It was 

 about six days before she commenced to lay. 



Wilfred P. Roys. 



Sheffield, Mass., July 1(5, 1880. 



[I believe they usually lay in one or two days.] 



CURING HONEY BY THE SUN'S RAYS, ETC. 



Honey rakes came to hand in due season and gave 

 me an agreeable surprise. A Yankee for invention. 

 Please display the same trait in advising me as to 

 the best material and shape of a sun evaporator for 

 honey, with a capacity of two or three barrels. I 

 have cured my honey this year in large tin pans, 

 holding 150 lbs. each; but now the bees are about 

 them so thick that I have to cover them. 



New Smyrna, Fla., Aug. 3, 1880. W. S. Hart. 



[Thanks, friend H., but the tin rakes are not my 

 invention ; they belong to friend Detwiler, as I told 

 you last month. I would suggest covering your 

 evaporators with wire cloth, when bees trouble.] 



INTRODUCING QUICKLY. 



The Holy-Land queen came to hand in nice shape 

 yesterday. I got her from the post-office about 2 

 o'clock p.m., took her to my friend Brooks, some 5 

 miles, and had her safely introduced to a colony of 

 bees at 4 o'clock p.m. She was all right when I left 

 there at 7 o'clock in the evening. C. Thomson. 



Brighton, Mich., Aug. 13, 1880. 



GRAPE SUGAR FOR WINTERING, ETC. 



We have no honey to date, and but three natural 

 swarms from 115 colonies. By feeding a barrel of 

 grape sugar my bees wintered in splendid condition. 

 Bee-keepers are discouraged, and going out of the 

 business. Unless we have a good fall yield of hon- 

 ey, bees will be scarce till another season. 



Sterling, Ills., Aug. 6, 1880. A. F. Stauffer. 



[What grape sugar did you use, friend F?] 



BUCKWHEAT; AT LEAST ONE GOOD REPORT FROM IT 

 THIS FALL. 



My bees are working like little beavers on a picco 

 of buckwheat which I sowed early for them. They 

 are storing in sections very fast. Carl Tuttle. 



Berlin Heights, O., Aug. 8, 1880. 



KEEPING FDN. NOT BUILT OUT IN THE HIVES. 



Will fdn. keep all right until next season, if kept 

 in the hive well closed up? Wm. M. Y oung. 



Nevada, Wyandot Co., O., Aug. 9, 1880. 



[It will keep all right almost anywhere, or in any 

 way, unless it contains honey to attract mice or rob- 

 bers, or pollen to attract the moth. If the latter you 

 must look to it often, as you would empty combs of 

 any kind, and brimstone them, if they prove wormy. 

 After freezing weather comes, they are gafe from 

 the moth, until about next May.] 



