1880 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



443 



MISSING THE HUM OF THE BEES. 



When my book came it made me feel rather down 

 hearted, as I thought of my own loss in bees, for I 

 dearly love bees and to care for them. I did say 

 when my last swarm went, I would never keep bees 

 again, but I feel as though I must make one more 

 trial, for I miss the noise of the busy little fellows, 

 and when at my work this summer, I have not look- 

 ed across the lot and seen my little boy coming on a 

 run, with his hat in his hand, saying at the top of 

 his voice, "Papa, come quick; the bees are swarm- 

 ing." He would go right among them, never being 

 afraid of them, and I do not think he was ever stung 

 but once. G. D. Annis. 



Millville, Orleans Co., N. Y., Aug. 1, 1880. 



HONEY DEW IN DENVER, COLORADO. 



Bees are doing finely. The trees in Denver are 

 dripping with honey dew. I never saw anything 

 like it before. J. L. Pea body. 



Denver, Col., Aug. 10, 1S80. 



SILVER HULL BUCKWHEAT. 



The buckwheat 1 bought from you is now in full 

 bloom, and full of three-banded Italians; but every 

 bee I can see on it has got pollen, so it makes me 

 think they don't get any honey from it. I sowed it 

 on June 28th; it is 3 feet high already. L. A. Best. 



Best's, Lehigh Co., Pa., Aug. 5, 1880. 



[Bees usually get pollen as well as honey from 

 buckwheat, I believe, as they also do from most 

 honey plants.] 



QUEENS TAKING WING. 



I received the queens all right, but I lost the best 

 one. As I opened the cage, she took wing, and went 

 east. I suppose she is going yet. I was sorry for 

 the loss, but such is life; sometimes we lose, and at 

 other times gain. O. L. Dickinson. 



Story City, Iowa, Aug. 20, 1883. 



[A great many complaints have been made of 

 queens flying away. Always open the cage before 

 a window, unless you are introducing her. In in- 

 troducing, open it so she shall step out directly 

 among the bees. We never have them fly in our 

 apiary. Clipping the wings has been dropped, be- 

 cause it excites and worries a queen too much be- 

 fore shipping, and, if done at any other time, many 

 would object to a clipped queen.] 



The queen you sent me has now a strong colony 

 and is doing finely; I have about 20 of her daughters 

 now laying. 



HOW OLD MUST A QUEEN BE TO LAY? 



I have been surprised with their precocity. Near- 

 ly all of them are laying the sixth day after they 

 leave the cell. Isthislhe rule with the imported 

 daughters? Though they are neither as large or 

 light colored as my home-bred queens, they seem to 

 be quite as prolific. 



I still think I ought to pay you for "comb" sent 

 me, as, from the eggs it contained (laid on the way), 

 I raised 13 queens, 3 days sooner than I could possi- 

 bly have done had they come without comb. 



Ridgefield, Conn., July 17, '80. S. W. Stevens. 



[Your queen must be an exception, I think, friend 

 S., as they usually lay when about 8 or 10 days old.] 



CARTOONS. 



In regard to the cartoons, I shall vote with both 

 hands to have them continued. I think, possibly, 

 the reason why some call them silly is because they 

 picture too closely the careless and silly way in 



which very many bee keepers take care of their 

 bees. For me, it's real fun to look at them, and 

 read them. The question is asked, "Which kind of 

 a bee-keeper do you intend to be?" For me, if I ever 

 am a bee-keeper at all, I mean to be one of the best. 

 Bellowsfalls, Vt., Aug. 15, 1880. A. P. Flbtcher. 



QUEENS LOST IN INTRODUCING. 



I received the queen you sent me, but lost her in 

 introducing, and I wrote you word all about it, but 

 have not heard from you, and conclude you did not 

 get the letter; so I send you this card. Please let 

 me know at once, and oblige — A. S. Shelton. 



Russellville, Ky., July 29, 1880. 



[Why, friend S., there was nothing to write that I 

 know of. I am very sorry, indeed, for those who 

 lose their queens in introducing, but should I under- 

 take to make good such losses, I am afraid my 

 friends would really have some grounds for saying I 

 was going crazy over the idea of trying to please 

 every body. Am I not right about it?] 



TWO QUEENS IN A HIVE, ETC. 



I have been trying some more experiments on 

 natural queen cells, with one imported queen, and 

 one home-bred. After a queen gets the notion of 

 laying in the cups, you will be troubled to keep her 

 from raising queens in the hive. The two stocks 

 mentioned furnish cells enough to keep 35 nuclei 

 supplied as fast as their queens mate and get to lay- 

 ing. I have seen about 20 cases of dual queens this 

 season, and I think I know the cause. 



Woodbury, Conn., July 20, 1880. H. L. Jeffrey. 



HOW SOME OF THE IMAGINARY TROUBLES TURN OUT. 



My imported queen that I wrote to you about this 

 spring, I am glad to report, is all right. The young 

 black bees were in the hive without a doubt, but 

 how they got there is still a mystery to me. 



Chas. Bowles. 



Hillsboro, Highland Co., O., July 27, 1880. 



SWARMS GOING BACK TO THE OLD HIVE. 



My bees have swarmed out of my frame hive, and 

 I attempted two or three times to put them into a 

 new one, but instead the cluster goes back to the old, 

 hive, and hangs on underneath, and is commencing 

 to make comb. A. I. Wright. 



Lakefield, Ont., Can., July 10, 1880. 



[Your queen was probably unable to fly, and after 

 hopping about in the grass, crawled up under the 

 hive. The bees, missing her, came back to whore 

 they left her last, and clustered around her. To 

 avoid such mishaps, I would have no vacant space 

 under the hives.] 



AN A B C SCHOLAR'S FIRST YEAR. 



I bought 2 stands of bees on the 16th of June, 1879, 

 for which I paid $18.50. They gave 117 lbs. of box 

 honey in the fall. I took good care of them, and 

 don't think I lost 100 bees. I commenced feeding 

 them syrup of coffee A sugar, the 1st of March and 

 they commenced swarming on the 2d of May. Du- 

 ring May, they swarmed 4 times. Two came off the 

 fore part of June, and went to the woods, leaving 

 stands. These are doing well. One stand appears 

 to produce ]i drones. Can that be prevented? 



Ada, O., July 28, 1880. Jos. Kinnear. 



[You did well, my friend, except in letting 2 

 swarms go olf to the woods, after you had built them 

 up so nicely by feeding. To be sure, the drones can 

 be helped. Use fdn., and don't let them have combs 

 that they can rear drones in.] 



