(Entered as second-class matter July 30, 1907, at the Post-Offlce at CbiL-aKu, 111., uudur Ai-t ol Munh ;i, IH79.) 



Published Monthly at $1.00 a Year, by George W. York & Company, 146 West Superior Street, 



GKOKCiK \V, YORK, Editor, 



DR, C, C, MILLER, Associate Editor, 



CHICAGO, ILL., JANUARY, 1910 



Vol. L -No. 1 



v.'V-'ft-iTOKA 



CdiforiaJ ^ofes 

 and Comments 



Bees Heli»iug' to Save Fruit Iroui 

 Frost 



In a conversazione (British Bee Jour- 

 nal), the fact was brought out that not 

 only do bees aid in the fertilization of 

 fruit-blossoms, but by that very act 

 might be the means of saving a good 

 part of a crop from the frost. A blos- 

 som remains fresh for some time, so 

 long as fertilization has not taken place, 

 but very soon after that occurs it dries 

 up and falls off. Fruit-growers know 

 that if a frost occurs when fruit-trees 

 are in full bloom, the tender stigma is 

 blackened by tlie frost, and the fruit is 

 "blasted." Suppose a blossom opens 

 Monday, and no insect visits it. It re- 

 mains expectant Tuesday. "Then 

 comes a frost, a killing frost" Tuesday 

 night, and it's all day with the little 

 fruit. Suppose, however, that a bee 

 had visited it on Monday. Being fer- 

 tilized the stigma would promptly dry 

 up, and by Tuesday night the little fruit 

 would be sufficiently ripened to resist 

 the frost. 



Score another point for the little 

 busy bee. 



Bane of Greeu or Unripe Honey 



We have received the following from 

 Mr. R. A. Burnett, of R. A. Burnett & 

 Co., the oldest honey-dealing firm in 

 this city: 



Chicago. III., Dec, 2B. igog. 



Editor .American Bee Joi'rxal;— I have 

 read Mr. E, D, Townsend's article in the 

 November and December American Bee 

 lournal. entitled. " The Two Cans of Honey." 

 The stor.v is well told, and it is in no sense 

 overdrawn. With my more than 30 years of 

 dealing in honey. I can testify that the great- 

 est enemy extracted honey has had during 

 that period of time, has been green or un- 

 ripe honey. The greatest loss is in the vol- 

 ume of business, for where a family gets a 

 can of this aborted sweet, they will in all 



probabiliti' drop tlic use ot huney [ui 

 months, yea. even years, for they say they 

 cannot get honey any more; this having left 

 a bad taste in their mouth has hurt the sale 

 of honey. 



It is not true that bakers can use unripe 

 honey to advantage; they will not, and do 

 not use it. Tlie large users of honey now 

 submit all purchases of honey to a chemical 

 test, and if it does not meet with their re- 

 quirements it is rejected; hence, it is only 

 the ignorant and the poor man, that can least 

 afford to be cheated, that is cheated. 



It may be encouraging to bee-keepers to 

 know that there is less unripe honey com- 

 ing on the market now than formerly. 

 Yours respectfully. 



R. A. Burnett. 



We are always glad to get something 

 from Mr. Burnett. His many years of 

 experience surely has taught him much 

 about the best quality of honey for 

 market. And on a good many other 

 topics relating to honey and its mark- 

 eting he could give a world of infor- 

 mation. We wish he would feel free 

 to " chip in " any time he sees a chance 

 to help bee-keepers, out of his large 

 e.xperience with honey. 



It surely is good to hear that the 

 market receives less unripe honey 

 now than it used to. But what honest 

 bee-keeper would knowingly ship un- 

 ripe honev to the city or general mar- 

 ket? 



New Zealand Bee-Bulletin, Xo. 18 



From that far away land where 

 Christmas comes in the middle of 

 summer, where there are the best Sun- 

 day-schools, where all the women can 

 vote, and where lliey have helped to 

 vote down the saloons, comes this gov- 

 ernment bulletin of the New Zealand 

 Department ol" Agriculture. It is writ- 

 ten by that able apiculturist, Isaac Hop- 

 kins, who has done so much for bee- 

 culture in that land, and who retires 



from public service with the issue of 

 this bulletin. 



There are 70 octavo pages of reading 

 matter, and 19 plates, many of these 

 being original full-page half-tone en- 

 gravings. 



In spite of the fact that New Zea- 

 landers are clear on the other side of 

 world, bee-keeping is in many respects 

 the same there as here. 



Instead of seconding Mr. Hutchin- 

 son's plea for "more bees," Mr. Hop- 

 kins advises against putting all one's 

 eggs into one basket. As to the profits, 

 Mr. Hopkins estimates that from a 

 well-conducted apiary, in an average 

 good district, the net profits per colony 

 should reach from $4.2") to $5.00 per 

 annum through a number of successive 

 seasons. He says wisely: 



"Outlay for good literature should never 

 be stinted, for the obtaining of one good 

 'wrinkle" from the experience of a writer 

 may be the means of adding largely to the 

 profits ot the apiary,' 



Three fine pictures illustrate the 

 manner of turning a frame over while 

 holding in the hands without having 

 the comb break out of the frame — a 

 very important item 40 years or more 

 ago, but hardly necessary in these days 

 of wires and foundation splints. 



He emphasizes the matter of testing 

 extracted honey by means of a hydrom- 

 eter. Obtaining from grocers in the 

 ordinary way 20 cans of different varie- 

 ties and grades of honey, he tested 

 carefully their specific gravity. He 

 says : 



Before testing, the condition of each sam- 

 ple was noted, in order to compare the spe- 

 cific gravity with its appearance. Eleven 

 samples ranged from 1.400 to 1.430. with an 

 average of nearly 1.413, while the remaining 

 ranged from 1.350 to i.iQu. Those above 

 1. 410 were very firm and dry before testing, 

 and the whole 20 samples were granulated. 

 Those from 1.400 to 1.410 appeared to be well 

 ripened, but were not so hrm as the others; 

 tliere was a marked difference in those be- 

 low 1.400. which were soft and moist. My 

 opinion is that the first-mentioned were 

 thoroughly ripe and would keep any length 

 of time; the second lot, ranging from 1.400 to 

 1. 410. were well-ripened and fit for the mar- 

 ket; while all the samples registering below 

 1.400 were very doubtful regarding tlieir 

 keeping qualities— one at 1.385 had already 

 begun to ferment. These figures will be val- 

 uable for comparison with those of future 

 tests. A portion of each sample is being 

 kept sealed to test by time. It was very 

 noticeable that the better the honey the 

 higher was its specific gravity. 



Ripening honey outside the hive is 



