=i|Wi 



April, igio. 



Bees Doing Well 



I must say I like the American Bee Journal 

 ver>' much. I put out my bees on March I8th, 

 and they are doing well. Two colonies died 

 01;',,°^ I''- Aug. Kuehn. 



\\ auKon. Iowa. March 28 



Expecting a Good Season 



Bees are 25 days earlier than any previous 

 year I can remember. They have wintered 

 well, as far as I can hear. We are looking 

 forward to a good season. 



Lansing. Mich.. April i. A. D. D. Wood. 



Brighter Prospects In California 



We had two inches of rain here last week 

 so the prospects for a honev crop are much 

 brighter than when my friend Mendle- 

 spn wrote, on Feb. 21st. All reports say that 

 the bees have wintered well, and are in first- 

 class condition. 



Ventura, Cal.. March 29. D. J. Kennedy. 



Heavy Winter Loss of Bees 



There has been a great loss in the number 

 of coloniesof bees in Southwestern Ohio this 

 winter, fully 50 percent being dead; and 

 more weak colonies than I have ever seen 

 before. That means slow breeding up for 

 the white clover flow, which is our main 

 honey producing plant. At this date white 

 clover looks good. The cause of the great 

 winter loss was honey-dew, and a shortage 

 of winter stores. J. G. Creighton. 



Harrison. Ohio. March ?i. 



American l^ee JomnsAjt 



and pollen is accessible. As soon as I had 

 the hives on the summer stands. I made 

 them warm and snug on top by wrapping 

 with tarred rooHng-paper. For this purpose 

 I procure a grade of roofing-paper at a cost 

 of 64 cents per roll of 100 feet. This is better 

 material for wrapping hives than the ordi- 

 nary tarred paper, and costs less. 



Now these Questions confront us: How 

 long will thisNew Mexicoweather continue? 

 If winter weather comes on again, as it is 

 quite possible that it should here in Wis- 

 consin, what will be the result in colonies of 

 bees that have been getting pollen as thev 

 have here, and undoubtedly have started as 

 much brood as they possibly could? It might 

 have been much better to have prevented 

 such early breeding: but how could it have 

 been done? The conditions for taking bees 

 out of winter quarters were ideal, and while 

 they have been contented up to that time, 

 not one bee-keeper in a hundred would have 

 wished to keep them confined any longer. 



I wonder what Dr. Miller is thinking about 

 this situation? It may come out all right- 

 all depends upon weather conditions; but it 

 will certainly be hard on bees and fruit if 

 after having a period of such weather as we 

 have now, there should ensue a period of 

 hard freezing weather. Fruit is safe for a 

 time, as no trees are in blossom yet. but if 

 the weather continues long as it is now, 

 everything will come out. I think in such a 

 case the bees would stand the best chance. 

 Colonies that are very strong can probably 

 protect their brood, all e.\cept newly-laid 

 eggs in the outer circle. The loss of these 

 eggs would be no detriment. Weak colonies 

 could be set over strong ones with a queen- 

 excluder between, as advised by Mr. Alex- 

 ander for the treatment of weak colonies in 

 spring. 



Aside from the weather conditions, which 

 are phenomenal, prospects for a honey crop 

 in the North and Central West are good. 

 This brings in the question: What will be 

 the effect on present honey prices of a good 

 crop this year? Let us hear from otliers on 

 these questions that are of interest to each 

 and all. Harry Lathrop. 



Bridgeport, Wis., March 25. 



Good Honey Crop Expected 



The past season was very unfavorable to 

 honey-producers in this State, many bee- 

 keepers failing to secure any surplus what- 

 ever. Fortunately we succeeded in getting 

 a fair crop, due in no small degree to the 

 he pful teachings of the American Bee Jour- 

 nal and other publications. The spring has 

 been an unusually late one. but the turning 

 point has been reached, and colonies are 

 rapidly becoming populous. Indications 

 are favorable for a good honev crop. 



I-t. Smith. .Ark.. March 28. Lee Kerr 



Prospects for Good Honey Season 



We are having one of the earliest springs 

 on record. March began with warm weather, 

 and has continued warm throughout the 

 whole month. I put out my bees the 24th; 

 they came out strong, and began at once to 

 carry pollen from soft maple and elm. I 

 have about 50 colonies. l°rospects are for a 

 good honey season. We had a very poor 

 crop of honey here last year. There was 

 not enough honey to supply the demand of 

 the local dealers. W.m. Ehi.ekt 



Vesper, Wis.. March 2a. 



Questions of the Season 



We are havinga wonderful spell of weather. 

 Since .March i;th, in days ago. the weather 

 has not only been spring-like, it has been 

 summer-like. My bees are having such a 

 time as may be experienced by bees in this 

 locality at this season of the year only once 

 in many .years. I placed the bees in the 

 cellar (a few over too colonies) about Nov. 

 15th. and took them out March 17th, in almost 

 perfect condition. The question is not one 

 of feeding, but of taking away honey to give 

 the queens room to lay. Some of this honey 

 will be needed later on. no doubt; but I am 

 well satisfied it would be a mistake to leave 

 it all in the hives now. 



.\s early as last Sunday .March 20: the soft 

 maples along the Wisconsin river were out 

 in full bloom, and the bees roaring on them. 

 In fact, then' lias not been a dav since the 

 bees were removed from the cellar that the 

 bees could not work all {l;iy. F.lms are now 

 out. and no telling wliat amount of bloom 



Bees Wintered Well 



The weather is so fine that I have taken 

 my bees out of the cellar. Splendid win- 

 tering— 14 colonies out of 17. The i dead 

 were nuclei that were weak. Bees were in 

 cellar 4 months. Two colonies of "driven" 

 bees, secured from a neighbor in November, 

 wintered almost wholly on sugar svrup. 

 They each had a comb of honey from an- 

 other hive, but took the syrup and left the 

 honey. Five strong colonies, bought in Iowa 

 and shipped by freight, were put into the 

 cellar without flight the day they arrived, 

 and have come through nicely. The next 

 few weeks will be trying, as we have con- 

 siderable wind. There was a heavy snow on 

 the ground all winter. Edwin Eweli.. 



Waseca. Minn.. March 23. 



Working Bees for Best Results 



In the Report of the National convention 

 held at Sioux City. Iowa. I notice a paper 

 furnished by Mr. A. C. Allen, who gives the 

 plan I have followed in most particulars for 

 many years, and as I have had good success 

 I intend to continue the plan. 



I notice in a bee-paper last season that 

 almost every one heard from in giving their 

 experience in preparing bees for wintering, 

 advised doing all feeding in the fall so as not 

 to have to do any spring feeding. Fall feed- 

 ing is all right so far as it goes, for the bees 

 should have plenty to live on, but it makes 

 no difference with me how much stores the 

 bees may have. I feed in the spring, anyway. 

 Of course, one should feed at any time the 

 bees may be short of stores, if found so— at 

 any time during winteror early spring— so as 

 to bring them through until fruit-bloom; as 

 soon as that is over, in order to keep ui) 

 brood-rearing started during the blooming 

 period. I then feed about every other dav. 

 according as needed to keep the bees stimu- 

 lated to brood-rearing, so as to have them 

 rear lots of young bees; and I try to have 

 them ready with a large lot of bees by the 

 time the white clover comes in bloom, which 

 is about June 20th with me; then I gel them 

 to work storing in the supers, and I seldom 

 ever have any swarms at all; and, if any. 

 they are rousing good ones. 



-After the white clover is past, or about 

 over. I divide, if I wish increase. I. work my 

 bees mostly for extracted honey, although I 

 have worked some for section honey also on 

 this plan. One cannot control swarming 



quite so well with section honev as for ex- 

 tracted, but with careful manipulation one 

 may succeed even with section honey. I use 

 the lo-frame hive exclusively. I am sure I 

 could not be so successful in securing any 

 kind of honey with a hive less than the 10 

 frame, as I want rousing colonies when I ex- 

 pect surplus honey, or even large swarms. 



I have followed this plan for many years 

 with good success. What I have done others 

 maj- do. But I have not then been as suc- 

 cessful as the report that Dr. Miller gives, or 

 Mr. Doolittle. I think I do not give my bees 

 as close attention as either of these leading 

 beekeepers, as I am much occupied with 

 other business during the very time the bees 

 need the most attention; but I try to give 

 them as good as I can. not to neglect my 

 other business, although I have never gone 

 through a season yet but what I thought my 

 success could have been much improved 

 with more attention. 



If you will remember. Mr. York. I gave my 

 experience once in the Progressive Bee- 

 Keeper, some years ago, stating that I had 

 secured 2co pounds of honey per colony; but 

 when my bees were at their very best on 

 Spanish-needle, it turned so very dry and 

 hot all at once that the nectar ceased very 

 suddenly. If it had continued in bloom as 

 it usually does for a longer period, I am sure 

 my average would have been much better. 

 You said in commenting upon my experi- 

 ence at the time that you would " like to 

 know how much I was expecting." I have 

 taken 200 pounds in three different seasons 

 with my plan, and while my success has 

 been much over the average, I have never 

 thought that I did so very much, nor near 

 the possibilities. This only shows that with 

 good care, bees, or in fact any business, may 

 be a success— at least very much better than 

 the average. J. W. Rouse. 



Mexico. Mo. 



[Mr. Allen's plan was given on page 93. last 

 month.— Editor.] 



Bee-Keeping In Ontario 



My bees wintered tip-tori, only losing one 

 out of 24 colonies, and that through putting 

 on taffy not made hard enough, and it melted 

 and smothered them. Never have my bees 

 come through a winter in better shape, both 

 in strength and stores. 



The past season was the best, for both 

 early and late flowers of honey, we have ha 

 for a long time in this section; no honey-dew 

 of any sort, and bees went into winter qiiar 

 ters in first-class shape. 



I winter my bees on the summer stands in 

 chaff hives. They had no chance for flight 

 this winter from the middle of November 

 until the tith of this month. We had a nice, 

 steady winter with but three or four cold 

 dips below zero, and then only for a day or 

 two at a time. ToM CooLEV. 



Sheflield. Ont.. Can.. March 22. 



Some Weather Prophecies 



I have been quite amused to notice in the 

 bee-papers about shaking energy into the 

 bees, by prominent bee-men. It reminds me 

 very forcibly of an old saying, which has 

 been handed down through our ancestors 

 from Switzerland to the present generation, 

 and which is as follows : 



First, w^hen the bear comes out from his 

 den of long sleep or hibernating, and sees 

 his own shadow on Feb. 2d. or Candlemas 

 Day. bruno will go back and remain in his 

 den 4 weeks, if not b weeks. 



Second, in the month of February the lion 

 does not shake his head; then he switches 

 his tail. 



Third, if Mathias. on the 24th of the sec- 

 ond month of the year, finds ice he will 

 break it; if not, he will make it. 



First, to understand that prophecy of our 

 ancestors, may be accomplished as follows: 

 Those mountaineers of Switzerland were 

 thoroughly acquainted with the nature of 

 bruno's winter quarters. Somewhere in the 

 7o's. 1 had the privilege of taking a uiglu's 

 lodging on Candlemas Day with .1. L. Byer. 

 of Mt. loy. Out., who owned a large bear. 

 'I'he following morning..the bear being bur- 

 rowed in straw in the barn, matle his appear- 

 ance fastened to the barn-[iost with 15 or 

 more feet of chain. The writer witnessed 

 his action at the door of tlu- b.un. looking 

 ami snitling fora few moments and then went 

 back into the den agaiii.it being very cold, 

 as it was below zero, and we had our over- 

 coats on to keep warm. As the sun was 

 sliiuiug all ilay. the owner said that the bear 

 would make his appearance again in 4 weeks. 



Fifty years ago I had the privilege on Can- 

 dlemas Day, it being cloudy, drizzling and 



