August, 19J5. 



l^Amerlcan Bee Journal 



stranger still, from endbar to endbar, 

 and that in frame after frame, and 

 in hive after hive. In one hive Dr. 

 Miller estimated that there were 6 

 frames that were seven-eighths filled 

 with brood and the other two frames 

 more than half filled. That would 

 make nearly .jO.OOO cells of brood. 



Such a state of things would not be 

 possible ordinarily, for a larger pro- 

 portion of each comb would contain 

 stores. But in this case everything 

 gathered was used up as fast as gath- 

 ered, and so there was no crowding 

 out of brood by stores. Often we have 

 had colonies with more brood, but it 

 would be in more than one story. 

 Probably never before did we have as 

 much brood in a single story of S 

 frames. 



.June 2S the first swarm issued, the 

 latest issuing of the first prime swarm 

 on record in this locality. 



June 29 we began looking through 

 the hives for cells the second time. 

 In a number of cases we found the 

 super filled and the bees suffering for 

 room. This happened the more easily 

 because the first super put on each 

 hive was entirely filled with bait sec- 

 tions, nearly fully drawn out. We 

 did a rather wholesale job in the way 

 of adding supers. To most of them 

 we gave 2 apiece, and to a few 3 . An 

 empty super was put below the filled 



super, and another on top. The one 

 on top acted as a safety valve; if 

 needed the bees could occupy it, and 

 if not needed they could let it alone. 

 An advantage in putting extra supers 

 on top is that If a starter is a bit 

 insecurely fastened, the bees will fas- 

 ten it if put on top, whereas if put 

 below the weight of the bees will 

 oreak it down. Besides it makes the 

 work a little easier to have such 

 abundant room, for then such close 

 watching is not necessary. 



An inventory July 1 showed there 

 were 7 colonies with one super each, 

 11 with 2, G9 with 3, and 6 with 4. 

 That figures up 93 colonies, for we 

 had made one new one. That looks 

 like a big lot of super-room if the 

 flow should stop; but there was no 

 great fear of that, for the ground had 

 been so thoroughly filled with water 

 that the clover could not dry up for 

 some time. At any rate, "Nothing 

 ventured, nothing won." 



Worth Living In 



One that claims that he knows about it 

 Tells me the earth is a vale of sin; 



But I and the bees, and the birds, we 

 doubt it. 

 And think it a world worth living in. 



— I'he Book of Good Cheer. 



Conducted by Wesley Foster, Boulder. Colo. 



Alfalfa and tlie Honey Flow 



Beekeepers watch the alfafa as 

 closely as, if not closer than the farm- 

 ers themselves. It is by far the most 

 important honey source in the west. 

 Several conditions in the growing of 

 alfalfa look favorable to the beekeep- 

 ers. 



A number of years ago, complaints 

 began coming in to the Colorado 



Agricultural College that alfalfa was 

 not doing as well as formerly; that 

 the stand was running out and a less 

 thrifty growth was being made, con- 

 sequently the tonnage was falling off. 

 The Colorado Agricultural College 

 began investigations by collecting all 

 the different varieties obtainable. By 

 carrying on these investigations and 

 collections and testing out each va- 

 riety it was found that the one hun- 



dred and eighty varieties divided 

 themselves into two great groups, the 

 northern or hardy, and the southern 

 or less hardy varieties. It was found 

 that the lack of sufficient seed had 

 caused large amounts of the southern 

 varieties to be sown. The result was 

 that the southern varieties winter 

 killed and ran out, from pasturage, 

 to a much greater extent than the 

 hardy northern varieties. 



Of all the hardy kinds it was found 

 that the Grimm and Baltic varieties 

 surpassed all the others from the fact 

 that they form the crown below the 

 surface of the ground and are less 

 subject to freezing damage and in- 

 jury from over-pasturage. 



These varieties bloom more profuse- 

 ly and begin blooming before com- 

 plete growth is made. This makes it 

 possible for the beekeeper to obtain 

 some honey, even though the alfalfa 

 is cut upon making full growth. 



Another point in favor of the bee- 

 keepers is that the fast multiplying 

 alfalfa meal mills are, to a certain 

 extent, increasing the acreage in al- 

 falfa and they are desirous of ob- 

 taining hay with blossoms on — they 

 do not desire the alfalfa cut before 

 it blooms, as a general rule. 



County Agriculturists and Apiary In- 

 spectors 



The Apiary Inspection in Colorado 

 is handled in the same general way 

 as is the Horticultural Inspection 

 work. In a number of counties the 

 newly appointed county Agriculturists 

 have been delegated County Horticul- 

 tural Inspectors, as it seemed feasible 

 for them to do this work on their 

 regular rounds and in connection with 

 their other work. 



The counties of LaPlata and Monte- 

 zuma in southwestern Colorado have, 

 in co-operation with the Colorado 

 Agricultural College and the United 

 States Department of Agriculture, 

 employed Mr. E. D. Smith of Hes- 

 perus, Colorado as Agriculturist and 

 he has also been placed in charge of 

 the Horticultural and Apiary Inspec- 

 tion work in these counties. 



I understand that the use of Agri- 





fyn 



GROUP OF THOSE PRESENT AT THE DELTA COUNTY FIELD MEET AT CEDAREDGE. COLO. 



