1889 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTUEE. 



63 



We solicit for this department short items and questions "1 

 a practical nature; but all QUESTIONS, if accompanied by oth- 

 er matter, must be put upon a separate slip of paper with 

 name and address. 



MILD WEATHER, AND BROOD-REARING. 



8 WING to the very mild weather for the past 

 four weeks, queens have begun laying. The 

 mild weather has caused a hundred per cent 

 more stores to be consumed the past month 

 than usual, and I therefore predict loss of 

 bees from starvation this winter to be far in excess 

 of the average. S. W. Morrison, M. D. 



Oxford, Pa., Jan. 8, 1889. 



40 QUARTS OF .JAPANESE BUCKWHEAT, FROM 10 

 OUNCES. 



On the :21st day of July I sowed 10 oz. of Japanese 

 buckwheat on a piece of ground one rod wide and 

 six rods long. I harvested forty quarts of fine well- 

 fllled wheat. How is that for a yield? 



LaGrange, O., Dec. 27, 1888. V. E. Freeman. 



25 BUSHELS OF JAPANESE BUCKWHEAT FROM 

 22 POUNDS. 



The 23 pounds of Japanese buckwheat I bought 

 of you last spring, yielded me 25 bushels of nice 

 clean wheat, after losing some on the ground. 

 Bees did well on it. They are now in good condi- 

 tion for winter. G. A. Willis. 



Enfield, 111., Dec. 23, 1888. 



500 COLONIES IN WINTER. 



I only wish you could have been at Syracuse ai 

 the convention, or that I could have been in Cali- 

 fornia with you. I go into winter with over 500 

 colonies. We are having a severe winter. 



W. L. COGGSHALL. 



West Groton, N. Y., Dec. 24, 1888. 



[Friend C, I should have been glad to be with 

 you; but I should have been still gladder to have 

 you and all the other friends of the East with me 

 during my visit in California. As the latter could 

 not be. I am doing the best I can to tell you what I 

 saw there.] 



COMBS OF POLLEN ; ARE THEY GOOD FOR ANY 

 THING ? 



My neighbor's bees robbed one of my hives; and 

 when I found it out, the honey was all gone, and 

 the bees also. The frames seem to be nearly full of 

 the pollen. Are they good for any thing to use 

 next season, or had I better melt them up? 



Westboro, Mass., Dec. 20, 1888. Frank Sibley. 



[They will be good to give to another colony in 

 the spring during brood-rearing.] 



THE WOOD AND ZINC COMBINED QUEEN-EXCLUD- 

 ING HONEY-BOARDS. 



1. In using the above, is it necessary that the 

 wood strip be just over the top-bar of the brood- 

 frames? 



2. Should there be a bee-space between the top- 

 bars and the queen-excluding honey-board? 



3. Should there be a bee-space between the queen- 

 excluder and the super, or should the super sit 

 right on the excluder, without any bee-space? 



TO MAKE DUMMIES. 



Will it do to make a frame, wide enough to fill the 

 space of two brood-frames, out of some light tim- 

 ber, and All the inside of the dummy or frame with 

 fine chaff, or would thinner ones be better? 



Muncie, Ind. Elias W. Hitchins. 



[1. The slats should cover the spaces between the 

 frames. 2. There should be a bee-space between 

 the frames and honey-board, and there should also 

 be a bee-space between the super and the honey- 

 board. You can make a dummy in the manner you 

 describe. A less thickness will not be desirable!] 



Rep0to ENcea^eijsie. 



STARTING IN BEE CULTURE. 



TTp BOUT one year ago I accidentally got one of 

 9fl^ your journals, and became somewhat in- 

 |R» terested. I bought a colony in March, in 

 -*^*- the American hive. This cast two strong 

 swarms, both of which I still have, though 

 the first swarm absconded after I had it nicely in 

 the hive for three hours. I followed the vagrant 

 for a fourth of a mile, when it again clustered in the 

 very top of a huge white-oak tree, 100 feet from the 

 ground. After several hours of perilous work I 

 again hived it. This was my "first born," and al- 

 most "damped" my ardor in bee culture. Later 

 on, however, I purchased one of your ABC books 

 and a smoker, through Mr. P. C. Clinger of this 

 place; and in my own estimation I am improving. 



Milton, Pa., Dec. 24 J P. F. Ranglek. 



700 LBS. FROM 11 SWARMS. 



My bees did very well this year. I took 700 lbs., 

 comb, from 11 swarms, spring count, and increased 

 to 18 swarms. Wm. C. Herr. 



Pike's Peak, Mich., Dec. 27, 1888. 



A RUNAWAY SWARM, AND 80 LBS. OF HONEY. 



I had a swarm of bees come to me on the 10th 

 day of September. I hived them on foundation, 

 and they made 80 pounds of honey. They told me 

 they would do no good. A. McDowell. 



Gaynor City, Mo. 



FROM ti TO 22, AND 325 LBS. OF HONEY. 



From 6 stands of bees, spring count, we increas- 

 ed to 22 and obtained about 325 pounds of honey in 

 1-lb. sections, worth 13 cts. per pound. 



Enfield, 111., Dec. 23, 1888. G. A. Willis. 



300 LBS. OF HONEY FROM 5 COLONIES. 



I had six colonies but no swarms, and secured 

 about 300 lbs. of honey from five colonies, the sixth 

 making no surplus. All are in good condition for 

 winter. E. F. Baker. 



Swanton, Neb. 



PROSPECTS GOOD. 



Spring count was 20 stands, all in good trim ex- 

 cept 4. Pounds of extracted honey, 150; sold at 12J4 

 cts. Pounds of comb honey, 450; sold at 20 cts. 

 Total 600 lbs. I had no increase, and united to 18 in 

 the fall, all in good condition for winter, on sum- 

 mer stands. We had a very poor season, as the 

 white clover secreted no honey. Prospects are 

 good for another year. Wm. O. Heivly. 



Raymore, Mo., Dec. 31, 1888. 



FROM 3 TO 20, AND 50 LBS. OF HONEY. 



I commenced the season with 3 strong swarms, 

 2 of which were Italians, and the rest hybrids. I 

 had 13 natural swarms, and took up 4 swarms from 

 the woods, and transferred them to hives, with 

 good success. I now have 20 swarms in prime con- 

 dition. I did not expect to get much honey, for I 

 worked for increase; however, I got about 50 lbs., 

 and am satisfied with results thus far. 



Brimrield, Mass., Dec. 25, 1888. F. E. Brown. 



