1889 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTUEE. 



11 



fltoTEiS ^ND QlIEIRIEjS. 



We solicit for this department short items and questions of 

 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. 



HONEY-DEW, AGAIN. 



Bees are storing honey very fast from honey-dew. 

 It is so plentiful that it is dripping from the tops of 

 the tall timber, down on leaves of the underbrush. 



Garfield, Ark., July 27, 1889. G. W. Reddick. 



10 swarms from all my stands, and not much honey. 

 It has been wet and too cool for bees to work. 

 Atwood, 111., Aug. 13, 1889. J. W. C. Gray. 



THE CHAPMAN HONEY-PLANT. 



My Chapman honey-plant has just ceased to 

 bloom. It bloomed about one month, and the bees 

 were busy on it from before sunrise till after sun- 

 set during the whole time it lasted. I have seen 

 ten bees at a time on a single pod. 



T. K. Massie. 



Concord Church, W. Va., Aug. 17, 1889. 



ICE-MAKING AND BEE-KEEPING COMBINED. 



I am rushed with the ice-business just now. We 

 are turning out, every 24 hours, from 66,000 to 69,000 

 pounds of bright clear ice. I have a poor chance 

 to attend to bees and ice, both booming in hot 

 weather. Thos. D. Lewis. 



Knoxville, Tenn., Aug. 12, 1889. 



SHALL WE UNDERTAKE TO REGULATE THE SUPPLY 

 OF POLLEN IN THE HIVES? 



There is a question in regard to pollen which I 

 should like to ask. Should colonies be allowed to 

 regulate their own supplies of pollen, or is there 

 any rule to be governed by? Edward Holling. 



Henrietta, Mich., Aug. 6, 1889. 



[In our locality we never have an excess of pol- 

 len, therefore nothing need be done in regard to it. 

 In fact, in the early spring we often feed large 

 quantities of rye flour as a substitute for pollen.] 



BEE-STINGS NO RELIEF FOR RHEUMATISM. 



I have seen so many letters in Gleanings about 

 bee-stings being a remedy for rheumatism, I 

 thought I would add my mite. I have suffered with 

 that disease for three years, and have handled bees 

 every season, and this summer I was badly stung 

 while hiving a swarm, and I am sure I never got 

 any relief from the stings. Mrs. John Burr. 



Bracevllle, 111., July 24, 1889. 



[I am exceedingly glad to have you give us this 

 adverse report. To get at the truth of any matter, 

 we want reports of failures as well as of success.] 



BEES ATTACKING SOUND FRUIT. 



I desire some information. On my farm, all the 

 early peach-trees had fruit which decayed on the 

 branches. The bees then attacked this fruit and 

 afterward went for the sound fruit that matured 

 without decaying. I can't account for it. My bees 

 are doing nicely, and my apiary is ten miles east of 

 this city. A. O. Brummil. 



Washington, D. C, July 18, 1889. 



[You will get exactly the information you wish on 

 page 682, Sept. 1, 1888, issue. 1 then made some care- 

 ful experiments with bees on early peaches, and, I 

 think, proved conclusively that the bees do not, 

 and, in fact, apparently can not, cut into a peach 

 until it begins to decay.] 



HONEY STATISTICS FOR MICHIGAN. 



I send you the following figures, taken from the 

 "Farm Statistics of Michigan," collected by the su- 

 pervisors, and just issued: There were, in the 

 spring of 1888, 4080 apiaries, containing 44,326 colo- 

 nies; 52,199 colonies in the year 1887 produced 579,820 

 lbs. of comb honey, and 19,814 colonies produced 

 150,019 lbs. of extracted honey, and 8567 lbs. of wax 

 were produced the same year; 21,S47 colonies died 

 in the winter of 1887. F. N. Hilton. 



Pontiac, Mich., Aug. 17, 1889. 



SILVERHULL VERSOS THE JAPANESE BUCKWHEAT 

 FOR HONEY. 



I have just come in from the buckwheat patch. 

 The bees are on the silverhull in goodly numbers, 

 while the Japanese is almost ready for the sickle, 

 and nary a bee to be found in all the patch. My 

 bees have not done much toward swarming— only 



catnip; will it pay to plant it? 



White clover, with us, comes about the 25th of 

 May, and lasts until the first of July; and then we 

 have but little honey until buckwheat, which comes 

 about the middle of August. Would it not pay to 

 plant catnip on our farm, for it lasts about three 

 weeks in July? Sherman Borden. 



Burlington, N. J., July 30, 1889. 



[We think we can pretty safely say that it will 

 not pay to cultivate catnip or any other plant for 

 honey alone. Many experiments have been tried, 

 from an acre up to several acres; but no experi- 

 menter ba<* been sufficiently well satisfied with the 

 result to keep it up. Buckwheat, alsike and pea- 

 vine clover, are all right; also rape in some locali- 

 ties, as the seed is saved for oil.] 



i^EP0R¥5 ENC0O^6IN6. 



A CONTINUOUS HONEY-FLOW. 



The bees have not let up since the apple-trees 

 bloomed in April, and there is a prospect for good 

 picking for the next two months. John Long. 



Vesta, Ind., Aug. 15, 1889. 



BEST SEASON FOR BEES EVER EXPERIENCED. 



We are having the finest season for the bees I 

 ever experienced. Basswood and clover were both 

 splendid, and now the bees are booming on buck- 

 wheat and fall flowers J. C. Hand. 



Abbot, la., Aug. 12, 1889. 



LARGE HIVES: 51 BARRELS, OF 550 LBS., FROM 245 

 COLONIES. 



My crop of white-clover extracted honey is very 

 large, and of the very finest quality. I gathered 51 

 barrels, of 550 lbs. each, from -245 colonies, spring 

 count. So much for large hives and a favorable 

 season. Bmil J. Baxter. 



Nauvoo. 111., Aug. 8, 1889. 



24,127 LBS. OF HONEY FROM 325 COLONIES, SPRING 

 COUNT, AND INCREASED TO 402. 



I received the extractor to-day. I did not get to 

 try it this year, as I finished extracting to-day. I 

 have taken out 24,127 lbs. of honey, and 720 of wax. 

 How is that for 325 colonies, spring count? I in- 

 creased to til.', with only $38.00 paid for help. 



Rush Point, La., Aug. 10, 1889. Wm. J. Dawson. 



250 LBS. OF HONEY IN 15 DAYS, FROM ONE COLONY, 

 AND 400 COLONIES IN ONE MILE SQUARE. 



I had one hive of bees this year that gained 250 

 lbs. in 15 days from July 11th to 25th. I extracted 

 in this time 234 lbs.; average daily, 16' 3 lbs. I have 



