866 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Nov. 



UNFINISHED SECTIONS. 



The old question that was discussed two 

 years ago was revived. J. A. Green still in- 

 sists that it does not pay to keep over old 

 sections partly filled with comb ; that is, no 

 more than what are needed for bait combs, 

 say one or two in each super, to get the 

 bees to commence readily above. Others 

 insisted that they could get quite a yield of 

 honey by having sections partly or nearly 

 filled with natural comb, where they would 

 get little or none with empty sections, or 

 even with sections having full sheets of 

 foundation. Dr. Miller piles his supers of 

 unfinished sections up, then places them in 

 a hive, in the open air, and contracts the 

 entrance of said hive so that only one bee 

 can get out and in at a time. lie says it 

 does not encourage robbing, but, on the 

 contrary, the bees clean out the sections so 

 nicely that there is no more tendency for 

 the honey to candy when placed in these 

 old combs than if put in*: combs.' nearly 

 drawn out from fresh foundation. Several 

 recommended breaking down the comb in 

 old sections, so the cells were, say, not over 

 a quarter of an inch deep. 



(."UEEN-EXCLUDING ZINC. 



Quite a discussion was also given in re- 

 gard to this. I believe the general tendency 

 was, however, greatly in favor of using 

 queen - excluding honey-boards. Some of 

 the zinc used in our early experiments was 

 too large, and some was too small. Very 

 likely there is not a perfect agreement 

 among bee-keepers as to the proper size of 

 perforations. Three different sizes are, 

 1 believe, now on the market, varying but a 

 hair's breadth, however. 



I was pleased to find one of our commis- 

 sion men, Mr. R. A. Burnett, present at one 

 of the sessions, and he talked to us on 



MARKETING HONEY. 



He says that honey, as a rule, ships much 

 safer in October and November. When the 

 weather is very warm, there is much great- 

 er danger of breaking and leakage. He 

 says the pound section seems to have pretty 

 much driven out all other sizes. For ex- 

 tracted honey, the 60-pound tin can boxed 

 seems to be the best package, and I believe 

 it is also recommended as being the best for 

 storage. 



BROAD AND NARROW TOP-BARS TO 

 FRAMES. 



There seemed to be a difference of opin- 

 ion in this matter. While some prefer top- 

 bars H inches wide, by far the greater num- 

 ber seemed to prefer them about |. Very 

 likely the wide top-bars might work some- 

 thing as does a honey-board in discourag- 

 ing brace-combs between sections and the 

 top of the frames, or between the sections 

 and the honey-boards. 



OVERSTOCKING. 



While without doubt many localities are 

 often overstocked, the general opinion 

 seems to be that we may keep from 75 up to 

 150 colonies in a single location, rather than 

 to start an out-apiary. Circumstances may, 

 however, modify this a good deal. 



For a more complete report of the conven- 

 tion, see the American Bee Journal for Oct. 

 23. In fact, I am indebted to the report 

 there given for bringing to my mind the 

 many points considered. 



SPECIAL DEPARTMENT FOE A. I. ROOT, AND HIS 

 FRIENDS WHO LOVE TO RAISE CROPS. 



RAISING THINGS UNDER GLASS. 



T AM going to give you a talk now, dear 

 m friends, on a subject that has been on 

 jji my mind for several years. In fact, I 

 A spend hours and hours' in inventing and 

 planning in regard to it. I have enjoyed 

 myself, too, in the work, even though it has 

 not as yet amounted, probably, to very much. 

 Sometimes when I am taking a buggy-ride 

 in the night, or riding on the cars, I say to 

 myself, " Now for a good time inventing, 

 planning, exploring, etc." In the first place, 

 I have never been satisfied in raising lettuce, 

 radishes, strawberries, spinach, corn salad, 

 onions, cucumber, etc., under glass. The 

 reason I have never been satisfied is, that 

 they do not grow and succeed as they do 

 outdoors. In fact, I have never seen many 

 greenhouses in my life where things look as 

 thrifty and healthy as I wish to see them 

 look. Perhaps you think I demand a good 

 deal. Well, may be I do. I should give up 

 discouraged, perhaps, were it not that I 

 have now and then had glimpses that 

 seemed to show the possibilities in the line 

 I am looking into. 



Another thing I do not like about plants 

 under glass : it is the almost invariable 

 green-fly accompaniment. Instead of get- 

 ting the conditions just right for the growth 

 of lettuce, tomato-plants, etc., we seem to 

 almost invariably hit upon the exact condi- 

 tions required for raising the green-fly. If 

 that were what we set out to do, we might 

 rejoice over our complete success. First 

 you know, here and there will be the little 

 white specks on the ground, indicating their 

 presence. Examination shows just occa- 

 sionally a green fly. In a week there are 

 hundreds, and in two weeks may be a hun- 

 dred thousand. If you enjoy seeing growth 

 and multiplication in animated nature, you 

 have it with the green fly, to a dot. Well, 

 why does the green fly grow indoors and not 

 out ? I have never yet found anybody who 

 can tell ; but I think I have solved the prob- 

 lem myself. Some years ago I speculated a 

 good deal as to why there was not a green 

 fly to be found in the open air, while they 

 were a perfect pest in a bed not one yard 

 distant, under glass.* Perhaps you may ask, 

 " Why not have all the lettuce in the open 



* I am aware that we can manage the green fly by 

 the use of tobacco. Last winter one of our boys 

 fumigated the greenhouse so thoroughly that he 

 killed every fly in every stage of existence; but be 

 killed all the tomatoes, radishes, and even injured 

 the lettuce. But I do not like tobacco. I do not 

 want it around our boys, and I do not want to re- 

 gale the senses of our visitors by something so 

 strikingly like tobacco juice squirted on ;t hot stove 

 in a poorly ventilated room. Of course, if there is 

 no other way we shall have ,to use tobacco dust, 

 and tobacco smoke and vapor. But 1 believe there 

 is a better and cheaper way. 



