GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



BEEKEEPING IN CALIEOMNIA 



A young- queen is half the battle, 

 botii in fighting disease and in se- 

 f'Ui'ing' surplus. 



* * ■* 



If bees are in good condition, 

 and have plenty of stores, they 

 should not be disturbed much dur- 

 ing the winter months. 



* * * 



With a light crop of oranges, and with 

 trees in a prosperous condition, the pros- 

 pects were never better for an abundance 

 of bloom this spring. 



* * * 



The best way to build up weak colonies in 

 the spring is to see that they have a young- 

 queen and plenty of stores in the fall. It 

 is the best insurance you can take on bees. 



* * * 



There is no profit in extracting too close, 

 then running for increase every second year. 

 Leave plenty of honey always. Use the 

 time you would spend in making increase in 

 running the extractor for profit. 



B. G. Burdick, of Redlands, Cal., expects 

 to leave soon for the Antelope Valley, 

 where he will enter the bee business on a 

 large scale. Alfalfa is the principal source 

 of honey in that section, and the quality is 

 said to be of the finest. 



* * * 



Several apiaries of 200 colonies each can 

 be run by two men with a power extractor 

 by going from yard to yard. But one man 

 to every yard during the honey-flow is 

 worth more than his hire to requeen and to 

 look after details of the yard, and the power 

 extractor can be used to advantage at times 



also. 



* *- * 



Up to Jan. 12 we have had a series of 

 small storms with a light precipitation 

 which has not penetrated the soil to any 

 great depth. The surface has received 

 enough to keep vegetation in a prosperous 

 condition, and prospects for early pollen 

 were never better. More rain, however, will 

 be necessary to produce a crop from wild 



flora. 



* * * 



J. Edgar Ross, of Brawley, Imperial Co., 

 is disposing of liis bees after some years of 

 successful operation. He has become the 

 chief pen-pusher as well as owner of a new 

 newspaper which has already seen issue. 



AVe regret the loss of Mr. Ross from our 

 lanks, but wish him a full measure of 

 success in his new venture. 



* « * 



Within a few years sage honey will 

 become the most desirable of all honeys, and 

 will sell at a premium. The sage ranges are 

 yielding more rapidly at present to brush 

 fires than to the plow. Many of our finest 

 ranges have suffered in the last few years. 

 One side of the famous Mendleson range in 

 Ventura Co. was destroyed last year. 



* * » 



J. Edgar Ross, of Imperial Valley, says 

 the only apiary he has i^roducing alfalfa 

 honey exclusively sometimes produces a 

 white honey. This is the first time I have 

 had an admission that alfalfa produced any 

 thing but a dark honey in Imperial Valley. 

 He also says there are sources of production 

 other than alfalfa that ai-e factors in honey 

 production, which do not produce a light 

 honey. , * * 



On Jan. 10 I opened two hives to observe 

 their condition — one an average colony, and 

 the other the weakest in my little home yard. 

 The average colony had four frames of 

 bi-ood and a force of bees sufficient to begin 

 on a full-fledged honey-flow. The weaker 

 one, which is fully as strong as my strong- 

 est one last season, had brood in three 

 frames a jDart of the way across the frame. 

 There has not been a day during the entire 

 winter when these hives have not contained 

 brood. With this condition pi-evailing at 

 the present time, it looks favorable for a 

 spring working force of bees in this section 

 equal to any of the past ten years. 



* * * 



A gentleman at the State convention 

 spoke of antiquated methods, among which 

 he mentioned the solar wax-extractor. I 

 flinched just a bit, for I am a little tender 

 on that subject. I am just antiquated 

 enough to believe that capping-melters now 

 in general use color the honey. To my mind 

 there is no question about it. If one were 

 extracting a dark grade of honey it might 

 not make much difference ; but when a light 

 grade is being handled, and the object is to 

 place it on the market as white as possible, 

 T will take no risks with a capping-melter 

 which runs the honey over a hot metal sur- 

 face. This of itself has a tendency to dis- 

 color. Until I am convinced that it does 

 not discolor, antiquated or not, I will call 

 '• old Sol " to my assistance. 



