FEBRUARY 15, 1915 



135 



spectors wlio can work when conditions are 

 farorable. At the same time the report 

 recommends that the code be modified to 

 iiive the inspector more hititude in their 

 work. As it now stands, the intricacies of 

 the hnv are quite beyond the powers of tlie 

 ins]iectors. 



A further recommendation points out 

 that, with funds which could be derived 

 from taxing bees the same as any other 

 property, research work could be carried on 

 by tlie state agricultural experiment station 

 and the information properly disseminated 

 for the benefit of the beekeepers. 



Among the papers submitted to the state 

 convention and published in the report was 

 a discussion of temperature and humidity in 

 the wintering of bees by E. F. Phillips, Ph. 

 D., of the national Department of Agricul- 

 ture. This has been imblished in a Govern- 

 ment bulletin, and was reviewed on page 71, 

 Jan. 15. Wesley Foster, of Boulder. Col., 

 presented methods of co-operative market- 

 ing of honey. L. H. Pammel's paper on 

 honey-plants of Iowa calls attention to the 

 values of the willows, the maples, the dan- 

 delion, the apple, plum, and cherry trees; 

 the berries, the clovers except red clover, 

 m.otherwort, catnip, heartsease, boneset, and 

 goldenrod. Dr. Burton N. Gates, of the 

 Massachusetts Agricultural College, adds 

 force to a much-proclaimed truth in his 

 paper entitled " The Value of Bees in 

 Horticulture." L. A. Kenoyer reports en- 

 tomological investigations among wild bees. 

 C. P. Dadant furnishes a sketch of beekeep- 

 ing from the dawn of man's recollection. 



How to Make ''Fondant" or other 

 Soft Candy for Mid-winter Feeding 



We have referred to the desirability of 

 avoiding the use of honey in making queen- 

 cage candy on account of the danger of 

 transmitting bee-disease — see page 4, Jan. 1. 

 Elsewhere in this department will be found 

 a statement concerning the making of candy 

 with invert sugar, which, chemically speak- 

 ing, is very nearly the same thing as honey. 

 Others have been working on this problem 

 of making bee-candy that will contain no 

 possible germs of disease — notably Mr. 0. 

 F. Fuller, of Blackstone, Mass., and Dr. 

 Burton N. Gates, of the Massachusetts Ag- 

 ricultural College. On page 435, July 1, 

 101 ,S, we gave a brief review of an address 

 by Mr. Fuller, on how to make bee-candy 

 with glucose, or what has been technically 

 called " fondant.'' During that time a good 

 many inquiries have come in concerning it. 

 As this is the time of year when possibly 



some bees in winter quarters may be run- 

 ning short of stores, it is proper to consider 

 how they may be supplied with food when 

 no combs of sealed stores are available. Mr. 

 Fuller and Dr. Gates have both said that 

 the fondant such as they have described 

 could be and has been used for winter food. 

 In this connection we see no reason why 

 queen-cage candy made by mixing invert 

 sugar and powdered sugar together could 

 not be used in the same way, as invert 

 sugar contains no deleterious acids, and, 

 apparently, it can be used precisely the 

 same as honey in the making of old-fash- 

 ioned queen-cage candy known as " Good 

 candy." This is made by mixing sugar and 

 honey (or invert sugar), and kneading it 

 into a stiff dough. No heat is employed 

 wliatever in the process, and in this respect, 

 other things being equal, it would seem to 

 be much superior to the Fuller candy using 

 glucose and a high degi'ee of temperature, 

 if there is too much or too. little heat there 

 will be trouble. 



However, there has been so much call for 

 information on the use of and how to make 

 ■Fuller candy, or "fondant," tliat we have 

 thought best to give a brief digest of Bulle- 

 tin No. 7A, by Dr. Gates, describing it. 



This candy, says Dr. Gates, has numerous 

 advantages and possibilities. It is found 

 to be a satisfactory stimulative feed; a feed 

 for bees in transit, and satisfactory as win- 

 ter stores. Colonies have been observed to 

 leave natural stores for the candy. Some 

 of the advantages claimed for the candy are 

 the ease with which it is handled or sup- 

 plied ; the fact that it may be made in 

 quantities, and stored until needed; failure 

 to incite robbing; the ability to provision 

 colonies with known amounts or weights, 

 and its freedom from infection. There is 

 no waste by evaporation or spilling, as is 

 the case with liquid feed. 



The candy may be made in any degi-ee of 

 hardness or softness, and may be stored for 

 years if properly handled. It may be 

 molded in pie-plates or feeders, or boards 

 may be nailed to the side of a frame, and 

 the candy poured and molded within the 

 frame, allowing this to be hung in the hive 

 adjacent to the cluster. 



The latest recipe for soft candy is as 

 follows : 



12 lbs. granulated siisrar; 



1% lbs. liquid glucose, or sranulai- mixed with 

 water ; 



1 V4 quarts of water (equal to 40 o/,,, .'> cupfuls) ; 



Vi teaspoonful cream of tartar, added when the 

 temperature reaches about 2.S0 dpsrrees I'\. or 110 

 degrees C. 



Roil to 2.38 degrees F., or 114.4 degrees C. 



The measures should be accurate. A 



