GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



A Cheltenham skeppist and his home where honey is retailed. 



regards precautions it is better to have 

 many apiaries of a few colonies (lian many 

 stocks in one apiary. 



With bees scattered, it is much easier to 

 control the spread of disease, while there 

 is always a chance of getting a crop of 

 honey from the healthy stocks. The com- 

 mon practice of exchanging brood and 

 super combs at extracting or any other time 

 is to be condemned. It is a simple matter 

 to number both hives and supers, and re- 

 turn the combs to those from which they 

 were taken. 



Sjnnip fed to the bees should always con- 

 tain some strong medicinal agent, while the 

 best winter food for disease resistance is 

 sealed honey and medicated syrup, half and 

 half. Tzal is reported to be an excellent 

 )ireventive of disease, and useful as a dis- 

 infectant for washing out hives, etc. 



It is the duty of eveiy enlightened bee- 

 keeper to hunt up his neighbors to see if 

 their bees are clean or diseased, and to 

 help them in applying the same treatment 

 or precautions that he him.self is taking. 

 Happily thei-e are signs that greater care 

 is being exercised all round ; and if the Isle- 

 of-Wight disease has the effect of waking up 

 beekeepers to their full responsibility, the 

 losses through this and other causes will 



be reduced to a minimum, and it may yet 

 prove a blessing in disguise. 



A HILLSIDE APIARY. 



One of my out-apiaries on the Cotswold 

 Hills is situated in the heart of the sainfoin 

 country, and the honey is very light in color 

 and of a most delicious flavor. 



We get but few bee-flowers till ]\Iay is 

 out, so plenty of honey in the autumn is 

 necessary to carry the bees through the 

 winter and early part of the year. A shel- 

 tered position and a good honey-hou.se are 

 two things of importance in out-apian- 

 management, and this yard is well situated 

 for both. 



Tlie other picture is that of a quaint Cots- 

 wold cottage, the home of a skeppist whose 

 rustic bee-garden of straw hives is to the 

 right of the house. This is also the village 

 postoffiee and general store, where quite a 

 lot of honey is retailed over the counter. 



Every lover of nature enjoys the Cots- 

 wold Hills with their delightful views and 

 picturesque hamlets, vin air of quietness 

 always seems to rest upon them, and they 

 are far enough away from towns still to 

 retain much of their rustic beauty. 



Some of my pleasantest memories are ot" 

 tlie liills on the hot. sleepy afternoons of 

 summer with the rich flat meadows and 



