JUNE 1, 1915 



ed ill the ctMiter of one of these big orchards 

 in ralifornia. The trees in the immediate 

 vicinity of the liive were fairly doused with 

 tlie arsenide of zinc. Mr. Foster does not 

 think the evidence is conclusive that the 

 bees in tliat one colony fjathered any of the 

 j)oi.son, as the profusion of bloom would 

 be so immense tliat the bees that were flyinj? 

 could go far enough away to get nectar 

 from blossoms not sprayed. 



He also says that as soon as the bees on 

 the western slope of Colorado were removed 

 from the districts where the spraying liquids 

 fall on the cover crops under the trees the 

 losses immediately ceased. This fact is 

 somewhat significant. 



We understand tliai the national Govern- 

 ment is working on this proposition to de- 

 termine wliether the bees are killed by the 

 spiaying-liquids used on fruit-trees. We 

 shall await with interest that report. 



mecMS 



California vs. Canada ; Wll 

 that Lay Every Monlli in line 

 are Superseded Quicker tliain 



in the North that have Six Monltlhis 

 of Rest 



On page 440 Mr. Byer is surprised that 

 the majoritv of Mr. Chadwick's colonies 

 containing two-year-old queens degenerated 

 into laying workers. Perhaps we can ex- 

 plain the situation. Mr. Chadwick is a 

 mail-carrier for Uncle Sam. His bee and 

 garden work ho has to do between times. 

 His outyard is located some four or five 

 miles from the home yard. As he does most 

 of the work himself, or did up to this sea- 

 son, it is easy to see something might hap- 

 pen among his bees. 



!Mr. Ryer probably does not take into 

 consideration the diiference between his own 

 locality and that of southern California. Mr. 

 Chadwick's bees can fly nearly every month 

 in the year; and the result is, his queens 

 will be laying every month in the year; and 

 two-year-old queens in California are al- 

 most the equivalent of four-year-old queens 

 in Canada, where the seasons are only half 

 as long. A queen that lays only four or 

 five months in the year, or six or seven 

 months at the most, can recuperate, where 

 a queen that is laying almost every month 

 in the year has no such opportunity. 



In our migratory beekeeping in the 

 Southland we have discovered tliat a queen 

 that is continually on the job will play out 

 much sooner than those that have a long 

 winter's sleep or rest. These facts will ex- 

 plain why a two-year-old queen may be 

 followed in California by a laying worker. 



Things hapi)cn pretty rapidly in California. 

 It is possible, howe\er, that Mr. Chadwick 

 lias a sprinkling of Cyprian or Holy Land 

 bees. These bees will quickly degenerate 

 into laying workers. 



The Dislrilbiiittion of the Bee and Fruit 

 Imidiuisttrfles in the Umiled States ; 

 a Memiarlkalble Coincideinice 



Green's Fruit-grower is sending out a 

 map furnished by the Chamber of Com- 

 merce of the United States, showing the 

 relative amount of fruit grown in each 

 state. The quantity produced in each state 

 is sliown by circles of various sizes. These 

 circles are then subdivided by triangular 

 sections in shape like pieces of pie big and 

 little. Apple-growing (as shown by the 

 big "pieces of pie") represents on the 

 average about half of all the fruit if we 

 leave out California and Florida. Straw- 

 berries, grapes, plums, and peaches each 

 make a " piece of pie," to carry out the 

 figure. In Florida, as would naturally be 

 expected, oranges represent 90 per cent of 

 all the fruit grown. 



But the showing of this map that is most 

 interesting to beekeepers is the fact that, 

 where fruit-growing is shown by a large 

 circle, beekeeping is also well represented. 

 In other words, the states having the largest 

 circles are also big bee and honey slates as 

 our records show. For example, California 

 has the largest circle, and, as is well known, 

 beekeeping is an important industry there. 

 Then come New York, Michigan, Pennsyl- 

 vania, IMissouri, Ohio, Iowa, and Washing- 

 ton. In all the states mentioned, beekeep- 

 ing as an industry is important in about the 

 order given; and while, of course, it does 

 not begin to compare in volume and size 

 with the fruit-growing industry, a careful 

 compaiison of the map shows that beekeep- 

 ing and fruit-growing go hand in hand. 

 While this does not prove that one is di- 

 rectly dependent on the other, it does show 

 that conditions that are favoiable for the 

 one industry are also favorable for the 

 other. The great Creator had a purpose 

 when he made it possible for the two to 

 thrive side by side. In that "purpose" there 

 is implied a recognition of the dependence 

 of tlie fruit-growing industry on the bees. 



Practically the only exception that we 

 find between the relation of boekeo]>ing to 

 the frnit bifsiness is in Texas. Texas is 

 probabh' second in imjiortance in the pro- 

 duction of honey in the United States, and 

 yet it is almost at the bottom of the list in 

 the production of fruit. This disparity is 



