OCTOBER 1, 1915 



795 



Beekeeping Among the Mockie; 



Wesley Foster, 

 Oiu- honey-flow in eastern Colo- 

 ratio (lid not last into September 

 as was hoped. In a very few re- 

 stricted districts a two-case crop 

 of couib honey was secured; but 

 the average for eastern Colorado 

 will not be one case. Western 

 ("oloradu conditions are somewhat better, 

 but a normal crop has not been secured. 

 Grand Valley from Glenwood Springs to 

 Fruita reports a verj' good late flow la.sting 

 into September. Some will secure a yield 

 of two cases of comb honey. A few cars 

 of comb honey have been shipped, and 

 within one month very little comb honey 

 will be left in the state. The indications 

 are that the local trade will be without 

 comb honey on account of better pi'iees 

 bcins: secured in the East. A number of 

 cars have been sold at more than $3.00 a 

 case for the two lii'st grades, and local 

 shipments have brought fiom $3.25 to $3..50 

 a case. The r'omb-honey producer who can 

 hold his honey for the local trade will be 

 assured of good prices later in the season. 

 The Arkansas Valley, from Canon City 

 to the state line, has had the poorest crop 

 on record for the whole distinct. Ten to 

 lifteen pounds of extracted honey is cer- 

 tainly a very unsatisfactory return, and 

 some producers will not get that much. 

 * * * 



THE WEATHER. 



Such a season as we have had this year 

 is very unusual. A deficiency of about 300 

 degrees for the summer months, and a pre- 

 cipitation of three inches above normal, did 

 iiot help the beemen. The short snowfall 

 of Inst winter was compensated by the heavy 

 summer precipitation. In fact, the weather 

 was so cool that the snow on the ranges, 

 though very scarce, did not melt very ap- 

 preciably. Sweet clover of the new growth 

 has come up well, and we should liave an 

 abundance next year. We have not had a 

 favorable growing season for farm crops, 

 and the nights were so cool that it was with 

 difficulty that the bees built combs. The 

 outsides of the supers were rarely finished, 

 and much foundation was chewed up. 



About a week was all the summer we had, 

 and very few real honey days came. The 

 foothills seemed to hold great stores of cool 

 weather. There was not any district in 

 northern Colorado within fifteen miles of 

 the foothills that made more than a case of 

 comb honey to the colony. But further out 

 from the mountains the days were very 

 nnich waimer. and bees did somewhat better. 



THE MARKKT. 



'I'he demand for comb honey has been 

 very brislv so far; and as soon as the buy- 

 ers find out how short the crop is, the price 

 will go up more. Boulder County will not 

 produce more than three or four cases of 

 comb honey. In past good seasons as 

 many as thirteen cars have been shipped 

 out. The local market this year will use (if 

 it can get it) between one and two cars of 

 comb honey. Idaho honey has brought 

 from $2.50 to $3.00 a case according to the 

 grade, and close to $3.00 has been paid for 

 honey in western Colorado where tlie freight 

 rate is about twenty cents a case more to 

 the East than the Colorado coraraon-point 



rate. 



« » • 



Those flower pictures shown in my article 

 on p. 619, Aug. 1, were all taken out- 

 doors. The camera Avas taken to the flowers, 

 and not the flowers to the camera. In this 

 waj'^ a more natural effect is produced, al- 

 though clearness of detail is lost, and a sat- 

 isfactory background is not always possible. 

 The pleasure of flower photography is in- 

 c-rea.sed when one tries to catch bees in the 

 act of gathering pollen or sipping nectar. 

 Several daj's each year can pleasurably and 

 profitably be spent by the beekeeper in in- 

 vestigating the sources of pollen and n.ectar, 

 and photographing the bees at work. 



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 Contimied frum preceding page. 



our wholesale friends for this state of af- 

 fairs, as they have done nothing to help us, 

 and have in some cases, at least, tried hard 

 to bear the market. Some sold quite early 

 at a figTire considerably lower than advised 

 by the committee; but I expect by this tiuie 

 they will know that the sacrifice was entire- 

 ly unnecessary. At any rate, the local 

 demand in our own community was never 

 so good, and not a word is said against 

 pri<;es asked. The west market is hardly 

 started yet, as the people are too busy 

 harvesting their great crop to think of 

 buying honey; but there is no doubt that 

 they will be heard from later on, ajid I now 

 lielieve that every jiound of good honey 

 produced in Ontario this year will find a 

 market at a good fair price, all things 

 considered. 



As to the dark-honey market, I know 

 nothing of what we may expect; but any- 

 way the crop of buckwheat is veiy light, so 

 there should be no trouble in getting rid of 

 it at a lair fijrnre. 



