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G 1, K A KINGS T N H K K (' V L T V K E 



FROM NORTH, EAST, WEST AND SOUTH 



In Ontario.— <^«"/int:od drouth in many 

 parts ot Ontario has cut 

 down prospects of a good buckwheat crop 

 in most pUices. In our own locality the 

 acreage is larger than usual, but many fields 

 of buckwheat are just nicely up out of the 

 ground, and at best the bloom will be late. 

 Here in Ontario we rarely get much buck- 

 wheat honey after the first of September. 



The Honey Crop Committee for Ontario, 

 appointed by the Ontario Beekeepers' Asso- 

 ciation each year, recentl^y met in Toronto 

 and have issued a report for the season. 

 Prices advised are practically the same as 

 for last year, and, judging b_y the prices of 

 all other articles and the short crop in the 

 Province, there should be little doubt but 

 that these prices will be maintained. Full 

 reports received point out to a reversal of 

 last year's conditions so far as the crop is 

 concerned. Last year the western counties 

 gave a large yield; central Ontario, half a 

 crop; and eastern Ontario, a very light crop. 

 This year the western counties, where most 

 of the producers in the Province reside, have 

 a very light crop — many localities have a 

 total failure. Central Ontario has a medium 

 to light crop, and eastern Ontario has a good 

 crop. Fear is expressed in the western coun- 

 ties that in some localities the clover is all 

 killed for next year. This drouth is quite 

 acute, and includes the districts where most 

 of our bees happen to be situated. 



Probably sweet clover has produced more 

 honey in Ontario this year than ever before 

 — largely because there is more grown than 

 ever before, and again it seems as tho the 

 hot dry weather suits this plant so far as 

 honey production is concerned. Personally, 

 as many know, I have never been enthusias- 

 tic about sweet clover as a honey plant, but 

 that factor shall not keep me from telling 

 the facts about the matter as proved in our 

 own locality this season. Sweet clover, even 

 by its boosters, has generally been classed 

 as a slow yielder of very thin nectar; yet I 

 positively know of an apiary near us that 

 during the last week in July actually stored 

 an average of 40 pounds per colony in four 

 days, tho there was nothing but sweet clover 

 for them to work on and the weather hot 

 and dry — nothing very slow about that. One 

 of our apiaries near home, that had no sweet 

 clover in reach to amount to anything, stor- 

 ed an average of about 30 pounds per colo- 

 ny. Another apiary eight miles away and in 

 reach of sweet-clover fields (some of which 

 were let go to seed without being pastured 

 off early in the season, while other fields 

 were pastured and thus prolonged the bloom- 

 ing period) yielded an average of 125 pounds 

 per colony. As to quality, certainly it does 

 not equal alsike or white-clover honey, but 

 it tastes and looks mighty good when the 

 other clovers fail to yield. 



With the crop so variable in different 

 parts of Ontario this year, some arrange- 



ment, wIuMel)y more equal distribution could 

 'x' i"ad(> 0+' the product, would prove very 

 beneficial in marketing the crop. I have 

 roceixed requests for honey from some of 

 the best producing parts of the province 

 which this year happen to have failures; 

 and just yesterday I noticed an ad in one 

 of our farm journals from a subscriber in 

 one of the best clover counties in western 

 Ontario asking where 40 or 50 pounds of 

 good clover honey could be secured for pri- 

 vate use. In many localities people will prob- 

 ably be unable to get honey, while in oth 

 er places there may be abundance with not 

 enough purchasers. Of course, there is al- 

 ways the wholesaler as a distributor, yet he 

 does not take the place of home trade ex- 

 actly; and the more honey sold locally, the 

 better for all concerned. 



By the time this is in print, fall feeding- 

 will be the question of the hour. Present in- 

 dications are that sugar will be hard to get 

 again, and of course it will be high in price. 

 Many who wintered largely on buckwheat 

 stores last year will be more anxious than 

 ever to get sugar; for in many eases the 

 natural stores gave very poor results last 

 season; while universal good wintering was 

 the rule where sugar syrup was given for the 

 coldest part of the winter. At present there 

 is no ruling against getting sugar; but judg- 

 ing by the present outlook, there is going to 

 be ditficulty in obtaining what is needed. 



The writer of these notes had the pleasure 

 a few days ago of once more meeting our 

 old friend, Prof. F. E. Millen now in charge 

 of the apiary work for the Province, and 

 who is of course stationed at the Guelph 

 agricultural college. While we were very 

 sorry to lose the genial Dr. Gates, we never- 

 theless welcome Prof. Millen, who is an old 

 O. A. C. boy, and well known to many of 

 the fraternity. Prof. Millen is secretary- 

 treasurer of the Ontario Beekeepers' Asso- 

 ciation, and all association correspondence 

 should be addressed to him at the College, 

 Guelph, Ont. J. L. Byer. 



Markham, Ont. 



* -^ * 



In Northern California.— ^"^ section 



must con- 

 tinue to report unfavorable conditions. In 

 the southern and central parts the conditions 

 are decidedly unfavorable; but in the north- 

 ern, it may be said, they appear much more 

 promising. July was an unusually cool 

 month and crops of all kinds suffered owing 

 to poor growing conditions. Alfalfa has 

 been a keen disappointment, and beemen in 

 almost all sections are reporting from a 

 one-third to one-half a crop from this source. 

 Of course, unfavorable weather and insect 

 pests were the causes of the small crop. 

 About Newman approximately 2,000 acres 

 of alfalfa were lost owing to grasshopper 

 depredations. Those beekeepers that get 

 their crop during June and July ar© the 



