782 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



December, 1919 



FROM THE FIELD OF EXPERIENCE 



even quoting the Founder did not save Mm 

 and they put him out of the association. 



That fall cellar wintering came in strong, 

 and it was to be the way to revive the bee- 

 keeping industry. All sorts of arguments 

 arose as to the best temperature, but it was 

 finally decided that the best one is the one 

 you have. That was an easy way out of the 

 difficulty and it had the advantage that 

 every beekeeper who wintered in the cellar 

 was in style! It isn't very often that we 

 can get a style that doesn't cost us money. 

 Of course, a lot of fellows lost all their 

 bees, and a lot more had mere nuclei in the 

 spring, but they bought more and stayed in 

 the game. 



About ten years ago the fraternity got 

 into an awful tangle, for a rather large 

 number had decided to make beekeeping 

 their sole occupation, and if that was to be 

 done the style changes would have to be in 

 things that make less difference to the bees. 

 The shallow hives simply had to go, and cel- 

 lar wintering took a back seat. It began 

 openly to be advocated that bees must have 

 protection in winter to do well, and spring 

 stimulative feeding was recognized by the 

 younger and better beekeepers as a fool 

 stunt. 



This put the fraternity in a bad way, for 

 it looked for a time as if there could be no 

 more of the style business. But the bee 

 business is immortal and will not be down- 

 ed, even by a crisis such as I have describ- 

 ed in my feeble way. I wish that I could 

 make you realize the danger that then con- 

 fronted our cult. Some of the more imagina- 

 tive of the beekeepers finally hit on the solu- 

 tion of the difficulty, and it was a most 

 happy solution. Why not go back to some 

 of the early styles and have them all over 

 again? The same old ideas of practice are 

 rehashed annually, why not go back too in 

 the matter of style? The women, after 

 whom we have patterned our affairs, have 

 tried bustles several times, each time with 

 success. 



So we went back to real hives, all but a 

 few of the more stubborn ones. Then to 

 get styles we took up first the matter of 

 shipping bees without combs. That made a 

 l)ig hit. It had been tried out thoroly and 

 found not to be a good practice for the usu- 

 al circumstances, but back it came. All 

 sorts of new cages were devised, every con- 

 ceivable plan for feeding the bees in transit 

 was brought out, and beekeepers were again 

 happy. 



Now, I want to call your careful attention 

 to something which is very vital to the 

 perpetuation of the fraternity. Now that 

 we are driven to leaving out of the styles 

 the fundamental things in beekeeping prac- 

 tice, it is harder to think up a new thing 

 every year. Whether we want to or not, we 

 must keep our styles longer. It is just like 

 the situation that has arisen on account of 



the war. The women must, to be patriotic, 

 wear their clothes until they are worn out, 

 style or no style. Therefore it is up to us 

 loyal beekeeijers to keep our styles until a 

 new one can be brought to the front with- 

 out much harm. 



We must uphold the styles at any cost. 

 Phil Franklin. 



30^C8r 



A VISIT AT HOME OF E. ELTHORP 



A Statement of His Ideas on Disappearing Disease, 

 Swarming, Feeding, Etc. 



At various times during my visits to New 

 York State beekeepers, I had been told 

 that I should meet Mr. Elthorp — that he 

 is one of the best beekeepers in New York, 

 and that in profits per colony he ranked 

 high. Mr. Elthorp is on in years, and has 

 a fine farm with many modern improve- 

 ments. 



Mr. Elthorp 's experience covers some 39 

 or 40 years. He kept over 400 colonies at 

 one time, and all in one apiary. The old 

 Quinby hanging frame cut down to ten 

 inches is used, making it practically a Lang- 

 stroth frame, except that the eight combs 

 used are equal to a nine-frame Langstroth. 

 He winters all his bees in one cellar. 



Fortunately I found that Mr. Elthorp has 

 had experiejiee with the disappearing dis- 

 ease — this (to us) new bee disease which 

 has been far too prevalent to suit our com- 

 fort of mind, and the outcome of which is 

 viewed with some anxiety at the present 

 time. We should like to find out what 

 struck us and how hard we are likely to be 

 hit in the future. Well, Mr. Elthorp stated 

 that he first saw the disease about 20 years 

 ago. 



When the colonies were strong about 

 swarming time the desire would show itself 

 by the bees coming out in large numbers 

 on the grass, rushing from the hive with 

 wings distended and somewhat separated. 

 It lasted only a few days, but it decreased 

 wonderfully the number of bees to a hive. 

 He had attributed it to hot weather, having 

 detected it two or three times since at wide- 

 ly separated intervals, but always during 

 hot weather. While on this subject it might 

 be well to mention here that, upon question- 

 ing Charles E. Stewart in regard to this dis- 

 ease, he said he first noticed it 15 years ago 

 at the time of clover yield. He, like myself, 

 found it worse in damp weather. 



Returning to Mr. Elthorp 's management, 

 and bearing in mind that he runs all his bees 

 in one apiary with undoubtedly enough work 

 to keep one man busy, he has allowed natu- 

 ral swarming, and has produced comb honey. 

 He has tried to keep increase down by hiv- 

 ing swarms after they came out, setting the 

 new swarm alongside of the old, and then in 

 the afternoon, when the swarms quieted 



