1908 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



359 



colonies keep a fringe of pollen about the 

 brood-nest. As the brood-nest normally 

 shrinks with the waning of the season, and 

 the accumulation of honey increases, this 

 pollen fringe becomes engulfed in the honey, 

 and is preserved for spring consumption. 

 There are several pounds of this honey- pre- 

 served pollen in every well-stocked colony. 

 Such a colony in spring can increase almost 

 to swarming strength without bringing into 

 the hive any thing besides water. Even to 

 the old and experienced bee-keeper the speed 

 with which these combs of honey and pollen 

 become bees is astonishing. 



Far otherwise is it with the colony whose 

 combs have been kept empty by the extract- 

 or, and which is fed in fall for winter, and 

 again in spring for breeding. Such a colony 

 stores as much as possible of its winter feed in 

 cells free of pollen, for it is fed at a time 

 when the brood-nest is no longer strictly nor- 

 mal as regards its fringe of pollen. Very lit- 

 tle pollen is preserved, and such as happens 

 to lie in open cells becomes sour or moldy. 

 This pollen is unfit for breeding, is not rel- 

 ished by the bees, and so in such a colony 

 the breeding does not go on prosperously. 



Extracting the brood-nest in early May, 

 to be sure, may not bring about such a result 

 as is pictured in the preceding paragraph; 

 but, even if not attended with loss, it surely 

 is not worth while in this locality. My ex- 

 perience with my large let-alone hives proves 

 this: As may be known to some of my read- 

 ers, I practice a sort of happy-go-lucky mode 

 of keeping some of my colonies. I have 

 some 75 colonies in large hives — those hav- 

 ing a capacity of over three cubic feet, hold- 

 ing a score of frames having dimensions ex- 

 ceeding those of the Langstroth frame. The 

 brood -nest of about ten-Langstroth-frame 

 capacity is in front, and is separated from 

 the store- frames by zinc. The brood-nest is 

 seldom disturbed except from necessity, 

 sometimes for a year or more. When fall 

 comes these brood-nests are heavy with hon- 

 ey and pollen, and are populated by a huge 

 host, often as many as 40,000 bees. To open 

 one of these brood- nests late in April would 

 astonish you bee-keepers who talk about 

 your colonies covering three, five, or seven 

 frames at that season. Many of these colo- 

 nies in April, if queen-right, will rival strong 

 colonies in May. These colonies are never 

 stimulated in any way. Nor are they molly- 

 coddled in any way. Even their entrances 

 are left unchanged in size the year round, 

 the width of the hive and one inch deep, 

 mouse- guarded by a cheval-de-frise of nails. 



Some of these large colonies have on one 

 or two occasions been fortunate enough to 

 enjoy a flow of honey in May, and the results 

 were most gratifying. 



I therefore feel constrained to cry out 



Mainst all spring feeding for stimulation, 

 iving only good will for all who offer such 

 advice, I must nevertheless denounce the ad- 

 vice as unsound. The advice is likely to 

 bring disappointment, even if it does not 

 bring any thing worse. There are times 

 when we must feed in spring, but let us not 



create such conditions voluntarily. A queen 

 which will respond properly to spring feed- 

 ing will attend to her duties under any nor- 

 mal condition. A queen which will not fill 

 her brood-nest under normal conditions, with 

 combs of sealed honey about her dominions, 

 can not be made to do it through any sort 

 of feeding. Feeding her colony will result 

 in clogging the brood-nest with honey or 

 syrup instead of with bees. 

 Norwich, Ct. 



FEEDING BACK IN THE SPRING. 



The Alexander Plan for Extracting and 

 Feeding Back in the Spring Not Indors- 

 ed ; Spring Feeding Discouraged ; Not too 

 Much Honey but a Poor Queen the Cause 

 of Little Brood. 



BY M. A. GILL. 



I have been reading with much interest 

 the article from E. W. Alexander upon the 

 question of brood-rearing in the spring, and 

 there are a few places in his plans upon 

 which 1 should like to turn a little sidelight, 

 so that beginners in nearly every place in 

 the United States except around Delanson, 

 N. Y., won't get it into their heads that they 

 can extract three or four thousand pounds 

 of honey (old honey) before fruit-bloom while 

 getting their bees strong for the harvest. 



There are several things except honey that 

 are absolutely necessary to obtain before 

 brood-rearing can be carried on successfully 

 in the spring of the year. The first essential 

 is a good queen; second, proper temperature, 

 both inside and outside of the hive; third, 

 natural pollen coming in if there is a scarci- 

 ty in the hive. 



The fact that a card of honey hung into 

 one of Mr. Alexander's colonies in the month 

 of May acts like a dummy and prevents the 

 queen from spreading her brood across the 

 hive proves beyond cavil or doubt that De- 

 lanson is a most wonderful spring location. 



Either in Wisconsin or Colorado at this 

 time of year it is neither necessary nor profit- 

 able to use the extractor to remove old hon- 

 ey; for just at that time of year (if the three 

 essentials already mentioned exist) the bees 

 start up an automatic reversible extractor so 

 that I am more liable to be short three thou- 

 sand pounds than to have a surplus. 



In my twelve apiaries I have three that I 

 judge are something like Mr. Alexander's, 

 and some seasons they would get a little too 

 much honey for their best good in brood- 

 rearing, which I take away and haul to oth- 

 er yards that are destitute and exchange for 

 empty combs; and I do not believe that the 

 great mass of bee-keepers need have any 

 fears about taking Mr. Doolittle's advice in 

 giving combs of sealed honey in the month 

 of May; for if conditions are right they will 

 turn it into brood, and no other kind of feed- 

 ing or fussing will avail any thing until con- 

 ditions are right. 



The question of profitable stimulative feed- 

 ing in early spring is one that requires as 



