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GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Ju\E 15 



BEE-KEEPING IN THE 

 SOUTHWEST 



By Louis Scholl 



There was no spring crop of honey this year. 

 The bees are in good condition, however, and 

 Central and North Texas expect a good summer 

 crop. 



« 



The Texas Bee-keepers' Association has over a 

 hundred members. Its next annual meeting will 

 be in July, the dates of which will soon be made 

 known. The convention is to be held at College 

 Station, with the Texas Farmers' Congress. 

 Many very important matters will come up at 

 this time, so plan to be there, if a Texas bee- 

 keeper. Low rates. 



# 



A copy of "Southern Bee Culture," by J. J. 

 Wilder, Cordele, Ga. , has come to our desk. It 

 contains 150 pages of "Bee-keeping of the South," 

 treating the phases of the subjects in a practical 

 way, with illustrations. Statistics are given 

 showing the status of bee-keeping in each of the 

 Southern States, together with a write-up of the 

 industry of each of these. Texas heads the list, 

 of course! 



# 



Southwest Texas, where the bulk of the honey 

 of our State is produced, has reported a very light 

 crop so far. Prospects were never better; but 

 cool nights and rains that prevailed during the 

 honey-flows "cut it off short." The early spring 

 flows are the main dependence there, and the bee- 

 keepers do not "figure" very much on later flows. 

 This is enough to predict a short crop for Texas 

 this year, unless something unusual should hap- 

 pen. 



Some people are not so innocent as they pre- 

 tend. Just so in the case of Dr. Miller, p. 412, re- 

 garding who the authorities are that do not believe 

 in painting hives. I do not side with your position 

 if it is as outlined by the editor. In your 40 years 

 of bee-keeping you have changed hives several 

 times already. But what did you do with the 

 old unpainted hives.'' Threw them away! That 

 is a good argument in favor of painting, for "we- 

 uns" who haven't so much money to throw away. 

 I have changed hives once already in my sixteen 

 years of bee-keeping; and the old hives, which 

 are as good as new, practically, kept so by being 

 painted three times during that period. I am 

 selling oflt now instead of throwing away. The 

 cost of the painting was gotten out of them in 

 their use, so what I get for them is all profit. 

 See? 



♦ 



DUMMIES IN THE BROOD-NEST. 



Dr. Miller thinks that dummies should be 

 placed in the center of the brood-nest in contrac- 

 tion, since the bees do not work above the dum- 

 mies so freely when placed at the sides, p. 485. It 

 would not work here during the breeding season; 

 and that extends over the greater part of the year, 

 as we have continuous, long, slow flows — more 

 or less honey coming in, and breeding going on 

 to keep up the strength of the colonies. Now, 



those dummies, unless of the right kind CAspin- 

 wall's, for example), would have a tendency to 

 keep the queen confined to the few combs where 

 she happened to be. Even a defective comb in 

 the middle of the brood-nest often keeps the queen 

 from getting over to the other side except during 

 the heavy breeding season, perhaps, when she goes 

 beyond; but her laying is retarded every time she 

 comes to this comb. Wouldn't dummies cause 

 the same results if placed in the brood-nest.? 



HIGHER PRICES FOR HONEY. 



With a light crop in Texas, the same in Cali- 

 fornia and in some of the other States, as indicat- 

 ed by the reports thus far, I can see no reason 

 why honey should not range higher in price this 

 season than last. 'Tis true that last year's prices 

 were above the average of several years; but then 

 Southwest Texas had at this time already pro- 

 duced and shipped several hundred cars of honey. 

 While it is generally supposed, through reports 

 from a few of the less favored sections of this State 

 last year, that Texas had a short crop, it is a fact 

 that much more honey was produced. In spite of 

 this prices were good, owing much to the increas- 

 ed demand. This increased demand is quite a 

 natural one. People here are beginning to know 

 more about bees and honey, and the use of it. 

 Many families use more honey now than former- 

 ly, also, and this number is increasing. Of 

 course, the pure-food laws have had an effect. 



PREVENTION OF SWARMING. 



One of the main secrets (.'') in the prevention of 

 swarming is that of providing plenty of cluster- 

 ing room early in the season so the bees may not 

 become crowded. The next is that of preventing 

 a solid mass of sealed brood from developing in 

 the brood-nest by spreading brood and inserting 

 empty combs at the right time, thus providing 

 laying room for the queen. Neglecting this is 

 the most common cause of swarming fever. This 

 congestion of sealed brood is difficult to prevent 

 in deep hives unless combs are handled — empty 

 ones exchanged for full ones, etc. ; but in the 

 production of extracted honey it is not so difficult, 

 for the reason that extra super room can be given 

 early in the season. However, the brood-nest 

 must be watched in order that the crowded con- 

 dition may be prevented, as such colonies often 

 swarm even if there is plenty of room around the 

 congested combs of sealed brood. A colony in 

 this condition would swarm if it were domiciled 

 in a large drygoods-box with plenty of empty 

 space around it. The point is to break up this 

 solid mass of brood. 



W. H. Laws, of Beeville, Texas, places a body 

 of empty combs on each colony early in the sea- 

 son for clustering room. Later, when the brood- 

 nest assumes the condition above, the empty 

 combs are used to replace half the combs in the 

 brood-nest below, alternating the empty ones 

 with those containing brood. The upper story is 

 then arranged the same way, with the combs of 

 brood taken from below, and the empty ones left 

 in the super. This done at the right time knocks 

 swarming in the head. If any of the colonies 

 get strong enough to swarm after this manipula- 

 tion, the upper story is removed to a new stand 

 for increase, and additional room provided. It 



