1908 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



1387 



Heads of Grain 



From Different Fields 



A SWARM THAT LEFT THE PARENT COLONY HOPE- 

 LESSLY QUEENLESS; THE ALFALEA- 

 BLOOM LOUSE. 



In Stray Straws, August 15, Dr. Miller ques- 

 tions whether a swarm will leave the parent hive 

 hopelessly queenless, and in a footnote you ask 

 for more evidence on the subject. I had the ex- 

 ception which proves the rule occur in my yard 

 about three years ago. The colony was a strong 

 one, and on finding them queenless, hopelessly 

 so, I gave them a ripe cell from my breeding- 

 queen. This cell hatched all right; and later, 

 when the swarm issued with her, and clustered in 

 an oak-tree, I went on with my work in the yard, 

 being sure they would return to the hive. Imag- 

 ine my surprise and chagrin to see them, when 

 they broke cluster, depart for the woods. 



Recently I noted in Gleanings a reference to 

 the damage to alfalfa, or, rather, to the honey- 

 yields from it, by what was termed the alfalfa- 

 bloom louse, and I am wondering if it can be the 

 same insect that seems to be playing the mischief 

 wuth nectar secretion in the palmetto and other 

 bloom here. This is a very small, brownish- 

 colored louse, which appears in the newly open- 

 ed bloom, and not only saps the nectar as fast as 

 it forms, but also blights or prematurely dries up 

 the blossoms. It is owing to this pest, I believe, 

 that we have had no really good flows from either 

 saw or cabbage palmetto for the past four or five 

 years. C. S. Harris. 



Holly Hill, Fla. 



NO DANGER OF BREAKAGE IF STRAW is USED UN- 

 DER CRATES IN WAGON. 



Tell Mr. Johnson, page 1139, Sept. 15, that 

 by placing three or four inches of straw under the 

 honey it can be safely hauled on a lumber-wag- 

 on. The straw should be three or four inches 

 thick when the full load is on it. I have had lots 

 of experience, and have never lost a section of 

 honey. I. C. Bachtel. 



Cedarville, Cal. 



[Straw is cheap, available, and an excellent 

 cushion in the bottom of crates holding shipping- 

 cases, in wagon and car bottoms. It is used very 

 largely in all these places; but its use should be 

 more general yet. The following plan is a good 

 one. — Ed.] 



HAULING COMB HONEY SUCCESSFULLY ON A 

 SPRINGLESS WAGON. 



On page 1139, Sept. 15, Mr. John H. Johnson 

 asks if comb honey can be hauled safely on a 

 lumber-wagon without springs. Yes, it can if it 

 is crated right. We have shipped thousands of 

 pounds of comb honey to different points, such 

 as Richmond, Va. ; Washington, D. C. ; Hunting- 

 ton, W. Va. ; Ashland, Ky. ; Coal Grove, Ohio, 

 and all our adjoining counties, and other places 

 too numerous to mention, and we have never yet 

 heard of a case getting mashed or broken. 



Here is the way we pack the honey for ship- 

 ment. It is first put in the regular 24-lb. ship- 



ping-cases, and packed one, two, three, or four 

 cases, according to the size of boxes used. If 

 one has no drygoods-boxes, as many as necessary 

 should be made, each box two or three inches 

 larger on the inside, and three or four inches 

 higher than the cases, to make room for packing 

 material. A box to hold four cases, two tiers 

 high, should be 20 inches wide, 29 long, and 14 

 high. Pack all around and under the bottom 

 cases with hay, straw, shredded cornhusks, or ex- 

 celsior — all are good. Have a slatted cover for 

 the box, and strips nailed on ends for handholes. 

 Mark the box-cover " Comb Honey — Handle 

 with Care." Name and address, and it will go 

 safely anywhere on almost any kind of road. I 

 would not advise putting more than four cases 

 (96 lbs.) in one box, and the boxes should never 

 be more than two cases high. 



We live 35 miles or more from any railroad, 

 and every thing has to be hauled in or out on 

 wagons, and none of them have springs. We 

 send honey on them to the depot to be sent by 

 express or freight to consumers at different places, 

 and we have always received encouraging reports. 

 Our roads — well, I don't think they could be 

 much worse anywhere, for this is a rough, rocky, 

 and mountainous country. 



Grundy, Va. W. J. D. Boothe. 



[The plan here spoken of excellent. The straw 

 forms a cushion on all sides. — Ed.] 



A WINDBREAK FOR SINGLE-WALLED HIVES. 



In the last 15 years I have found what I call a 

 windbreak absolutely necessary with single-wall- 

 ed hives, especially in the spring. 



The affair is simply a thick piece of wood. 

 The lower edge is beveled, and is provided with 

 slots about 5 inches apart, and cut diagonally 

 across the edge at an angle of 45 degrees. The 

 idea is to direct the air to either side of the en- 

 trance rather than straight toward it. 



Saltsburg, Pa. G. W. Martin. 



A PIT FOR WINTERING BEES. 



A year ago I wintered 14 colonies of bees in a 

 pit, and lost only one. The entrance to that one 

 got clogged with dead bees, and they smothered. 



