1512 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Dec. 15 



abated largely, and in some cases disappeared. 

 We concluded that the trouble lay largely in the 

 queens, and so went to killing the old queens 

 and introducing yellow ones. This has in every 

 case helped us out after the larv;e from the former 

 queen were out of the cells. 



Another point right here: The black bees with 

 the least honey in the spring were the first to suc- 

 cumb to this dwindling of brood. Since then we 

 have introduced the pollen-basket in the spring 

 and fed eight stocks with syrup. The water- 

 trough was also installed with a little salt added, 

 and kept running the whole summer. Since then 

 we have not been bothered as before. In fact, 

 we do not expect this any more with yellow 

 queens, early feeding, and watering in the spring; 

 and we have long concluded that the trouble was 

 due to a lack of vitality in the queen, either from 

 weakened constitution or a lack of proper feeding 

 in the spring. D. J. Blocher. 



Pearl City, 111. 



DROUTH DOES NOT HURT CLOVER; SPRING FROSTS 

 DO MUCH DAMAGE. 



Don't worry about the drouth, p. 1365. That 

 hard-headed farmer is right. Here on the Mani- 

 toulin we had drouth. The soil is about four 

 inches deep over limestone rock. It was wet in 

 July, and not again until near the end of Sep- 

 tember, when we had another nice rain, followed 

 by another about the end of October. Through 

 all this dry weather clover was always green. 

 Last year when the drouth was so severe that the 

 ground had the appearance of being burned over, 

 clover sprang up under a scorching sun before 

 rain came. It is the spring frost heaving it out 

 that we most dread. 



By the way, will next season be wet or dry? I 

 have often noticed a dry summer being followed 

 by a light fall of snow the next winter, and a dry 

 fall giving a dry spring. What have others seen.? 



Little Current, Ont. W. Moore. 



A DENTED QUEEN OF NO VALUE. 



Last June I bought a select tested queen. In 

 May I raised a queen from her queen-cells over 

 the same colony, which hatched out May 29, 

 19U8. To-day, July 5, there is no sign of brood, 

 and the few eggs that may be found do not hatch. 

 The queen has a dent at the end of her abdomen 

 on the upper side. Sometimes she lays two or 

 three eggs in one cell. The bees are queenless, 

 but she is there just the same. Two queen-cells, 

 which I overlooked, are still there, but there are 

 no eggs in them. Harr\ Lebner. 



Chicago, July 5. 



[Very often, and generally, a dent in the side 

 of a queen will do no harm; but in this case it is 

 clearly evident it ruined her. All such queens 

 should be replaced without delay. — Ed.] 



DOES PAPER OVER HIVES PREVENT MOISTURE 

 FROM ESCAPING.? 



I winter my colonies in hives placed close to- 

 gether in a box 6 feet 4 inches long, made of half- 

 inch shoe-box lumber. There is room for five 

 inches of packing in front and rear, and the same 

 on each end. Now, I propose to put building- 

 paper around the row of hives, folding it over the 



top, and then laying newspapers over that. I 

 would then add the packing material as before 

 mentioned. Will the paper on top hold the 

 moisture in the hive enough to make its use ob- 

 jectionable.? There would be six inches of pack- 

 ing over the paper. J. H. Sprot. 

 Gosport, N. Y. 



[There should be a cover which the bees have 

 sealed down before the paper is put around the 

 hive. — Ed.] 



FREEZING WEATHER IN SPRING HURT-! CLOVER 

 MORE THAN DROUTH IN FALL. 



Your farmer friend was right as to the clovers. 

 Here, as in the section you mentioned, the clo- 

 vers are about the only green plant-life to be 

 seen. If there is plenty of snow this winter, and 

 not too much freezing and thawing in the spring, 

 there will be no need of worrying about the clo- 

 vers. The early part of spring, when there is 

 much freezing and thawing, is the trying time 

 on clover. Three weeks of this kind of weather 

 will do more harm to the clover than three 

 months of severe drouth. Thos. H. White. 



Connersville, Ind., Nov. 30. 



BEES IN CHINA. 



I do not know whether many bees are kept in 

 China or not; but Mr. Wilder (Rev. George D. 

 Wilder, missionary) has quite a number of hives; 

 and the last time I was out there he got a stray 

 swarm — a larger one than I had ever seen or heard 

 of. The bees of China are, it seems to me, a lit- 

 tle longer-bodied, and a little yellower than the 

 Italians, and they are even more quiet and peace- 

 ful than they. Mr. Wilder goes among his and 

 handle? them bareheaded, and when I say bare- 

 headed I mean bare, for, like old Uncle Ned, 



He has no hair on the top of his head — 

 The place where the hair ought to grow. 



And he never gets stung. They have honey 

 as they want it, and very nice honey too. 

 Peking, China. D. I. Miner. 



[The above extract from a letter was sent us by 

 one of our subscribers. — Ed ] 



CONDITIONS IN A DAMP TROPICAL CLIMATE. 



In this climate, for the past three months the 

 thermometer has stood between 85 and 95 in the 

 shade, with heavy rain nearly every day; every 

 thing is damp. The paper on which I write I 

 have to dry over a fire to prevent the ink run- 

 ning; dry clothes are simply impossible, and 

 even one's boots get a blue mold on them in a 

 single night. This will give some slight idea of 

 the climate in this locality. The bees carry in 

 quantities of pollen from maize, pumpkins, etc., 

 but very little honey. The heavy rains wash 

 the nectar out of the flowers. If any of your 

 tropical correspondents living in the low lands 

 would kindly mention their treatment of be^s I 

 should be very thankful. Frank W, Breach. 



Chinipas, Chihuahua, Mexico 



[This is in strong contrast with the weather 

 we have been having in the United States, espe- 

 cially in this section. But nature has already 

 begun to equalize, for we are getting heavy 

 snows. — Ed.] 



