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GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



Nov. 1 



they do not have crop failures as with us. 

 Alfalfa and sweet clover are the principal 

 honey-plants. There are wild flowers which 

 undoubtedly contribute a share of the crop, 

 and I think cause the honey to be darker 

 than it would be if alfalfa and sweet clover 

 were the entire source. 



The bee-keepers do not seem to think that 

 the thousands of acres of apple bloom is of 

 much benefit to the bees. The weather is 

 too cool for good work, and then there is the 

 danger of losing many bees from poison, as 

 some orchardists will spray while the bloom 

 is on. The C' lonies have to build up on the 

 first part of the alfalfa bloom, which involves 

 a loss of at least a whole month. 



Price conditions seem to be identical with 

 ours, except that jobbers in Denver offer 

 better prices than our buyers offer us in the 

 East. 



There seems to be little or no trouble from 

 swarming, but a great deal of trouble in 

 keeping the stocks supplied with queens, 

 and strong enough to do good work. 



The field in and near Roswell is well stock- 

 ed, and there are apiaries all along the valley; 

 but as new lands are constantly coming into 

 alfalfa there is and will be room for expan- 

 sion. 



The honey produced is "the finest in the 

 world," as usual, so you are informed by lo- 

 cal authority. It is alfalfa of good body, but 

 for my part I can not see how it compares, 

 either in color or flavor, with our white-clo- 

 ver product. 



I can see no advantage in this country over 

 Wisconsin for bee-keeping, except in one 

 point The Pecos Valley bee-keepers are 

 sure of a crop every year, and we are not. 

 The careless bee-keeper would do very little 

 here, because his colonies would dwindle 

 and become queenless from lack of attention. 



Just to mention other things, there are 

 great possibilities — alfalfa, fruit (especially 

 apples), truck-gardening, and poultry all 

 yield splendid returns. The land is level 

 and very productive as soon as the irrigation 

 water is appl'ed. There is no doubt that a 

 family can make a good sure living on five 

 or ten acres of land, and in the future small 

 holdings will be the rule. I feel that I should 

 like to live here and keep bees; but I would 

 surely have an orchard coming on, a nice 

 flock of poultry, and some garden. For 60 

 miles in length and 10 miles in width this 

 valley will be like a beautiful garden. Great 

 fields of alfalfa and immense apple orchards 

 on every hand produce a scene of wonderful 

 beauty. The fruit produced is large, well 

 colored, and of excellent quality. In the fu- 

 ture it will command fancy prices and an 

 eager market. 



Lands, improved or unimproved, can be 

 obtained now at prices very low as compared 

 with other fruit and alfalfa districts in the 

 West. It is, in fact, a veritable paradise for 

 the fruit-grower and farmer; but for bee- 

 keeping alone, from what I am able to gath- 

 er, give me old Wisconsin. 



Small game is plentiful here; and if I had 

 more space I should like to tell you about 



the jack rabbits, cotton-tail rabbits, wild 

 ducks, geese, and swans, as well as many 

 kinds of smaller birds that winter here. The 

 little cotton-tail is as fine eating as spring 

 chicken, and a great many are used. The 

 jack rabbit does not seem to be in great 

 favor, though some eat them before they are 

 quite full grown. It is some fun to hunt 

 them, but they are not easy to bring down. 



Greenfield, New Mexico. 



[Mr. Lathrop is an old correspondent, and 

 we do not believe he has any ax to grind in 

 telling of the good features of the Pecos Val- 

 ley; but we may say that we have known 

 some who have gone to some of these new 

 sections of New Mexico who have since come 

 back east sadder and wiser men. They found 

 the country delightful, the climate superb, 

 and the soil productive. Luscious fruit grew 

 there by the ton, but there was no market 

 when they got it. When they went into the 

 locality in the first place the crops would be 

 sold at good prices without difficulty. But 

 the onrush of the settlers so increased the 

 output that the only market available soon 

 became congested. The same thing may 

 take place in the Pecos Valley. It should be 

 remembered that New Mexico is distant from 

 the large centers of population because the 

 only means of transportation is railroads, and 

 they appear to be willing to charge "all the 

 traffic will bear." That means that the cost 

 of delivering the produce is often more than 

 it is worth. — Ed.] 



BAGS FOR CANDIED HONEY. 



How to Retain the Aroma and Protect 



the Honey from the Moisture of the 



Atmosphere. 



BY JOSEPH GRAY. 



When we consider the care and industry 

 of the honey-bee in securing the perfect 

 sealing of its treasure, it teaches the apiarist 

 that he can not expose this selfsame treasure 

 to all the modes of the atmosphere without 

 loss. 



Honey is liable to attract moisture from 

 the atmosphere, and so set up fermentation, 

 or yield up its delicate aroma to the at- 

 mosphere; hence the need of some protec- 

 tion when producing a nice roll of honey for 

 the breakfast-table. Our rolls, when granu- 

 lated solid, have an attraction all their own, 

 and never fail to please the eye as well as 

 the palate of visitors to our home. Imagine 

 a half-pound roll 4>^ inches long by P4 wide, 

 peeled of its covering, with a bloom equal to 

 a peach, placed in a nice glass dish. This 

 bloom is obtained by the peeling of the bag, 

 and I know no other process by which it can 

 be obtained — the honey must be granulated 

 solid. Peel from you, so that the peel will 

 be continuous. 



The humidity of our atmosphere made it 

 impossible for me to put up honey in Aikin 

 bags. I soon found I must exclude the air; 

 and after trying various ways I at last suc- 

 ceeded by using the ordinary grocers' bis- 



