GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



there. It seems to me tiiis instance proves 

 that bees will fly further to collect honey 

 better suited to their taste than to go a short- 

 er distance where the honey is just as plen- 

 tiful but not so much to their liking. 

 Goliad, Texas. 



At the age of twelve years T began keep- 

 ing bees, using the old liome-niade box bives 

 with two cros-*-bars through the sides each 

 way to support the combs. 1 always bored 

 two ^-incn holes in the top of the hive, over 

 which I set one ibut usually two) small box- 

 es, thus furnishing the family with chunk 

 honey. We called it fancy comb honey, and 

 had no trouble m selling it, provided there 

 was a surplus over what we intended to use 

 at home. At this time I never used founda- 

 tion, even to the extent of starters. 



THE SOURCES OF HONEY. 



I have been at Hafferman, in the Feces 



Valley of New Mexico, for fifteen years, and 

 like it very much. We have to depend on 

 irrigation entirely. Alfalfa and apples are 

 our principal crops, with some varieties of 

 fruit and corn cereals on the side. This is a 

 good bee country, although the ground is 

 pretty well covered. The fruit-trc es blossom 

 from March 15 to April 2U, and after this 

 come the wild flowers. Some bee-keepers 

 consider this flow sufficient for building up 

 their colonies and making them strong. A 

 few of the orcliardists, in spraying with ar- 

 senites for the coddlingmoth, do not wait 

 until the blossoms fall; and as they use no 

 carbolic ac d to prevent bees visiting the 

 buds, many are poisoned. On this account 

 we have adopted the plan of feedmg between 

 March 1 and 1.5, using flour, cornmeal, wheat 

 shorts, and sweetened water, this latter 

 made, perhaps, of four parls water and one 

 part of sugar or honey. This mixture helps 

 to keep the bees at home, and at the same 

 time fills the hive with brood and young 

 bees. Strong hearty colonies are thus ready 

 for the harvest of alfalfa, which begins May 

 20, and lasts until August 20, or 90 days 



This flow is followed by wild flowers until 

 frost. 



Sweet clover is gradually gaining ground; 

 and, although it is termed by many a noxious 

 weed, it is linding favor, and in a few years 

 there will be enough of it to increase great- 

 ly our honey-flow. We have never grown 

 buckwheat, although we intend to give it a 

 trial next year. 



METHOD OF TAKING 1 HE HONEV. 



The bee-keepers here aim to have large 

 yards, at least a mile apart, each yard having 

 from 50 to 100 colonies. Some have small 

 light honey-houses on wheels, which they 

 move from yard to yard; but I build a per- 

 manent house at each yard and have it fully 

 equipped with an uncapping-can, settling- 

 tank, gasoline-stove, tables. Porter bee-es- 

 cjpes, and a Daisy wheelbarrow. We run 

 almost entirely for extracted honey, but pro- 

 duce sufficient chunk and comb honey for 

 the local market. Up to the present time I 

 have been getting 9 cts. for extracted honey 

 and 12',^ for comb. The chunk honey sells 

 between 9 and 12 cts. 



We see that all extracting-frames are emp- 



ty, and on May l.i have Ihem ready for the 

 alfalfa honey. If we have sufficient supers 

 we let them all remain on the hives until 

 August liO, or the close of the flow, when we 

 take them off and extract before the fall 

 wild flowers bloom. If we are short of su- 

 pers we have to extract two or three times 

 before this. 



PORTER ESCAPES AND HOT KNIVES. 



We put on the Porter bee-escapes in the 

 afternoon, and the next morning commence 

 to uncap, using thick bevel-edged Knives, 

 made very sharp and exceedingly hot, as we 

 use several knives at a time and leave those 

 not in use in hot water over a one burner 

 gasoline-stove. We use the knife on one 

 side of the comb only, and then put it back 

 in the hot water, and select one of the other 

 hot ones for the other side. We uncap both 

 up and down, and see no advantage in either 

 one over the other, but by cutting both ways 

 the hands are rested. As our honey is very 

 thick and heavy, a cold knife would tear and 

 break out new combs. Our extracted honey 

 usually granulates in from thirty to sixty 

 days, and then we liquefy it, for we sell none 



