1909 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



23 



Best sinyle-i'omb nucleus of Caucasian bees, trold 

 medal. Second best, silver medal. 



Sweepstakes on bees, display of sinirle-comb nuclei 

 of the greatest variety of the difTerent races of bees, 

 $10.00. 



Best collection of queen-bees of ditTerent varieties, 

 $5.00. 



Best (gallon honey vineuar in fiflass, silver medal. 



Second best, diploma. 



Best specimens of honey-producint; plants, pressed 

 and mounted, $5.00. 



Second best, $3.00. 



Best comb-honey hive, $5.00. Second best, $3.00. 



Best extractinir hive, $.5.00. Second best. $3.00. 



The larifest, best, most interesting', attractive, and 

 instructive exhibition in this department, all thintrs 

 considered. $10.00. Second best, $5.00. 



F. L. Martin. Supt. 

 Other premium lists in next issue. 



Special Noi icks 



By Our Business Manager 



BEESWAX LOWER. 



After this date, till further notice, we will pay for 

 average wax delivered here 28 cents cash or 30 cents 

 in trade. For extra choice yellow, from 1 to 2 cents 

 per pound more will be paid. 



SPECIAL PRICES TO CLOSE OUT HONEV-EXTRACTORS. 



We have on hand at various points a number of ex- 

 tractors without ball bearings or slip gear. In other 

 respects they are up to present standard. We offer 

 them, to close out, at special prices. See last issue. 



QUEENS. 



By the time this issue reaches our readers, we expect 

 to be well caught up on queen orders and able to mail 

 queens very promptly. Our yards here are now pro- 

 ducing some very fine queens; and any one wanting to 

 requeen a few colonies or an apiary can not do better 

 than get some stock now. We can make deliveries on 

 single orders by return mail. On orders for more than 

 ten at a time, we must have a ff-w days' notice. 



WESTERN TRIP. 



As this issue goes to press, the writer, J. T. Calvert, 

 with his son Howard, are starting on a trip west to be 

 gone till about August first. After stopping in Denver, 

 Colorado Springs, and Grand Junction, Colo., Ogden, 

 Utah, they expect to arrive in Los Angeles about July 

 10, where mail can reach us, care H. J. Mercer, til! the 

 14th; then Portland Seed Co., Portland, Ore., till July 

 18. Carsteds & Earles, Seattle, Wash., till the 22d. Our 

 trip is necessarily hurried because of the importance 

 of getting back by Aug. 1st. Will not have time to 

 make calls on bee-keepers on the route, much as we 

 should like to do so. 



Special Notices by A. I, Root. 



BUCKWHEAT SEED— TIME TO SOW IT. 



Now is the time "in Julyi to get in your buckwheat 

 seed; and the sooner it is done the better. See prices, 

 etc., on advertising page 27. June 1; see also our buck- 

 wheat pamphlet, free on application. 



THE MAfilC EGG-TESTER— SEE PAGE 351, .JUNE 1. 

 As the result of our test we can not see that the Magic 

 egg-tester is of any value whatever in telling which 

 eggs are fertile and which are not. Chickens hatched 

 from eggs that tested No. seem to be just as good in 

 every way as those that tested XX; and our decision is 

 that the specific gravity has little or nothing to do with 

 the value of the egg for incubation. 



THE BEST CRACKERS IN THE WORLD. 



Now. friends, when I use the expression, "the best 

 in the world," you, of course, must take it for granted 

 that it is not only my opinion in regard to these things, 

 but also so far as my knowledue extends. I do not know- 

 as yet all about what the world contains. A few days 

 ago a lady said to me when we were talking about the 

 new food-products: 



" Why. Mr. Root, I supposed you lived on shredded- 

 wheat biscuit for breakfast, dinner, and supper, and 

 nothing else." 



Well, I did think for a spell that shredded-wheat bis- 

 cuit was just about " it." But while down in Florida I 



got hold of some plain unsweetened graham crackers 

 made by the Kellogg Food Co., Battle Creek, Mich., and 

 I took such a fancy to them that I ordered a whole case 

 from the Battle Creek people. The first thing I want 

 for breakfast is one pf these crackers. It is made in 

 just the right shape to chew a long while. After I have 

 eaten one or two, and have thoroughly enjoyed their 

 mastication, I like a little butter or a small piece of 

 cheese; and of late I have been finishing up my meal 

 of crackers with some beautiful clover honey in the 

 comb. With these crackers, and nothing else, unless 

 it is half a cup of milk, with the butter and cheese and 

 honey I have a meal fit for a king, and it suits my di- 

 gestion to a dot. Fletcher says, you know, we should 

 eat just what nature seems to indicate or call for, and 

 nothing else, and the above just now "hits the spot" 

 better than any thing else I know of. These crackers 

 will keep, or at least I have reason to think they will, 

 for any length of time. They are always just alike, 

 and there is no trouble in preparing them for the table; 

 in fact, Mrs. Root has, by my request, put a large tureen 

 full of them on the table. This tureen has a close-fit- 

 ting cover so they are always ready without any atten- 

 tion whatever. 



BOOK REVIEWS. 



THE HIGGLE BEE-BOOK. 



The publishers of the Farm Journal have just issued 

 another of the popular Biggie farm-books. This time 

 the subject is bee-keeping, and, of course, that is in- 

 teresting news to the bee-keeping public. The others 

 which have preceded this one, on such subjects as the 

 horse, cow, poultry, etc., have been quite popular, and 

 doubtless the one now before me will also meet with 

 considerable favor. 



It ought to be stated at the start that these books are 

 quite small, hence the information must be in a very 

 condensed form, and this is particularly true of this 

 book on bees. It is very small in measurement, and of 

 136 pages only; yet the information compressed into 

 this small compass is very considerable, and may be 

 said to be the creme de la creme of our bee literature. 

 It is copiously illustrated with excellent pictures. This 

 has rendered the task of condensation easier rather 

 than otherwise. It is intended mainly for the farmer 

 class of small bee-keepers, and makes no pretensions 

 to being a book for experts or professionals. 



Doubtless it will find its way into homes where a 

 larger book would fail to find an entrance, as many 

 think, or seem to think, they can not afford the time to 

 digest a larger treatise; besides, the price is inconsid- 

 erable. 



The information is, of course, thoroughly orthodo.v. 

 and in line with the best practice of the present time. 

 The author, who writes under the nom de plume of Ja- 

 cob Biggie, gives one very sage piece of advice; name- 

 ly. " Use no starters." This is sound advice, and can 

 not be too often reiterated, more especially to farmer 

 bee-keepers, who are very prone to use "starters" in 

 brood-frames. 



Another great mistake many make is in using too 

 small a hive; but this is not specifically mentioned in 

 the work under review. Farmers with limited time 

 to give to their bees really require a larger hive 

 than any one else, though they generally try to get 

 along with the smallest possible equipment. Four and 

 not less than three supers should be ordered for each 

 brood-chamber. Many use the eight-frame hive when 

 the ten-frame is not too large by any means. 



There is one criticism which ought to be made, 

 though it applies to several bee-books besides this one. 

 It refers to transferring, which is recommended to take 

 place in the spring. This, it seems to me, is poor ad- 

 vice in every respect. Far better wait till after the box 

 hive has thrown a prime swami. In 17 to 21 days after 

 the issuance of the swarm, the colony may be drum- 

 med and smoked out into a new hive with the greatest 

 ease. There are no eomhs to be transferred. This gives 

 far bejter results than spring transferring, and is much 

 easier in every way. In the combs that are left there 

 is neither brood nor honey. 



There is a very good list of bee-plants covering the 

 whole of the United States, and in addition a bee-keep- 

 er's calendar— a very necessary item in a farmer's bee- 

 book. 



There is a chapter devoted to honey as a food, and 

 another on honey as a medicine, so that the publishers 

 may fairly claim to furnish a complete treatise on bees 

 in small compass. As a handy book it will doubtless 

 secure a place for itself in the book literature of Amer- 

 ican agriculture. Publishers, the Wilmer Atkinson 

 Co.. Philadelphia. Pa. We can supply it at publishers' 

 price when desired. Price 50 cts., postpaid. 



