30 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



with wedges, as the bees will be piled on the foun- 

 dation in great numbers all at once, and the heat 

 they create is likely to bend the wax away from the 

 top-bar and make a mess of things. I have gone a 

 step further this season in wiring, and used only 

 three wires, the third one being next to the top-bar, 

 and the other two dividing up the remaining space. 

 I feel sure that IT used in the right way, the bees 

 will do the sticking without pulling the sheets out of 

 true. I have seen them even cut small holes in the 

 foundation further down to get wax without secret- 

 ing it. Evidently their first thought when entering 

 a newly added super over the brood-nest or extract- 

 ing-body is whether the foundation is secure. The 

 top-bars used should be plain % or % inch. Having 

 on hand a large stock of the bars with grooves for 

 wedges we made use of them, but did not insert 

 the wedge — an operation which takes more or less 

 time. 



Kirk's Perry, Ont. H. Harley Selwyn. 



One Month's Record of a Hive on Scales 



The following is a record of two frames of bees 

 shaken on May 3, 1912, with a golden Italian queen 

 introduced the same day. No brood was given. 



WEIGHT OF HIVE AND CONTENTS. 



Sept. 13 54 lbs. 54^4 lbs. 60 lbs. 6 " 



It is to be noticed from the above, that, with the 

 exception of the 5th, 11th, and 13 th, all of the daily 

 increase in weight came in from noon to 6 p. m., 

 and that which came before noon on the 5th, 11th, 

 and 13th, was very small. Is this to be taken as 

 showing the rule or not ? 



Then, again, the sum of the daily increase is 

 54% lbs., while the net is but 38 lbs., or showing a 

 loss of 16% lbs., which I attribute to evaporation 

 of the nectar and the slight difference in the weight 

 of the bees at 7 A. M. and 6 P. M. The daily loss 

 from 6 P. M. to 7 a. m. was from V2 to 2^^ lbs. On 

 the 6th, there was a net loss of 1 lb. from 7 A. M. 

 to 6 P. M. There was a cold windstorm all day 

 which kept all bees at home, and forced evaporation 

 with nothing coming in. 



Sandwich, Mass. E. B. Howland. 



[It is possible that the bees were getting this nec- 

 tar from some source that yielded mainly in the 

 afternoon ; but we think it is more likely that the 

 great number of field bees absent from the hive at 

 noon would counteract the increase in the weight of 

 the honey. — Ed.] 



Proper Size of Entrances; Mice in Hives 



This season my bees made a net surplus of more 

 than $8.00 per colony, average, spring count, and 

 increased 50 per cent. They are now packed for 

 winter. Most of my hives are home-made, some 

 single-walled, some two-story, and some one-and-a- 

 half story. The top stories telescope one inch down 

 over the brood-chamber, and rest on a % strip. 



I laid two rows of corncobs across the frames to 

 give a passage from one side to the other, then put 

 on trays of planer shavings that rest on the top 

 of the brood-chamber. 



Last winter the mice got into several hives at 



the entrance, and nearly ruined the colonies. The 

 hives being home-made, the entrances were from % 

 to about V2 inch. So this time I fitted in pieces 

 that closed the entrances to % by about 12 inches. 

 Do you think that will give them enough ventila- 

 tion ? Our weather prophets predict a cold winter 

 because the corn shucks are thick, etc. ; but I do 

 not take much stock in it, and hope they are wrong. 

 We have a fine prospect for white clover at pres- 

 ent. My honey is about all sold locally, at 15 cts. 

 for comb and 10 for extracted, net. 



Walton, Ky., Dec. 5. J. G. Crisler. 



[While it is difficult to give a definite answer to 

 the above that will fit all cases, we should say that 

 an entrance % x 12 inches should give more than 

 enough ventilation for the average colony. — Ed. ] 



How Bees Eat Dry Cube Sugar in Winter 



Since my letter in regard to wintering bees on 

 dry cube sugar appeared in Gleanings, Oct. 15, 

 p. 663, I have received several rather sharp calls 

 along one line — viz., that sugar, before it can be 

 used for wintering bees must be made into a candy 

 or syrup — that it is impossible for bees to live on 

 dry sugar. 



Cube sugar will absorb a large amount of mois- 

 ture from the air in a hive during frosty weather, 

 and at the same time will retain its shape and will 

 not become sticky or runny. After it has absorb d 

 a certain amount it refuses to absorb any more. 

 When in this condition the bees readily work on it. 



There is a slight loss in this way of feeding, due 

 to the fact that the bees eat the cubes down to a 

 size where they will fall through between the frames. 

 During the spring housecleaning fever some colonies 

 will carry these small pieces of sugSr out of the 

 hive, while others will work it over till there isn't 

 a crumb to be found. 



It is possible for bees to winter on dry cube sugar 

 placed above the brood-nest. 



Newark, N. J. Charles S. Sharp. 



An Explanation 



It seems, p. 755, Dec. 1, that Dr. C. C. Miller 

 doesn't understand me. I do not intend to convey 

 to the minds of the readers of Gleanings the idea 

 that they should develop a taste for honey they do 

 not like. What I meant is, that honey should be 

 called by the name of the blossoms from which it 

 is gathered, leaving to the judgment of the consum- 

 er which honey he prefers, hereby giving all honey, 

 regardless of color, an equal selling chance. We do 

 not buy potatoes as blue, red, or white, neither 

 sugar nor any other staple, except tea. We name 

 them by their kind. We all have our preferences, 

 regardless of' differences in opinion. I hope this 

 will set me right. 



Cincinnati, O. Henry Reddert. 



Dandelions and Buttercups in December 



I have 35 colonies of bees, and at 9 o'clock in the 

 forenoon of Dec. 6, this year, I was in my yard, 

 and the bees were flying all about me, like summer 

 — something quite unusual for December in this 

 latitude. On our hillsides we can now find dande- 

 lion and buttercups in blossom. Clover is looking 

 fine, and we hope to be numbered next year among 

 the first in the way of white clover in the comb. 



Cherry Valley, N. Y., Dec. 9. Wayne Snyder. 



28 Colonies Increased to 76 



I successfully wintered 28 colonies, and have 

 increased them to 76 good colonies, and harvested 

 3300 lbs. of honey, which is not so bad for a be- 

 ginner. 



Lowville, Ont. George Bradt, 



