October, 1914. 



American l^ee Journal 



333 



Journal for December, 1888, said: "1 

 use 2 parts of sugar to 1 of water and 

 never had it granulated. If hard 

 water is used, acid iiiiist lie added f(i 

 ('(irrespond witli the liardiiess of the 

 i^ater. Any confectioner can tell you 

 all about it. Some do not need these 

 instructions, but I am satisfied that 

 a good many do." 



Here, perhaps, is the reason why 

 there is such difference in the reports 

 as to the crystallization of the sugar. 

 Ashby's suggestion is worthy of note. 

 We have ourselves practiced feeding 

 2 to 1 for over 40 years and only once 

 have seen any loss from crystalliza- 

 tion. Our Ontario correspondent, Mr. 

 Byer, in the September issue advises 

 the same proportion. Mr. Byer is an 

 experienced apiarist and practices 

 feeding regularly. But let us return 

 to an examination of authorities. 



C. N. White, of England, advised the 

 use of 12 pounds of sugar for each 

 gallon of water (1% to 1) for spring 

 feeding and of 24 pounds of sugar per 

 gallon of water (3 to 1) for fall feed- 

 ing. He said, following Langstroth's 

 advice: "The reason for this differ- 

 ence is that, in the spring, the bees 

 leave the hive for water with which 

 to thin the food they, in their capacity 

 of nurse bees, prepare for the grubs, 

 and when syrup is given with a good 

 proportion of water these journeys to 

 the pump are rendered unnecessary, 

 while in the autumn, unless syrup 

 about the consistency of honey is sup- 

 plied, the bees will have considerable 

 trouble in getting rid of the superflu- 

 ous moisture in order to seal it over." 



Of all our noted writers, the one 

 who most incessantly repeated ex- 

 actly the same instructions is Doo- 

 little. In 20 years, in his contribu- 

 tions to the American Bee Journal 

 and in reply to enquiries, he ex- 

 plained, more than 15 different times, 

 how he had the syrup crystallize in 

 the feeders and in the hives, and now 

 he entirely stopped it by using 5 

 pounds of honey for every 45 pounds 

 of syrup made of 15 pounds of water 

 and 30 pounds of sugar. 



The Roots advise equal quantities 

 of sugar and water. They say that 

 "it is better to feed the syrup thin 

 than thick, for then the bees will 

 ripen it, and when syrup is thickened 

 and ripened by the bees it will not 

 granulate, but make the finest and 

 best food," They acknowledge, how- 

 ever, that if feeding has been de- 

 ferred until quite late it may be ad- 



Beau riFui, S( ENERv AT .Mai,)Uoketa. Iowa, Wheke the Gallaghers Live 



visable to use 4 parts of sugar and 3 

 of water. 



Dr. Miller's way formerly was to 

 .prepare a syrup that approached the 

 consistency of honey, 5 o 2, with a 

 teaspoonful of tartaric acid for every 

 20 pounds of sugar. In his "Fifty 

 Years Among The Bees" he says he 

 would prefer the same syrup if he 

 were to feed late in September or 

 October. But for August or early 

 September feeding he prefers the 

 method given by him in our last num- 

 ber. 



It is really best to feed early, but 

 in countries where a fall flow is ex- 

 pected, the apiarist often delays feed- 

 ing in the hope that the bees may yet 

 gather enough. Such was the case 

 this year, in many localities. 



All authorities are agreed that slow 



feeding is preferable to fast feeding, 

 because there is more chance for the 

 bees to invert the sugar by its mixing 

 with saliva in their stomachs. The 

 syrup ripens better. But even the pro- 

 portion of 2 to 1 makes a thinner 

 syrup still than well ripened honey. 



If we are feeding for winter sup- 

 ply, slow feeding, on the other hand, 

 will cause the bees to breed and 

 build combs and a considerable 

 amount of syrup will be consumed in 

 so doing. Some benefit may be ex- 

 pected from this extra breeding, it 

 the quantity supplied is ample. Thin 

 s>Tup, stored in the cells in cold 

 weather, may eventually sour in them. 



When feeding must be resorted to 

 in cold weather, the best food to give 

 is candy. The recipe is simple: Add 

 soft water to sugar and boil slowly 



BUR-I%^«AyE 



.f, OHIMJ. >A«UO«lTA MMW 



Another Mac.iuoketa Scene 



