1896. 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



423 



CONDnCTED BY 



DR. C. C. laZLLBR, MARENGO, ILL, 



IQuestlons may be mailed to the Bee Journal, or to Dr. Miller direct.] 



A Swarm.IIiviiigr Experience. 



June 5, about 6 p.m., I was informed by a neighbor that 

 a colony of bees had clustered on a tree one mile south of my 

 home. With a rope and coffee-sack I reached the tree — a 

 large hemlock — about an hour later. The bees were about 

 50 feet from the ground, and 8 feet from the trunk, on a 

 branch too small to support my weight. I made a hoop of a 

 small limb and placed it in the mouth of the sack ; then stuck 

 a branch long enough to reach the bees through the sack, 

 holding it under and jarring the bees from the limb, most of 

 them falling into the sack. In attempting to close the sack, 

 I let it fall ; it lodged some 15 feet below, spilling most of the 

 bees. 



When I reached home I had about three dozen stings and 

 one-third of the bees. I emptied them in front of a Lang- 

 stroth hive; tbey clustered in front, I drove them in, and the 

 next morning I could not find the queen. 



When I returned from work in the evening, I found a 

 queen and large colony of bees in the hive. Did they com- 

 municate with the bees remaining on the tree ? They are 

 working as good as any colony I have. D. S. 



Conemaugh, Pa. 



Answer. — Only a guess can be given, and I guess you 

 have guessed correctly, that the remainder of the swarm found 

 their way to your hive. Hardly, though, did the bees in the 

 hive communicate with the bees on the tree, but just the other 

 way — the bees on the tree found those in the hive. It is quite 

 possible that the queen was in the hive, even if you couldn't 

 find her, and the bees in the tree, scouring the country in all 

 directions, would easily find where the queen was, and those 

 which first found the hive would set up a call that would help 

 to bring others. Or, it is possible that the queen remained on 

 the tree, and scouts found the hive. 



Caging tiie i^neen During tiic Honey-Flow. 



1. Do you think there is any disadvantage in caging the 

 queen of a strong colony during a good honey-flow? 



2. How would the common mailing-cage do for caging a 

 queen in a full colony ? Would the bees feed her while caged, 

 or would I have to put candy in the cage for her? Would it 

 be a good idea to cage her alone, or not ? J. M. W. 



Evelyn, Tex. 



Answers. — 1. That is a difficult question to answer, 

 taken in all its bearings. There is diversity of opinion, and 

 among those who favor caging the queen there is diversity of 

 practice. Under certain circumstances the advantages of 

 having the queen caged may far outweigh the disadvantages. 

 Some years ago I practiced quite largely a plan that involved 

 keeping the queen caged for ten days. The plan was given 

 by Doolittle, and I have always felt under obligation to him 

 for it. Here it is : 



When a swarm issues, cage the clipped queen and put her 

 in the hive where the bees can care for her. Don't merely 

 stick the cage at the entrance. If a cool spell comes she will 

 be deserted by the bees and will die. But put her somewhere 

 in the hive where she will always keep warm, and where the 

 bees will have free access to her. When they're trying to 

 swarm they don't seem to have so much affection for a queen 

 that can't or won't do as they want and go out with them. 

 About five days after the issuing of the swarm, cut out all 



queen-cells. Five days later, or ten days from the issuing of 

 the swarm, cut out all cells again and liberate the queen. 



That's the plan, and I got some good crops of honey while 

 following the plan. If I were going to watch for swarms I 

 rather think I would follow the same plan, or a modification 

 of it. The queen was caged ten days, and when liberated 

 went to work and gave no further thought to swarming. 



Another case in which queens are caged, is without any 

 swarming, leaving the queen caged during most of the honey- 

 flow. The fact is, that if she is caged during the last three 

 weeks of the honey-flow, she will be saved from rearing a lot 

 of workers that will come too late for the harvest ; and to 

 carry it farther, the last five weeks of the honey-flow will do 

 better without any eggs, for it takes three weeks to rear a 

 worker from the egg, and then the worker must be two weeks 

 old before she gathers from the field. However the theory 

 may be, it didn't turn out well with me in practice. The 

 combs were badly clogged with pollen, and when the queen 

 was freed she didn't get to laying for some time, and some- 

 times swarmed out. Others may succeed with the plan, and 

 they may modify it, but I don't think I'll ever try It again. 



On the whole, I think a colony seems best satisfied to have 

 the queen free, and I think they generally work with better 

 heart when the queen is putting in her best work. I know, 

 however, that good authorities say the bees work with great 

 vim when hopelessly queenless. and perhaps I've never struck 

 just the right plan. 



2. Any cage will do that allows the bees free access to 

 the queen through the meshes of wire-cloth, and that is not 

 too large to be put into the hive. 



Tran§plantiug Basswoods — Crimson Clover. 



1. I live near some second-growth basswood and young 

 seedlings; the seedlings are about tJ feet tall. Would it be 

 advisable to induce the neighbors, with my assistance, to 

 transplant them for shade trees, in leisure hours? How long 

 would one have to wait for such trees to produce any honey ? 

 The neighbors would care for them and water them, so as to 

 get the shade. How long would I have to wait before I would 

 get any profit? You see, no money would have to be ex- 

 pended. Could they be planted in June or July ? 



2. Could crimson clover be sown in waste-places, and 

 would it thrive like sweet clover? The seed is cheap here. 

 Would it take care of itself after planting? J. M. Q. 



Syracuse, N. Y. 



Answers.— 1. The probability is that it would be an ad- 

 visable thing to do as you propose. Of course, if an unlimited 

 supply of lindens are already growing wild within reach of 

 your bees, and if there is no likelihood that they will be re- 

 moved, then there might be no object in transplanting. But 

 if you get some young seedlings planted as shade trees, they 

 would be safe for many years. Certainly, if it is a profitable 

 thing for others to go to the expense of setting out and caring 

 for trees on their own land, as some do, it ought to be well for 

 you to induce others to do it for you. 



I should say at a guess that seedlings six feet high might 

 begin to bloom in from three to five years. The profit would 

 be small at the start, but it would increase from year to year. 

 You couldn't make them live if you transplant when in full 

 leaf. Like other deciduous trees, you will do best to trans- 

 plant in early spring ; but you might also succeed in the fall 

 after the leaves have fallen. The same principles that apply 

 in transplanting common fruit-trees will apply in planting 

 lindens. Save as many small roots as possible in digging the 

 trees, dig a hole three or four feet square, spread the roots 

 naturally, and sift in loose earth among then\ ; fill the hole 

 even full, and tramp down hard, and fill the top with loose 

 earth. 



2. I hardly think crimson clover would succeed if scat- 

 tered in waste-places, but you could try it on a small scale. 



