March 22, 1900. 



AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



185 



Bztg-., that he has analyzed a great number of samples of 

 domestic and foreign honey, and the amount of adulterated 

 honey that is found in bulk is very small indeed. In reality 

 he never found but three specimens adulterated in all that 

 he ever analyzed, one was German, one was Hungarian, 

 and one American. 



The probability is that those who adulterate honey 

 could hardly afford to adulterate it and export it at the low 

 prices. They can make more money to put it up in fancy 

 packages of small size and sell it at a high price. 



Number of Dead Bees on a Cellar=Bottoni. — "Figures 

 can not lie," it is said, but somehow they do not always tell 

 the same story when manipulated by two different persons. 

 Editor Root, in Gleanings in Bee-Culture, said, "75 or 100 

 colonies in a cellar 10x10 may furnish dead bees before 

 spring sufficient to cover the floor an inch or two in depth." 

 With that as a basis, Mr. Taylor figured in the Bee-Keepers' 

 Review that " colonies of bees in a cellar may lose any- 

 where from 2J-2 to S quarts of superannuated bees from a 

 colony during the winter." 



Then Editor Root fell to figuring, and made out that in- 

 stead of 2% to 5, the highest loss could only be 1 3/S quarts 

 per colony, or less than one-third as many as Mr. Taylor had 

 figured ! The principal difference seems to come from the 

 different ways in which the two men had the bees packt in 

 the cellar. Mr. Taylor seems to have had his colonies in 

 some way suspended from above, leaving the entire floor to 

 be covered with bees, while Mr. Root placed his upon 

 stands, the 25 stands occupying the greater part of the 

 cellar-bottom, leaving the balance to be covered with bees. 



Incidentally, Mr. Root makes an interesting contribu- 

 tion to apicultural lore by giving the number of dead bees 

 in a quart as 2,664. This is much less than the number of 

 living bees in a quart, which is 3,200, according to the book 

 " A B C of Bee-Culture." 



Bees and Fruit-Qrowing.— At the Leland Stanford 

 University, in California, they have what they call a lecture 

 course for agriculturists. Among the lecturers and lectures 

 Feb. 21, was Prof. O. P. Jenkins, on " Bees and Fruit- 

 Growing." Mr. A. B. Shearer, one of our subscribers 

 located there, sent us a copy of the San Jose Daily Mercury, 

 which speaks as follows of Prof. Jenkins' lecture to the 

 students : 



Prof. O. P. Jenkins is not a stranger to the orchardists 

 of this county, and his lecture yesterday, on "Bees and 

 Fruit-Growing," was the renewing of an acquaintance that 

 was as mutually agreeable as it has been pleasant in the 

 past. The practical application of his lecture was made 

 plainly apparent. 



In opening. Prof. Jenkins told of some of the rudimen- 

 tary principles regarding the poUenization of plants. "The 

 more," said he, " we can find out about the limits and laws 

 that control the life of the plant the better fitted we are to 

 raise the plant." 



In explaining the poUenization of the flower he showed 

 a map displaying the parts of the flower and picturing the 

 pistils and the ovaries at their root. It is found of absolute 

 necessity that the ovule of one plant be brought into con- 

 tact with the ovule of another plant. On the top of the pis- 

 til is a stigmatic surface where the pollen lodges. It 

 sprouts and pushes down to the ovule below a filament, 

 sometimes three or four inches long, and thus is the ferti- 

 lization accomplisht. Some flowers have both pistils and 

 stamens, while in others one plant bears a staminate flower 

 and another a pistilate flower. 



" How is the pollen carried from the stain in ate to the 

 pistilate flower ? By three ways chiefly — the wind, insects, 

 and birds. Those carried by the wind have to be adapted 

 to the wind's ways. Flowers that fertilize in this manner 

 produce and scatter a large amount of pollen, tho one grain 

 only is needed to fertilize the flower." 



He described the formation of flowers in which the bees 

 operate as pollen-carriers, and showed how bees become 



useful agents in the work of fertilization, and how thus the 

 plants make use of the bees. 



"The type of most fruit flowers," said he, "is the 

 same ; they have both stamen and petals in the same flower. 

 Below is a disc which contains sweet fluid that the bees de- 

 sire. Contrary to general belief, the wind can not fertilize 

 these flowers It has been known for some time that .some 

 varieties of trees do better if they are planted in with other 

 varieties, so that cross-fertilization can take place. It is 

 this way with the almond." 



He explained the valuable experiments that were con- 

 ducted by Prof. Waite, of the Department of Agriculture, 

 in the cross-pollenization of the pear. By these experiments 

 he ascertained that some varieties were produced by cross- 

 pollenization and others by self-pollenization. In all cases, 

 however, it was ascertained that cross-pollenization always 

 produced the best fruit. 



In his judgment, the reason why many orchards do not 

 bear is because the flowers are not properly fertilized. 



Of the many insects that visit flowers some are more 

 adapted for pollen-carriers than others, and the bee is found 

 to be one of the best. With the pear more than the apple, 

 the bee is found to be the main fertilizer. From experi- 

 ments tried it has been found where there are large numbers 

 of fruit-trees the bees are insufficient in number many 

 times to do the pollenizing. 



" I would think it advisable," said he, " in this valley, 

 where there are so many fruit-trees, for bees to be kept not 

 for their profit, but the more completely to do the work of fer- 

 tilizing our fruit-flowers." 



We move a vote of thanks to Prof. Jenkins for his clear 

 putting of the truth. Mr. Shearer rather forcefully, tho 

 truly, put it when he said in a note accompanying the 

 clipping : 



" See, we are beginning to get it hammered into them 

 by these learned men — men they must recognize. Yet they 

 will set out the poison." 



Mr. Geo. C. Hamburgh, of Pierce Co., Wash., has sent 

 us a sample of his S>4-inch alighting-board which he at- 

 taches to the hive by a piece of tin tackt on top at each end 

 of the board. It is easy to put on and off, requiring only 

 two tacks. When on it slants downward a trifle. 

 ***** 



Mr. W. a. Pry.'^l, of Alameda Co., Calif., writes us 

 March 8 : 



" We have been having some good old-fashioned rains 

 lately. I am pleased to know that the south end of the 

 State is getting a wetting at last. We have been having 

 all we require in this portion. I never saw the grass and 

 other vegetation looking better than it now is. Many kinds 

 of fruit-trees are in bloom. Garden flowers are out in pro- 

 fusion." 



***** 



Mr. Harry Howk, Secretary of the Cuban Bee-Keep- 

 ers' Association, wrote us as follows, March 12 : 



Friend York : — I wish to correct one point in the arti- 

 cle on D. H. Coggshall in a recent issue of your paper, in 

 regard to the 4-frame extractor. The one built by D. H. 

 Coggshall took the frames in the usual four-sided form, 

 with the upright shaft in the center of the can. I made the 

 first drawing of the other kind with the frames in pairs, 

 and W. L. Coggshall had two made by the late Miles Mor- 

 ton. These were used in the apiaries of W. L. Coggshall 

 for two years before D. H. Coggshall had his first one made. 

 This was made from the pattern which he borrowed of W. 

 E. Coggshall. 



Bees are swarming here now. Foul brood is really 

 much worse than has been described in the papers. Nearly 

 every apiary in Cuba has it. I have gone into partnership 

 with a Cuban who owns about 7,000 acres of fine honey- 

 country to put in bee-ranches to the tune of 2,000 colonies. 

 This gives me entire control of my bee-range. 



Harry Howe. 



