278 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



p.otts KuA ^iteries. 



<*.^ 



BUST ON EXTBACTOK. 



Sumpter Co., Ala., June 18, 1877.—" Will 

 you please tell me through the Journal 

 how to keep the wires in my honey ex- 

 tractor from rusting?" Subscriber. 



[If the extractor is left just as the honey 

 leaves it, there is no danger of rust. The 

 honey will never rust it; but if it is wash- 

 ed, the water will.— Ed.] 



TULIP AND BAS8WOOD. 



Nevada City, Cal., July 9, 1877.— " Please 

 answer the following questions: 



1. How old must a tulip tree be before it 

 blossoms; and how high will it be at the 

 same time? 



2. How old, and what size are basswood 

 trees when they blossom? 



3. What soil and climate do both tulip 

 and basswood grow best on?" 



R. E. Bush. 



[We have tulip trees {Lirlodendron tu- 

 Upifera) now 15 years old, that bloom. 

 They are about 20 ft. high. 



Basswood will bloom at 8 or 10 years of 

 age, and when not more than as many feet 

 high. Both these trees thrive best in a 

 moist climate. The first flourishes even on 

 ■quite light sandy soil, while the basswood 

 requires a rich sand or clay loam.— A. J. 

 €ooK.J 



WHY DO THEY NOT SWARM? 



Grand Meadow, Minn., July 2, 1877.— 

 *' Bees are doing well here now, those that 

 managed to save them through the winter. 

 In this neighborhood many lost all they 

 had. I have 2 swarms that have already 

 sent out 4 swarms each; all in good shape. 

 Have another that was very strong in the 

 spring, and is full of honey, bees and brood, 

 but will not swarm; they have queen cells 

 half built for weeks, but do not put eggs in 

 them. I cut out all drone brood, as they 

 are hybrids and 1 don't want to mix with 

 my pure Italians. Is that the reason they 

 do not swarm? They work splendidly, and 

 rather than let them hang outside doing 

 nothing I have added two supers, making a 

 4-story hive, and they are working to the 

 top. Can you solve the question?" 



C. F. Greening. 



[ The reason why some bees refuse to 

 ■swarm is obscure. I think cutting out or 

 removing drone brood is not the correct 

 answer. Giving them plenty of room may 

 be the reason, though it will not always 

 answer the question. Something may be 

 done to individual pecularities of bees, 

 though I think there is some law governing 

 the swarming impulse not yet revealed. 

 Sometimes bees in full colonies with little 

 room are slow to swarm; while again, bees 

 with abundance of room seem bent on 



swarming. I feel sure that by early and 

 persistent attention, swarming can be al- 

 most wholly controlled, but it requires 

 much skill and experience. If the queen 

 in question was pure, I should advise Mr. 

 Greening to breed from her, and even now 

 recommend that he let her work.— A. J. 

 Cook.] 



COMB foundation. 



Friend Newman:— I wish to ask you a 

 question. Does the foundation remain 

 thick or is it worked out by the bees — the 

 wax in it being used to build the cells? 



John Z. Cabe. 



[That question we might answer with 

 both "Yes" and "No." We have some 

 foundation in this office, the cells of which 

 were lengthened out by the bees, using the 

 wax of the foundation for that purpose. It 

 was only in the hive a few hours, and the 

 samples are in the various stages of build- 

 ing. We also have on our desk a piece of 

 foundation that we cut out of the centre of 

 some excellent white clover honey, as it 

 stood upon our breakfast table this morn- 

 ing. It appears j list like other foundation, 

 and is of similar thickness, but shows 

 where the bees had attached the sides of 

 the cells to it. It is evident, therefore, that 

 the bees are not always governed by the 

 same rule. Under some circumstances they 

 use the foundation to attach the cells to; 

 under others, they thin out the wax and 

 make cells from it— when they are not so 

 "busy," perhaps. — Ed.] 



QUINBY hive— FOUL BBOOD— MOTHS. 



Shelby Co., Mo., July 13, 1877.— "Will you 

 pl«ase give a description of Quiuby's non- 

 patented, non-swarmer, and tell me where 

 it is for sale? 



2. What is meant by foul brood ? 



3. When does the moth-miller cease to 

 lay? Should think that one overhauling of 

 the hive after that would insure bees 

 against its ravages for the winter." 



E. C. Phillips. 



[The Quinby hive is for sale by L. C. 

 Root, Mohawk, N.Y. It is the latest inven- 

 tion of the late M. Quinby. The frames 

 stand on the bottom-board and are held up- 

 right without support at the upper corners. 

 Top boxes are placed directly on the 

 frames; 16 boxes being arranged on either 

 side, 2 deep, and 4 abreast, with the ends 

 directly against the main combs; no parti- 

 tion being between, except a narrow strip 

 of glass that leaves an opening for the bees 

 to pass immediately from the combs to the 

 guide combs in the boxes. 



2. Foul brood is a disease that depopu- 

 lates the colony— the brood seems to putre- 

 fy, becomes black and gives an offensive 



