54 



AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



escape, so as not to condense imme- 

 diately around tlie bees. Keep bees dry 

 and quiet, and I think they will survive 

 a temperature of 25--' below zero. Mine 

 survived 16^ below zero in the house 

 last Winter, and I have a neighbor 

 whose bees are yet (Dec. 18) on the 

 summer stands, without any protection, 

 and still are all right. The thermometer 

 has been 10° below zero. I housed mine 

 on Nov. 13, 1891. C. Lower. 



Decorah, Iowa. 



My Experience in Keeping- Bees. 



I have read the American Bee Jour- 

 nal for several years, but have not 

 noticed any correspondence from this 

 locality. There are quite a number 

 keeping bees here, but I do not think 

 they know of the existence of the Bee 

 JotTRNAL,. I have taken several bee- 

 papers, but I like it better than all 

 others. I commenced to keep bees in 

 1881, with one colony of black bees, in 

 a box hive, which cost me $5.00. I 

 had an increase of 12 swarms within 

 two years. They were all hived in 8- 

 frame Langstroth hives. In 1884 I lost 

 them all from the use of honey-dew. I 

 then purchased another colony, and now 

 have 43. From 28, Spring count, I got, 

 during the past Summer, 800 pounds of 

 white comb-honey, and an increase of 

 15 swariHS. I have 23 in boxes 3x12, 

 packed with chaff ; the other 20 are in 

 the cellar. As this is my first experi- 

 ence in wintering bees in a cellar, I 

 thought I would risk only part of them 

 in that way. Chas. E. Falkner. 



Pioneer, O., Dec. 21, 1891. 



Bees "Wintering Well. 



The honey crop of last season was 

 very light, and the quality was very 

 poor and dark. Owing to the cold 

 weather during Spring, we obtained 

 scarcely any white clover honey, though 

 there was an abundance of white clover 

 bloom. My bees are wintering well. 

 A. F. Sanger. 



Pilot Grove, Mo., Dec. 29, 1891. 



Wintering Bees on Honey-Dew. 



I have 41 colonies of bees in the 

 cellar, in fair condition. I did not get 

 much honey last Summer — only 700 

 pounds, and that was rather dark, and 

 I had only 4 or 5 swarms. I had to 

 feed 6 colonies. I do not know how 

 they will winter on honey-dew. I find 



that the dark honey improves the longer 

 it is kept. We sell it here at from 8 to 

 12 cents per pound, in the comb. 



Wm. L. Mitchell. 

 Erie, Ills., Dec. 30, 1891. 



Few Swarms, and Little Honey. 



The past season in Pennsylvania, 

 while not a complete failure, was a poor 

 one — many apiaries yielding nothing for 

 surplus. There was but little swarming. 

 Most of the colonies have enough to 

 Winter on. My yield was 600 pounds, 

 from 16 colonies, of extracted and comb- 

 honey. I sold the comb-honey for 15 

 cents per pound, at the store and to 

 neighbors; the extracted I sold for 11 

 cents per pound. Honey is scarce, but 

 at the prices demanded (20 cents at 

 retail) it sells slowly. 



Geo. Spitler. 



Mosiertown, Pa., Dec. 28, 1891. 



Good Crop of White Honey. 



This has been a fairly good year for 

 honey, with those who cared for their 

 bees properly. The crop of white honey 

 was good, but the fall flow did not 

 amount to scarcely anything. I have 

 done better than any one else in this 

 locality. Some report but very little 

 honey. The honey flow commenced 

 about June 1 and continued till July 

 20. I commenced the season with 13 

 colonies, increased to 24 by natural 

 swarming, and secured 700 pounds of 

 comb honey. One swarm went to the 

 woods. I winter my bees on the summer 

 stands ; 13 colonies are in boxes packed 

 in chaff, and 10 are in the Root dove- 

 tailed winter cases. 



D. I. Wagar. 



Flat Rock, Mich., Dec. 29, 1891. 



Bees Wintering- on Summer Stands. 



Last Spring I had 45 colonies of boos 

 —all that wor(> loft out of 75 of the fall 

 before, i took from them 1,500 pounds 

 of comb-honey, increased them to 75 

 colonies again, which are now on the 

 summer stands in double-walled hives, 

 and appear to be in good condition. 

 Last year was the worst for wintering 

 bees, for 10 years. Some that had but 

 f(!W are without any now. There was 

 plenty of white clover, but it did not 

 yield any honey. Our crop was mostly 

 from raspberries and basswood. 



J. H. Manchester. 



Preble, N. Y., Dec. 29, 1891. 



