AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



355 



inscription, "From the Bees to their 

 Keepers, 1882—1892." 



The quests enjoyed themselves royally, 

 and Miss Dora Davidson entertained 

 them with several recitations. 



After having done full justice to the 

 repast, so bountifully provided, and 

 tendered a vote of thanks to their kind 

 host and hostess, the meeting was ad- 

 journed. 



Aplcultural Notes from Texas. 



A. C. ATEN. 



The Winter appears to be about over 

 here, although we may have some freez- 

 ing yet. Quite often, however, we have 

 no freezing or frost after this time. 



Bees have been busy carrying in pollen 

 on fine days for several weeks, and 

 peaches will be in full bloom in a week, 

 if the weather stays warm. 



We have no difficulty here in wintex'- 

 ing bees if they have plenty of honey, 

 as it is seldom they are kept in their 

 hives over a week at a time without a 

 flight. The most perilous time for bees 

 in this part of Texas is in April, when 

 quite often there is no honey-producing 

 plants in bloom, their stores are ex- 

 hausted by brood-rearing, and they 

 starve to death unless fed. At that 

 time, when the honey is all gone, they 

 will attempt to live on pollen, and it will 

 give them the diarrhea every time, no 

 difference how warm the weather is, 

 how dry and nice the combs are, or how 

 sweet and perfect the pollen. Then give 

 them a feed of honey, and they will be 

 all right in a day or two. 



These are facts that I have witnessed 

 many times — in fact, I have more or less 

 of such cases almost every year, for in 

 managing nearly 200 colonies, it takes 

 very great care, indeed, if I do not let 

 some starve to death before I am aware 

 of it. 



We had a pretty cold time this Winter, 

 with snow 3 inches deep, and the mer- 

 cury down to 20^ above zero, which was 

 pretty cold for this part of Texas. 



MARKINGS OF BEE-PKOGENY. 



If I understand some of the writers of 

 the American Bee Journal, they con- 

 tend that the daughter of a pure Italian 

 queen mating with a black drone, will 

 produce well-marked Italian bees. Of 

 course this is all guess-work, for it is 

 nothing uncommon for the daughter of 

 an imported queen to produce hybrids, 

 some of which will show little if any 



yellow. Why make such assertions when 

 it is impossible to know certainly ? 



ITALIAN AND BLACK BEES. 



And still some writers contend that 

 the blacks are as good or better than the 

 Italians. Well, perhaps so in some 

 places, but certainly not here. I have 

 had both kinds for the last ten years in 

 Texas, and the Italians are the best in 

 every way, except in working for ex- 

 tracted-honey the blacks are much easier 

 to get off the combs, if they have much 

 surplus to extract, which is seldom the 

 case. 



A pure black colony with me is almost 

 worthless. Hybrids generally do pretty 

 well, but my largest yields of honey are 

 generally from pure blooded Italians. 

 Those who like the blacks the best, are 

 certainly welcome to keep them. 



HONEY-DEW. 



I never have any honey-dew here, but 

 have seen plenty of it, and while 

 undoubtedly the greater portion and 

 worst quality of it is the secretion of 

 plant-lice, I have seen some, and plenty 

 of it, too, that no living man could prove 

 was the product of any insect. It ap- 

 peared to have come down like " manna 

 from Heaven," and the hickory leaves 

 were loaded with it, and it was not bad 

 honey, if honey at all. 



We had plenty of rain last Fall and 

 this Winter, and everything so far is 

 favorable for a good yield of honey. 

 Wheat and oats are looking well, and 

 farmers are just beginning to plant 

 corn. 



Round Rock, Tex., Feb, 22, 1892. 



Crop Of Red Clover Seel. 



I. W. ROLLINS. 



I would like to enquire in relation to 

 the crop of red clover seed in the various 

 localities represented by readers of the 

 American Bee Journal. 



There has usually been a large amount 

 of seed grown in this part of Minnesota, 

 but in the Fall of 1890 there was a light 

 crop, and in the Fall of 1891 there was 

 no seed in the medium ^clover, and but 

 little in the mammoth variety. 



The first crop of medium blossomed as 

 usual, and was cut early, as a rule, so 

 that a crop of seed might be secured 

 The second crop grew well, was a heavy 

 burden, but when the blossoms should 

 have made their appearance, there was 

 only a bald head — not a red blossom to 



