412 



TM® ffiBSEKICMN BE® JO-URlfSt. 



cussed, and a majority thought that 

 bee-keepers would be all right, pro- 

 viding that the wet weather would con- 

 tinue a few days longer, and assist the 

 white clover, which is now coming up 

 ver}' thickly, which would make the 

 bee-pasturage as good, if not better, 

 than heretofore. It was decided that 

 the President and Secretarj' call the 

 next meeting the latter part of next 

 September ; the date and place to be 

 announced in the American Bee 

 Journal, and also to notify each mem- 

 ber by postal card. The convention 

 then adjourned. 



Hives Boiling Over with Bees. 



— A. M. Day, Bowling Green, Mo., on 

 June 15, 1889, writes : 



My hives are boiling over with bees, 

 and I never saw as much honey in the 

 fields ; no matter what kind of weather 

 we may have, it will last over a month. 

 My 42 colonies are all working in the 

 sections, and some of them need tier- 

 ing up. I have " hit the nail " this 

 year — have doubled my bees, and will 

 average $10 per colony on honey. 



Very Rainy W^eatlier.— E. W. 



Councilman, Newark Valley, N. Y., on 



June 15, 1889, says : 



We are having a bad time here for 

 bees and honey. Day before yesterday 

 I had the first swarm, yesterday three 

 swarms, and to-day one. Bees com- 

 menced in the sections two weeks 

 ago, but have as yet accomplished 

 nothing, on account of cool and rainy 

 weather. For over two weeks, all 

 kinds of farming has been at a stand- 

 still, on account of the rain. A neigh- 

 bor 82 years old says that he has never 

 known so wet a time. So bees must 

 necessarily be kept back in their work. 



do not seem to notice it — perhaps the 

 cold and wet we have lately had is the 

 cause. There seems to be no honey in 

 it as yet. We had three or four quite 

 hard frosts the last days of May, that 

 killed corn, beans and tomatoes ; but I 

 think that our small-fruit crop will be 

 large. Bees are working on blackber- 

 ries and raspberries very strong. I 

 have about five acres in small fruit, 

 all loaded down with fruit, and with 

 that and my bees I expect to be kept 

 out of mischief for awhile. 



[1. Yes ; bees are sagacious storm 

 Warners. On the approach of thunder- 

 storms, gentle bees sometimes become 

 irritable, and will attack even their 

 usual attendants. Anticipating a 

 drouth, they have been known to store 

 more water in their combs than usual. 



2. Bees often hover over brine, and 

 will dig into sawdust where brine has 

 been thrown. They need some salt, 

 but there is no danger of their taking 

 enough to injure the brood from the 

 pickle-brine mentioned. Salt is often 

 scattered in the hives, and on the 

 ground outside to drive away ants and 

 moths. — Ed.] 



and lively, and so continues, 

 colonies wintered on the 

 stands without any loss, and 

 creased, by natural swarming, 

 have extracted 200 pounds of 



My 24 



summer 

 have in- 

 to 42. I 

 honey. 



and have some 400 or 500 pounds now 

 ready to take ofl". The prospects were 

 never better here for a honey crop. 

 Spanish-needle — our source of the main 

 and sure honey croj} — carpets all fence- 

 corners and waste-places. You can 

 look out, Mr. Editor, for another 

 " fabulous " report from this direction, 

 when the season is over ; and I would 

 like for " Ye Editor'" to peep into my 

 honey-house about that time. 



Storm-AVarners — Salt for Bees. 



— ^W. A. Hodge, Victory, Wis., on June 

 4, 1889, writes : 



1. Do bees have a forecast or knowl- 

 edge of an approaching change in the 

 weather or cold storm, as do the 

 migratory birds and other winged 

 fowls, such as geese, ducks, etc. ? In 

 cleaning out my cellar, I put outside a 

 barrel of cucumber pickles, put up in 

 salt or brine, and the bees are swarm- 

 ing on it as they would on honey. Will 

 they kill themselves, or not ? 2. Will 

 bees use enough salt or brine to in- 

 jure the young brood, if placed where 

 they can have as much as they will 

 use ? We had some very cold weather 

 for May. White clover is a very heavy 

 crop with us ; the roadsides and fields 

 are nearly white with it, but the bees 



Two Colonies in One Hive. — F. 



W. Harvey, Mt. Auburn, Iowa, on June 

 12, 1889, writes : 



If 2 colonies of bees should be placed 

 one above the other, with but the 

 lower entrance, each colony having its 

 own queen and brood-combs, and sep- 

 arated by a honey-board that would 

 keep the queens apart, would the bees 

 afiiliate and use the lower entrance ? 

 Our 220 colonies are just aching for 

 something to do. There are acres of 

 Alsike in bloom, but no honej'. I am 

 with Dr. Jesse Oren, learning the prac- 

 tical part of the art. 



[All the bees of one colony would 

 use the one entrance, without doubt, 

 even if there are two queens in sep- 

 arate apartments — but trouble may 

 come from one queen becoming aware 

 of the presence of another, unless they 

 may be a mother and daughter. — Ed.] 



Unfavorable Weather, etc. — 



D. Millard, Mendon, Mich., on June 



10, 1889, says : 



Bees in this locality wintered with 

 trifling loss. They have bred up 

 strong, and a few swarmed in May. 

 On May 29 a severe rain-storm set in, 

 and on May 30 it snowed nearlj- 2 

 inches, followed by sleet and rain that 

 lasted for 2 or 3 days ; after which the 

 weather brightened up, but it has been 

 wet and cold up to date. Colonies are 

 strong, but very short of honej-. Should 

 it turn warm again soon, the prospect 

 for a crop of honej- would be good. 



Prospects IVever Better. — Byron 

 liams, Worcester, Mo., on June 17, 

 1889, writes : 



The weather is fine, and bees are 

 booming. White clover is the finest 

 for years here. Bees got a good start 

 on it from May 20 to the 27th, then 

 rain and cold weather interfered until 

 June 3, when everything became fair 



Cold and AVet W^eather.— V. N. 



Forbes, West Haven, Vt., on June 14, 

 1889, writes : 



Bees in this vicinity generall)- came 

 through the winter in excellent condi- 

 tion, and the ^ery warm weather of 

 April was favorable for their building 

 up rapidly ; but that was followed by 

 very wet and cold weather the latter 

 part of May, which told seriously on 

 the bees. Fruit-bloom did not amount 

 to much for the bees ; raspberries were 

 loaded with bloom, and honey, too, 

 but the cold and wet of the last three 

 or four weeks has very nearly caused 

 a failure from that source, and that is 

 a serious one, as we depend largely 

 upon the raspberries for the bees to get 

 filled up, and ready for the clover. 

 There is a good show of clover, and if 

 the weather is as favorable as for the 

 last three or four days, we may have 

 some honey yet. 



An Old Bee-Keeper — C. W. 



Helleras, St. Catherines, Out., on June 



11, 1889, writes : 



Last year was the poorest one for 

 honey that I have ever seen. I have 

 always kept bees in a small way, ever 

 since I have kept house, which is now 

 over 51 years, and I was about the first 

 one in this section of the country that 



