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CUBA. 



Cioldcn-Rod — IIoncj'-Extruetor 

 fur a Large Apiary, etc. 



Written for Oie American Bee Journal 



BY O. O. I'Ol'PLETON. 



On page 585, Mr. Secor asks some 

 questions about golden-rod. I used 

 to think as lie does, but longer obser- 

 vations showed me that there were dif- 

 ferent varieties of it, which varied 

 greatly in their value to the hone}'- 

 producer ; and these again differed 

 greatl)' in different seasons. Possibly 

 certain varieties jield on some kinds 

 of soils, and others on other soils. This 

 ■would make an interesting point for 

 botanists to observe. 



Mr. S. also speaks of the value of 

 the yellow-ray, or wild sun-tlowers, 

 which are so common in some of the 

 Western States. At my old location, 

 some 80 miles east from Mr. Secor's, 

 there were two varieties of these 

 flowers, one of much, the other of no, 

 value. The difference between the 

 two varieties was first pointed out to 

 me by Mr. George Stocks, of Nashua, 

 Iowa. 



The valuable kind was very abun- 

 dant on the Cedar river, a few miles 

 west of my place, but it was very 

 scaree near me. Soil on the Cedar 

 river was drier and sandier than near 

 where I was. It might be well for 

 some one living where they grow, to 

 identify and describe the two species. 



While the most of the readers are 

 probably getting their bees readj- at 

 this time, for their winter's rest, we, 

 here in Cuba, are nearing the com- 

 luencement of our annual honey 

 harvest. 



Improvina: tlie Honey -Extractor. 



In replies to Query 560, on page 534, 

 Mr. Heddon says : " So far as I know, 

 we never had a half-way-decent honey- 

 extractor ; that is, one at all worth}' of 

 the use of a bee-keeper who produces 

 tons of extracted honey. The best of 

 our present machines are just good 

 enough for amateur bee-keepers, who 

 have from 3 to 10 colonies of bees." 



This is a strong statement, but not 

 so far from the truth as many might 

 think, at first glance. This apiary 

 yielded fully 25 tons of honey last win- 

 ter, and the ordinary two or four frame 

 machines would be a nuisance here ; 

 but the one that we do use, is probably 

 as far from Mr. Heddon's characteri- 

 zation, as anything yet manufactured. 



In ordering the machine from the 

 owner of the Stanley patent, I men- 

 tioned certain points that we insisted 



upon, leaving the details to him. I 

 required a si.\-frame Stanley reversiljle 

 extractor, built very strong and sulj- 

 stantial, with overhand gearing, the 

 handle being attached to a horizontal 

 rod extending outside of the can, and 

 so geared as to give 1} revolutions of 

 the baskets to one of the handle ; to be 

 furnished with a serviceable brake, 

 and permitting of being oiled without 

 removing any part of the machine. 



As this was the first machine of the 

 kind ever made, new patterns had to 

 be made for all the castings. We did 

 not get it set up until almost the close 

 of the season, but judging from the 

 few thousand pounds that we extracted 

 with it, I think that we shall like it 

 much better than I expected we would 

 wlien ordering it. 



It is unquestionably far superior to 

 anytliing I have ever yet seen or used, 

 but is, so far as I know, the only one 

 of the kind yet manufactured. If any 

 one has any bettor e.xtractor, let him 

 describe it, as we want the best. 



Havana, Cuba. 



BAY STATE FAIR. 



The Exhibits of Bees and Honey 

 at the Bay State Fair. 



Written for the American Bee Journal 

 BY ALLEN LATHAM. 



Yesterday I paid a visit to the Bay 

 State Fair, held in Boston, and the ex- 

 hibit in the bee and honey department, 

 as a whole, was poor for even an 

 Eastern State, though individual ex- 

 hibits were creditat)le. The total 

 amount of honey exliibited would not 

 exceed 300 pounds ; of beeswax, not 

 more than 50 ; and only one full colony 

 of bees. The premiums were fitly 

 awarded. These were sufficiently large 

 to call for a better exhibit. 



The fii'st premium on clover honey 

 was taken by Miss M. A. Douglas, of 

 Shoreham, V't. ; the 2nd, by D. W. 

 Clement, who also took the 1st pre- 

 mium on light fall honey. The 1st 

 premium on buckwheat honey was 

 taken by E. N. Fisher, of Ludlow, 

 Mass. ; also, the 1st on beeswax and 

 black bees. 



Henry Alley took the 1st prize on 

 Italians, and the 2nd on black bees ; 

 also 2nd premium on beeswax. 



I saw some of the exhibitors, and 

 had considerable talk with them. From 

 all, I heard the cry of " poor season," 

 which will perhaps account for the 

 poor exhibit. One of the exhibitors 

 wished to visit some friends in this 

 part of the State, and so brought on 

 some honey and bees. He took enough 

 prizes to pay his expenses. 



Cambridge, Mass. 



BEES IN WINTER. 



Best Way to Winter Bees— The 

 Difi'erciit J^ysteins. 



Written for the New York Tribune 



BV PROF. A. J. COOK. 



Bees are natives of a warm climate, 

 where thej- can fly nearly or quite 

 every week of the year. In nature, 

 bees can retain their fecal matter while 

 in the hive, and never void their in- 

 testines except as they fly foi'th. As 

 with well bred and trained cats and 

 dogs, bees will not soil their domiciles. 

 Thus, in case of long confinement, as 

 is often necessary in our Northern 

 climates, they become diseased. 



In their native home, tlie only pro- 

 vision to insure safe wintering — bating 

 accident — is enough good food. This 

 is true in our Southern States, and in 

 California and Oregon to-day. There, 

 bee-keepers are only watchful that 

 their bees have sufficient good winter 

 stores, and they are without anxiety as 

 to result. 



Most insects in our Northern climate 

 pass the winter in a state of profound 

 hiljernation ; they eat nothing, move 

 not at all, and are seemingly without 

 life, but not so with the honey-bees. 

 They are ever and anon moving about 

 the hive and eating the little that their 

 slight exercise m.akes necessary. Open 

 a iiive in the dead of winter, and even 

 though it rests all unprotected on the 

 summer stand, we will find the bees 

 move and show that they are not dead, 

 nor even sleeping. Thus we easily 

 understand that with the naturally 

 neat habits of bees, with our long, 

 cold winters, and their exceptional 

 habits of activity and feeding, pro- 

 duced doubtless by their long exis- 

 tence in a warm climate, it becomes 

 no easy matter to carry them safely 

 through the winter. 



Two things are necessary to this end 

 in om- rigorous Northern climate, viz : 

 25 or 30 pounds of good food per col- 

 ony, and sucli jirotection as will make 

 the severe cold and long confinement 

 endurable. 



Honey is a very indefinite term, as 

 bees collect nectar — the source of 

 honey — from many and very widely 

 different locations. That all honey is 

 safe food for winter is not true. The 

 safest food is tliat made from cane- 

 sugar syrup. Often honey is worth 

 more in the market tlian is such sugar, 

 at which times it will pay well to ex- 

 tract, and sell the hone}-, and feed 

 .syrup to the bees. 



The sugar must be only the best 

 cane-sugar ; glucose is not relished by 

 the bees, and. as has been proved 

 often, is fatal as a winter food. Usually, 

 however, honey collected from flowers 



