134 



THE AMERICAN APICULTURIST. 



EDITORIAL. 



Doubtless our friends will not take 

 it amiss if we give but a brief edi- 

 torial this month. Our new enter- 

 prise is receiving such hearty en- 

 dorsement from every quarter that 

 we must conclude that we have taken 

 the right step after all. We only ask 

 that the reader and our customers 

 bear patiently with us for a while. 

 The season has been so backward 

 that we are in a rush but shall be 

 amply able to meet all demands. 



We have not utilized the question 

 and answer department this month 

 as the amount of work that we have 

 been obliged to perform has been 

 simply enormous, but we shall soon 

 have that department in running 

 order again. 



We would urge upon our readers 

 the importance of creating a home 

 demand for honey this season in 

 order that we may not have a glutted 

 honey market with which to contend. 



Work hard at the State conven- 

 tions to have county associations 

 formed ; these are the educators that 

 will prove the gateway to a home 

 demand. 



Prepare to make first-class exhibi- 

 tions at county fairs next fall : it will 

 pay. It may seem as though this 

 advice was premature, but we have 

 none too much time to prepare for 

 these fairs. 



Remember that if we ever have a 

 permanent market for our honey the 

 beekeepers must make it. 



We wish our readers to come to 

 us with their experiences, successes 

 and failures and we shall endeavor 



to give them such instruction as will 

 aid them in their work. 



Do not fail to send for a few of 

 our "Companions" and distribute 

 them for us ; it will be but little 

 trouble and will aid us wonderfully 

 in building up our subscription list. 



We are preparing to give our 

 readers a large number of ill'istra- 

 tions and as our list increases we 

 shall be able to add many new and 

 interesting features to our Journal. 



We have already sent out 5,000 

 "Companions" within the last two 

 weeks, and the call is so great that 

 we are printing 5,000 more. 



EXPERUIENTAL 

 BEE FARM NOTES. 



On account of the many duties 

 devolving upon us in establishing our 

 bee farm we have not as yet been 

 able to carry out any of the experi- 

 ments that we mean to test for the 

 benefit of our readers. 



While for the purpose of experi- 

 menting we shall devote some colo- 

 nies to the production of honey, both 

 comb and extracted, yet this season's 

 operations will be confined almost 

 exclusively to queen-rearing. 



We start with about one hundred 

 colonies of the different races of bees. 

 The season thus far (in this locality) 

 has been unusually backward and 

 trying, giving us but little warm, pleas- 

 ant weather and but few days when 

 the bees could gather honey freely. 



Last winter most of our colonies • 

 were wintered in the beehouse and 

 were removed to the summer stands, 

 about the 28th of March, in fine 

 condition and there seemed to be 

 but little difference between their 

 cor^dition and that of those wintered 

 on the summer stands. The first 

 work of the season commenced 



