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THE AM ERIC AX BEE-KEEPER. 



were worn out when they went into 

 quarters. There is a fair chance of a 

 honey drought in some part of this 

 month. In this I may be mistaken, but 

 we generally get it, and I always look 

 and prepare for it. However, what I 

 intended to say was, should the bees 

 cease to find honey in the fields they 

 are apt to be very much harder to 

 handle, and they rob each other like 

 perfect little sinners. I might add that 

 should they commence robbing it is 

 more difficult to prevent them than at 

 any other season of the year. Hence I 

 say when you open a hive always 

 smoke it well before opening, and I 

 would say puff a few whiffs in the en- 

 trance of hives standing near the one to 

 be manipulated, as this has a tendency 

 to keep them at home and mind their 

 own business. Keep all stocks strong. 

 If you have any weak one help it along 

 by giving it a frame of brood from 

 some stock that is able to stand it. 

 Keep the entrances partly closed to 

 prevent robbing. Leave no broken 

 bits of comb, or sweets of any kind, 

 exposed. 



If box honey is placed in a cool dry 

 cellar, setting one or two inches apart 

 so as to allow a free circulation of air 

 around them, there will be very little 

 danger of hatching worms. Still they 

 should always be fumigated before 

 sending to market, for some of our 

 bee-keepers have had very sad experi- 

 ences who failed to do it. There is no 

 telling how the worms get into box 

 honey that has not been in a hive for 

 weeks or even month--, and they have 

 been all sealed and glassed ever since 

 taken from the hive. No, there is no 

 telling how, but I am "just chuck 

 full" of theory as to the causes, and I 

 think there is no question but that the 



moth has been all through the hive 

 from which the boxes were taken, and 

 has laid her eggs in these boxes. How 

 the worms evade the bees is another 

 thing I cannot say— but for all that 

 they do — and shuuld the weather be 

 very warm these eggs will hatch and 

 become moths, and after standing in 

 the store awhile will not only be un- 

 sightly, but unsalable and cast aside 

 as " wormy honey." In order to fu- 

 migate honey sections I would say, take 

 them into a room that, can be tightly 

 closed and arrange them on strips of 

 wood about the width of a lath but 

 thicker, resting the corners of the boxes 

 on two strips and thus spread them all 

 out ; they can be built up as high as 

 you like or the quantity of boxes de- 

 mand, all you want is free circulation. 

 Then place an old iron kettle on a few 

 bricks placed on the floor under the 

 sections ; in the kettle throw a shovel 

 full of live coals, on the coals throw 

 about one pound of sulphur, then leave 

 and close the door tightly. This will 

 kill all worms — cannot say whether it 

 would destroy the eggs or not, but I 

 doubt it — therefore I would advise you 

 to fumigate them at least three times 

 before sending to market, at an inter- 

 val of every two weeks. I would say, 

 as a mild suggestion to the beginner, 

 if you have Italian bees there is little 

 danger of the bee-moth, as they seem 

 to protect themselves from them 

 very thoroughly, and as far as I am 

 concerned I have no fear of the bee- 

 moth— in fact hardly consider it the 

 plague some of our writers would have 

 us believe. But to be on the safe side 

 fumigate comb honey as described, for 

 you may have had a weak stock, or if 

 a black stock, there is sure to be moth- 

 worms — for we find three black stocks 

 to one Italian troubled with the moth- 

 worm, w. B. T. 



