1901 



THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER 



79 



easily accomplished by never per- 

 mitting them to fly in the open air. 

 As a result of their having never 

 flown anywhere fxcept in the tent, 

 they know no otlier world than its 

 confines, and appear to enjoy them- 

 selves within its limits as well as 

 though their flight was unrestricted. 



The nuclei from which the young- 

 queens were to fly were placed in 

 the same position as the drone col- 

 nies; but the queens were not 

 turned into the tent until the drones 

 were reconciled and flying freely. 



As a further precaution against 

 the workers entering the tent, the 

 tent entrances were kept shaded 

 while open. 



Mr. Davitte says he has reared 

 one hundred queens in one season 

 and had them all mated in this 

 way. 



This is, to say the least, a very 

 interesting development, anditmay 

 lead to the perfecting of a method 

 which will, in ihe future, enable 

 those who are surrounded with un- 

 desirable stock, to control the mat- 

 ing of their queens — a thing here- 

 tofore considered impossible. It 

 appears that the chief point of im- 

 portance to its successful practice 

 would be the bringing about of a 

 perfectly reconciled condition of 

 the drones, within the tent — a point, 

 by the way, which is almost too 

 delicate for the conception and 

 handling of the novit-e. It is akin 

 to the work of conditioning a colony 

 for queen - rearing — one of those 

 delicate matters very keenly appre- 

 ciated by the experienced, yet ex- 

 pressei with great difficulty. A 

 thorough acquaintance with bees 

 will beget an appreciative under- 

 standing, where no possible amount 

 of study can do so. 



SPRAYINCJ A«.\IN. 

 / 

 So much has l>e(Mi said (and it has Ix'i^n 

 said so often) ii]K»n tliis subject tliat it 



would seem quite unnecessary to pursue 

 the matter farther. The letters and news- 

 paper clippings received at this office, 

 however, indicate that it is still a live 

 sul)ject, and that bee-keepers are deter- 

 mined to follow the (luestion closely, un- 

 til the bee-poisoners shall have learned U> 

 consult their own interests by a general 

 or entire discontinuance of the practice. 

 As a "clincher." we have pleasure in 

 reproducing the following extracts from 

 (Jreen's Fruit Grower, sent to us by Presi- 

 dent W. F. Marks, of the New York wState 

 Association of Bee-keepers" Societies. 

 If any of our readers have fruit-growing 

 n('ighlK)rs who are still inclined to spray 

 trees while in bloom, it might not be 

 amiss to call their attention to this sum- 

 mary of revealed facts : 



SHAI.I. WE SPRAY TREES \<'HEN IN 

 BLOSSOM '? 



In the coming time to insure success in 

 frviit-growing the fruit-grower will be 

 obliged to manage his orchard in accord 

 with scientific principles. Perhaps r'armers 

 with little scientific knowledge will be able 

 to manage an acre or two so as to produce 

 all the fruit re<juired for home consump- 

 tion, but to grow fruit for market so 

 as to be able to compete with those who 

 grow fine, first-class fruit, he will be 

 obliged to know enough of entomology to 

 know what poisons to use to destroy the 

 different specie>^ of insects and also when 

 to apply those poisons to effect greatest 

 results and, at the same time do the least 

 harm to the trees or fruits. He will also 

 need to know enough of fungology to be 

 able tn combat the different kinds with 

 remedies, when those remedies will be 

 most effectual. As it happens, most of the 

 insect enemies come into active life with 

 the first warm days of spring. A few 

 warm days will hatch eggs in which the 

 insects have passed the winter, or cause 

 the larva, which have spent the winter in 

 pupa^ to leave their winter abodes and 

 commence crawling over the tree or 

 plant on which they have wintered, in 

 search of the tender leaves which form 

 their most appropriate food. Tlie instinct 

 of the maternal parent guides her to de- 

 })Osit her eggs in close proximity to suit- 

 ai)le food for the ycuind larva. Hence we 

 learn that some of the most formidable 

 insect enemies of the fruit cultuii-;t — the 

 bud-worm, the case-bearer, the apple 

 leaf-folder, the leaf-crumpler and several 

 others, a little l(\ss destructive, are ready 



