1!)01 



THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER 



191 



than exposed to the hot sun. The pro- 

 tection is an advantage to tlie hives 

 themselves. The expo^sure to the rain 

 and then to the hot sun is not calcuhited 

 to mal\0 a hive or any other wood-work 

 last forever. No trouble about covers 

 warping or leaking; and it is undoubtedly 

 an advantage to the bees. A mere box 

 exposed to the excessive heat of the 

 summer days, the coolness and dampness 

 of the night, thoroughly soaked in rainy 

 days, is not the most comfortable lodg- 

 ing that could be devised. 



In the Summer the hives in the rucher 

 are protected from the excessive heat ; 

 in the Winter they are sheltered against 

 the high winds, the rain and snow, and 

 are undoubtedly much more comfortable 

 for their inhabitants. No need of the 

 cellar; In the coldest parts of Europe 

 all the packing done consists in putting 

 straw between and above the hives and 

 also behind the latter, kept in place by a 

 few slats or any convenient arrangement. 

 Somebody might ask, how about tiering 

 up supers '? Very little section-honey 

 is raised, it is all extracted. The hives 

 are either two-story, the upper one for 

 surplus ; or one-story with twenty or 

 more tall frames (a dummy is used) 

 something on the Long Idea hive. Some- 

 times strfiw hives or mere boxes. 



Adrian Getaz. 



CUBA. 



A clipping from a newspaper, printed 

 in Spanish, sent us by Mr. Ramon 

 Valdes, of Havana, gives a detailed list 

 of all the bee-keepers and the number 

 of colonies kept in the Province of Pinar 

 del Rio, the total of which is as follows : 

 Six foreigners (Americans), and 1(5.5 na- 

 tives having 3,888 colonies in native or 

 .unimproved hives, and 1,133 improved 

 or imported hives. 



Several Americans in Cuba have ob- 

 served that bees in that country do not 

 work with the vim of Northern bees ; 

 but. rather, like the people, appear to 

 work from necessity instead of choice. 

 The actuating motive, however, is unim- 

 portant so long as the surplus crop sur- 

 passes that secured in Northern 

 latitudes. 



Dr. Viete, of Cienfuegos, made the 

 publication office of The Bee-keeper a 

 pleasant call last month. 



JAMAICA. 

 Being in the tropics, we have no win- 



ter, and some of our best honey is 

 gathered during the months when bees 

 at the North are under the snow or in 

 the cellar. In November we have the 

 beginning of the flow from the bellflower 

 or "Christmas pop," as it is locally 

 called, which is the same as the bell- 

 flower or Aguinaldo of Cuba, and it 

 lasts through into January, when we 

 get, as a rule, about two weeks heavy 

 flow of logwood. The bellflower flow 

 comes on gradually through November 

 thus giving the apiarist a chance to build 

 up all colonies so they can secure a 

 goodly surplus from bellflower, but be 

 "boiling" with bees when logwood opens 

 up its myriad blooms in January. Bell- 

 flower is not found in all parts of the 

 Island; but nowhere more plentifully 

 than in the district surrounding my own 

 locality. The bellflower Is a member of 

 the morningglory family, and is certainly 

 the most floriferous member, as when in 

 full bloom in December the vines are a 

 mass of white flowers every morning. 

 The bees begin work at daylight or 

 even a wee bit before, and for several 

 hours the bees do a roaring business 

 that gladdens the heart of the apiarist. 

 The flowers not only yield honey, but 

 the bees come in looking like they had 

 just come from a flour barrel, for they 

 are dusted all over with the white pollen; 

 it even interferes with their sight by 

 getting into their eyes so that they 

 often miss the entrance and light on the 

 ground or grass and rub the pollen from 

 their eyes before being able to "see 

 straight." When the "rush" is on, the 

 bees do not bother to bring in much 

 pollen, except on their backs ; but as 

 the flow slacks up for the day, they 

 bring it in freely. By ten o'clock, as a 

 rule, the flow is over for the day, and 

 they have nothing to do until the next 

 morning, and as a consequence I have 

 known them to work like ijeavers in the 

 morning and rob in the afternoon. As 

 this flow comes during our cool weather, 

 the brood-nest is almost sure to be 

 clogged with honey, unless at the be- 

 ginning of the flow the apiarist has 

 watched all colonies closely and given 

 the queen ample >'oom. It is also best to 

 have a young and vigorous queen of 

 good working strain; and if the hive is 

 snug and warm as it should be, the brood 

 nest will not need to be touched, as a 

 rule, after the first two weeks of the 

 bellflower flow, although some colonies 

 will occasionally persist in keeping the 

 brood -chamber filled with honey, ill 

 which case I put a frame of foundation 

 into the center of the brood-nest every 



