THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER 



November 



CHAT. 



BY BESSIE I.. PUTNAM. 



OuTAviTTiNG THE Ants. — The presence 

 of even a small quantity of honey is a 

 sure test of the proximity of ants, for 

 there seems to be nothing which will call 

 them so quickly. By placing each leg 

 of the table, on which honey is stored, 

 in a dish of water, moving the table 

 away from the wall, one may feel reason- 

 ably secure ; yet the wise little insects 

 are sometimes caught building bridges 

 of their own bodies, if the channel is not 

 too wide. A chalk mark drawn around 

 the case will keep them away for a 

 time, for ants reluctantly cross a chalk 

 line. In our experience the most suc- 

 cessful plan has been to scatter sprigs 

 of tansy about freely. Though one 

 might fear that the odor would taint the 

 iioney, we have never found it to do so; 

 neither have the ants ever invaded 

 honey thus protected. However, the 

 antidote has only been tested one season, 

 and while it has been thus far successful, 

 it may in time wear out, as did the chalk 

 line. 



NoM-swARMiNG. — For the past two or 

 three years a friend has tried with suc- 

 cess to prevent swarming by giving 

 plenty of room; two, three, sometimes 

 as high as five supers being on the hives. 

 He has had very little swarming and 

 thinks it due to ihe fact that the bees 

 were kept busy making honey. This 

 method, especially to the amateur, is 

 much easier than dividing or cuttine: out 

 queen-cells. These bees, it might be 

 proper to add, were under an apple tree, 

 the low-growing branches of wliich were 

 pruned only enough to prevent incon- 

 venience to bee and master, and were 

 thus shielded from the direct rays of the 

 sun: though at noon its rays sometimes 

 seemed quite warm, as the hives face the 

 South. 



Tidiness in the Hive, — Truly, the 

 bee is in many ways a model of neatness 

 and accuracy. How ({uickly a dead bee 



or foreign substance is removed from the 

 hive; with what care and precision is 

 every cell constructed. Yet, despite 

 this general rule, there are occasions in 

 which the exception seems to emphasize 

 its validity. Combs will sometimes get 

 in crosswise; and to guard against this, 

 as well as to economize the time of the 

 bees, "starter" is now universally used 

 in the section boxes. 



In families where a quantity of honey 

 is annually consumed, even the low 

 prices of new section boxes do not deter 

 from the use of old ones. Sometimes, 

 too, unless the order for new supplies is 

 sent very early in the season, it is not 

 possible to get it filled in time and one 

 is compelled to resort to the old boxes, 

 whether he wishes or not; for our largest 

 dealers are invariably rushed during the 

 early part of the honey-flow. Now, the 

 interesting part of this is that the bees 

 seem to have a decided preference for 

 storing their choicest honey in the 

 bright, new sections. The white combs 

 which command fancy prices and are 

 almost faultless in construction, are not 

 found in the old, weather- and- pro- 

 polis- stained section boxes, but in 

 the white ones, fresh from the mill. 

 Moral — if we would have first-class honey 

 we must supply first-class material. 



As an experiment, a section, stained 

 and thickly covered with propolis was 

 recently placed in a dish containing 

 ashes and water and put upon the stove 

 to heat. Until it became hot. nearly boil- 

 ing, little effect could be observed; but 

 when a high temperature was reached, 

 the propolis disappeared. Some wax, 

 which had been purposely allowed to re- 

 main, still adhered, but was readily 

 removed with a knife, being quite soft. 

 The section was rinsed in cold water and 

 set in the sun to dry, coming out of 

 the cleansing process in good shape and 

 with almo.st no work save placing in and 

 removing from the ashes and water. 

 Contrary to expectation, it warped little 

 in drying — not enough to interfere with 

 its use; though 1 think if cleaning a 



