THE AMERICAN APICULTURIST. 



187 



2. Would place the trap on the hive 

 at any time when there appears to be 

 a large number of drones in any par- 

 ticular colony. Place the trap on the 

 hive from 11 a. :\r. to 3 p. M. Let the 

 drones remain in the trap till next 

 morning, then dig a hole in the ground, 

 dump the drones in and cover them 

 over. 



3. None that I know of without 

 mashing the combs asbeel^eepers used 

 to do thirty yeais ago, or before the 

 advent of the extractor. 



4. Divide at swarming time, or 

 later if you want to feed.] 



Asliton, R. I. 



Editor Api : 



1. I would like to ask you about 

 two hives of bees tliat 1 lost last 

 winter. There is quite a lot of 

 honey in the couibs sumewhat soiled 

 Now will the old combs do to use 

 for new swarms? 



2. If bees are put on such combs 

 will not some of the old hone}^ be 

 worked over and stored for winter 

 and injure the bees? 



[1. Wash the combs thoroughly in 

 warm water and place them where they 

 will dry quickly. All the thin, sour 

 honey will be removed by the opera- 

 tion and the combs will be sweet and 

 clean and will not injure the bees if 

 used again. 



2. Some of the old honey might get 

 stored and capped and not used next 

 winter, but nut much of it if the 

 combs are treated to a good cleansing 

 as advised. 



Barton, Vt. 



HUNTING bees; INTRODUCING 



QUEENS. 



Please give directions and de- 

 scription of apparatus necessary to 

 hunt bees. 



What is the best way for a nov- 

 ice to introduce a laying queen, 

 having but one swarm and no other 

 bees within two or three miles. 



[Read the back numbers of the 

 " Api ", also the methods given in this 

 issue for introducing queens l)y Dr. 

 Miller and G. W. Demaree. 



Some one of our readers made this 

 inquiry : 

 " Will a queenless colony carry in pollen ?" 

 [Yes, during the early stages of the 

 queenless condition of a colony the 

 bees will carry considerable pollen ; 

 but, as the bees grow old, less pollen 

 will be seen going into the hive, and 

 Avhat is being carried in will be in very 

 small pellets, so small, in fact, that it 

 can hardly be seen.] 



GLEAmNaS 

 FB03I COBRESPONDENCE. 



Cedar Springs, Mich. 



Mr. Alley : 



I like your strain of Italian bees, and 

 all who have seen them admire them. 

 Please give price for i dozen queens. 



I packed my bees in the following 

 manner : Half-inch bee space over the 

 brood frames, wire screen on top, 

 wooUeu blankets on screens and chaff 

 cushion over all. 



Wm. McL. 



Angelica, N. Y. 



Friend Alley : — 



Have never wintered bees so suc- 

 cessfully, as during the past winter. 

 Hav'n't lost a colony ! Each one 

 stronger, if anvthing, thau it was last 

 fall : \V ho can' beat "that ? 



I wintered my bees on their summer 

 stands, and have come to the conclusion 

 that is the way to winter them. The 

 air around the apiary is fairly "yel- 

 low," to-day with the" "little fellows," 

 and I think the prospects are yuod for 

 a heavy flow of honey this season. 

 Now. if some aspiring bee writer 

 would only tell us how to get rid of 

 our honey at a remunerative price, 

 what a blessing it would be for that 

 " aspiriug bee-writer" I But, as it is, 

 " it might be worse," and certainly both 

 bees and beekeeper ought to be happy. 

 Reader. 



Argijle, Xeio York. 

 Please send your 32 page catalogue. 

 Am sorry you have left your Price- 

 List out of the Api. It has been a 

 destructive winter to bees in this sec- 

 tion ; no matter whether Avinlered in 

 cellars or on summer stands. Tiie 

 loss has been from I, to |. There was 

 a heavy honey dew last fall. Some at- 

 tribute the loss to that. 



0. L. WiincoJiB. 



