1871.] 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



135 



the queen and would kill her if not liberated. I 

 find it is best to let a hive remain undisturbed 

 ten days after liberating the new queen ; though 

 this is not always necessary. 



These are facts that have come under my own 

 notice. Facts are what we want — no theory. 

 Every man should write just what he knows to 

 be facts, and nothing more. We want no guess 

 work, that would be likely to lead new beginners 

 astray. Now for 



THE HONEY SEASON. 



In the spring the most of the colonies were not 

 very well supplied with honey, owing to the poor 

 honey season the previous year. And then the, 

 spring itself was unfavorable. By the time the 

 linden trees blossomed the honey in the .hives 

 was nearly all exhausted ; but the blossoms com- 

 ing two weeks earlier than common, just saved 

 our bees from starvation. The lindens gave us 

 the best yield of honey this season that they 

 have for many years, and this caused the bees to 

 swarm very liberally ; and about that time I be- 

 gan to expect a great honey yield this season. 

 But after that honey harvest was past, bees gath- 

 ered very little honey till the present tinie, owing 

 to the dry hot Aveather. Kow we are having fre- 

 quent showers, and tlie bees have commenced 

 storing honey quite briskly. I look yet for a lib- 

 eral yield of honey, provided tlie weather keeps 

 warm, with frequent showers. I must not forget 

 to tell you about one of my colonies, how it 

 gathered honey at the time of the linden blos- 

 soms. In ten days it filled a Langstroth hive, 

 ten frames, and two twenty (30) pound boxes. 



The honey season has closed with a fair yield 

 • — the best we have had for several years. 



MR. PnELPS' APIARY. 



I visited Mr. Phelps' apiary a few days ago. 

 He lives about twelve miles west of me, on ISkunk 

 river. He started last spring with some forty 

 colonies ; and the result of his oijerations is that 

 he has increased his number to upwards of eighty 

 stocks. lie told me that he had sold eighteen 

 hundred (1800) pounds of lu)ney, and lias now on 

 band, in his beehouse, two tons of honey in the 

 comb in frames, besides several bar. els of ex- 

 tracted honey. 



My bees are in fine condition to go into winter 

 quarters. J. W. Seay. 



Monroe, lotoa, Oct. 29, 1871. 



[Fur tlie American Beo Journiil.] 



Some luteresticg It^ms. 



RENEWAL or SUBSCRIPTION. 



Mr. Editor : — Enclosed please receive two dol- 

 lars, for volume seventh of the American Bee 

 Journal. I would have sent it long since, but 

 wished to give you at the same time my experi- 

 ence in wintering bees and introducing queens. 



wintering bees. 



I have tried wintering in the cellar for three 

 winters, and my cellar is a dry one ; but, iuvaiia- 



bly the combs became mouldy, and the bees 

 filthy from cellar confinement ; while those win- 

 tered on their summer stands, were without 

 exception found to be in good trim in the 

 spring. 



I never try to winter any colony not supjilied 

 with as much as thirty-five (85) pounds of honey, 

 clear of the hive that contains them. This is 

 easily ascertained by knowing the general 

 weiglit of the hives before putting a swarm in. 



My plan for wintering on their summer st;nds 

 is simple. I use the Langstroth hives — setting 

 them on several pieces of scantling, two l)y four 

 inches, placing the front piece flat and the rear 

 piece edgewise, and putting the hives on them, 

 facing the south or southeast. I then drive two 

 pieces say a Lith cut in the centre) on the west 

 sidp, near the corners of tlie hive, and on the east 

 and rear the same waj^, leaving the front open. 

 Next pack in oat straw (or any other sti-aw, or 

 liay) tight between those stakes and the hive, 

 after having first removed the slats from the 

 honey board, and covering the ^lonej' board 

 with carpet or any other cloth, to protect the 

 bees against cold and give them upward ventila- 

 tion. A strong swarm protected in this way, 

 would stand a '• Siberian winter." 



IKTRODUCrNG QUEENS. 



My plan for introducing queens has never 

 failed when fully carried out. In the first place, 

 I remove the queen I wish to sui)ersede, having 

 the queen that I wish to introduce ready in a 

 wire cage, with some half dozen workers of the 

 colony from which she was taken. Then insert 

 the cage between the fiames, having the ]iaper 

 plug of tlie cage so ti^dit that the bees cannot 

 dig her out. Use lotten wood smoke frefly, 

 from first to last. Just before, closing the hive 

 s})rinkle the whole swarm with a solution of 

 sugar in water, with plenty of grated nutmeg 

 to give it scent. Let the hive remain forty- 

 eight hours without furtlier disturliance ; at the 

 end of v.hich time give them another thoiough 

 smoking, sf) as to subdue them well. Then open 

 the hive, blow in smoke from the top. sprinkle 

 well witli sweetened nutmeg water, making sure 

 that the queen has been wetted with the solu- 

 tion. Now remove the plug from tlie cage, 

 cover up again, and let the queen come out at 

 pleasure, hi five or six days, or sometimes on 

 the third day after liberating the queen, ex- 

 amine the hive for any appearance of queen 

 cells, and destroy them if any are found. 



I do not claim this plan as original with me, 

 but I do claim it to be always successful. 

 the yield of honey. 



The honey season closed here abotit the first 

 of July, and the bees did nothing since tid 

 some time in September, when there was a re- 

 vival of pasturage on which the bees worked 

 about two weeks. The honey then gathered 

 was obtained mostly from heartsease,* tlie yield 

 from which was abundant here. 



*ProhnbIy the Viola Hriata, or pale vioUt, which is 

 comnioii in some sections westward, and bhmnis 

 from April to October, yielding uiore honey than 

 any other variety. — [Ed. 



