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AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



else in Utah. It produces bigger crops, 

 gives more and better milk than other 

 hay, and horses will keep fat on lucerne 

 alone, unless working very hard. It 

 makes muscle as well as fat, is easily 

 digested, and prevents hide-bound. A 

 good and cheap way to raise pork is to 

 feed the hogs on green lucerne and 

 water all summer. Of course, if you 

 have milk to throw away, throw it to 

 the hogs. The best method is to have a 

 good yard, giving them plenty of room ; 

 build enough warm and comfortable 

 pens, then build racks in the yard — say 

 a flat trough about 6 inches deep and 4 

 to 5 feet wide, any desirable length ; 

 build a V rack similar to a sheep-rack, 

 in the center of it, in which place the 

 green lucerne ; finish fattening in the 

 fall by giving them a little barley, rye 

 or corn meal. 



Hogs fed in this way make the pork 

 firmer and better than other methods. 

 At present it brings one cent per pound 

 more in this market than other pork. 

 The people here are working up to this 

 industry now. They raise rye on high, 

 dry land without water. Some turn the 

 hogs into the field, but for destruction 

 this would be about equal to putting the 

 chickens to pick the strawberry crop. 



A little lucerne is good for chickens. 

 To make a good bee-pasture, commence 

 to cut a part of the field just as it shows 

 signs of blooming, leaving the other half 

 for the bees,then cut alternately through 

 the season. Some seasons the bees 

 work in the lucerne more than others — 

 it is the same with ihe other honey- 

 plants. Sweet clover is one of the best. 



I would say, for the information of 

 any person not knowing, that lucerne 

 and alfalfa are one and the same plant. 



It is best, if possible, to get an even 

 crop on the start. If it is thick on the 

 ground, the stalks will be thin ; you will 

 get a little more hay or seed, but I think 

 the hay is better when the stalks are 

 less in number and more vigorous. So 

 if all the seed fails to grow, if it comes 

 up regularly, it will be all right. If the 

 soil is foul, drill in the seed so that it 

 can be kept clean until it gets a start, 

 then as its growth is so rapid it will soon 

 kill off everything else. For seed here 

 we save the second crop. 



One reason it is good for the South is, 

 that it will stand much hot, dry weather. 

 In speaking of the depth of tne roots, I 

 think about the average in ordinary soil 

 is about 4 to 5 feet, and it grows IK to 

 4 feet high. It is now 6 to 8 inches 

 high here in some places. In the South 

 it is about ready to cut. In spite of a 



two-days' snow-storm, with a light frost,, 

 this is a green country now, with rows- 

 of poplars and green fields. Utah is far 

 from being the desert she once was. 



I think if we drew a line from Port- 

 land to New York city, on the north side 

 of this line it would grow if planted by 

 the 10th of May ; up to this date it 

 would do any place if the soil could be 

 kept damp until the seed came up. 



Many of our friends have sent letters 

 and postal cards asking for the price of 

 samples of the seed. I will try to send a 

 little to all. If they wish to send stamps, 

 whatever they think enough, it will be 

 all right. We have lucerne seed on the 

 market now, but no sweet clover or 

 Rocky Mountain bee-plant seed. We 

 will have some in the fall. Sweet clover 

 seed is advertised for sale in the Bee 

 Journal. 



Salt Lake City, Utah, April 16. 



Mmh Prospects Anicullnral. 



Written for theA.merican Bee Journal 



BY MRS. A. L. HALLENBECK. 



I will try to tell of our prospects in 

 apiculture here. 



Last season was, for most of Nebraska 

 bee-keepers, not anything to brag about. 

 We had little honey until fall, and the 

 dry weather cut off the crop somewhat 

 short. Those who were alert and ready, 

 had some fine surplus fall honey, and 

 the bees plenty of stores for winter. 



Cold weather came early, and our bees 

 were put into winter quarters on Nov. 

 10th. Part are wintered on the sum- 

 mer stands, and the rest in a cave pre- 

 pared for their accommodation. About 

 Christmas all had a good flight, those in 

 the cave being carried out to enjoy a 

 cleansing flight and play-spell. At that 

 time all were alive and in good condi- 

 tion (we had no very severe cold before 

 that time), and we got them well packed 

 away before our "tough spell" of the 

 winter came in January. 



The first of March found all except 

 one colony ready to come out and make 

 an appropriation of the balmy air and 

 sunshine, which furnished them with 

 house-cleaning facilities, and a little 

 later (March 9th) brought out the blos- 

 soms on the soft maples. About three 

 weeks of warm weather started brood- 

 rearing in fine shape. A cold snap the 

 latter part of March did not help mat- 

 ters much, but we carried the single- 

 walled hives back into the cellar, so the 



