Aup. 7, 1902 



AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL 



503 



WINTEH AND SUMMER BBE-nODSE OF F. R. WEBSTER, OF CHESHIRE CO., N. H. 



If the theory was sound, a colony robbed of all its brood 

 would be in the best condition to feed queen-larvaj. But it 

 seems that a colony in normal condition, with lots of brood 

 of all ages, does the best work. Even after a colony has 

 been robbed of the gfreater part of the bees, in the shape of 

 a young swarm, it is still in a condition to keep warm and 

 properly feed a large number of growing mother-bees. 



I agree with Dr. Gallup in his closing remark on page 

 408 : To rear long-lived, healthy queens we must rear them 

 in a natural manner. It shall be my aim in the future, 

 more than it has been during the past three or four years, 

 to rear my queens from normally-stocked-up cells. How- 

 ever, we should not ignore the fact that Doolittleand others 

 are just as successful since practicing queen-rearing accord- 

 ing to the new methods, as they were before when queens 

 were reared naturally. 



The great majority of honey-producers have always 

 reared their queens according to nature, and do so now, but 

 it has not been discovered that the powers of the queens 

 have materially changed or increased. I don't anticipate 

 that we will accomplish wonders. It must have been an 

 exceptional case when it was necessary to provide a hive of 

 the capacity of three full Langstroth brood-chambers to 

 hold the bees of one young swarm, as Dr. Gallup says in a 

 previous article. If it was possible, and we should succeed 

 in changing the nature of the honey-bee to such an extent 

 our bee-supply dealers would have to get up different pat- 

 terns for the hives to be used in the future. 



Mr. Frank Benton suggested, some years ago, that the 

 queen-nymph might absorb nourishment through her abdo- 

 men, or the part which rests upon the food. Dr. Gallup 

 claims this process takes place through the umbilical cord. 

 It can not be said in the true sense that the nymph rests 

 upon the food, for the food is above the insect, from which 

 it would fall if it were not held in its position in so^e man- 

 ner. The umbilical cord may serve this purpose. It looks 

 highly improbable to me that the queen-bee in its nymph 

 stage should take nourishment in any fashion. Other in- 

 sects pass this stage of their lives without taking food or 

 having access to it ; why should the queen-bee be an excep- 

 tion ? On the other hand, it would seem like wasting 

 material if this — what seems like an accumulation— ^which 

 is found at the base of each queen-cell after the insect has 

 emerged — should not have served a purpose. 



There are a great many things connected with our pur- 

 suit still hidden in mystery. Many will remain so for all 

 time. However, this should not hinder us, but rather urge 

 us on — to work trying to solve some of them. All who en- 

 gage in such work are deserving credit, although they may 

 fail to find the real truth. 



Ontario Co., N. Y., June 27. 



A Bee-House for Winter and Summer. 



BY K. K. WEBSTER. 



I speak of wintering bees not only because I feel that I 

 have been successful in my plan, but because I am con- 

 vinced that others have failed to meet with success by other 

 methods, or I might say because they had no method at all. 

 Neither do they try to form one. If you have 20 head of 

 cattle to winter you must prepare to have a suitable place 

 to keep them ; you must also have from 20 to 30 tons of hay, 

 grain, etc. You are not expected to be to this great outlay 

 to winter your bees, for if in a suitable place they will sup- 

 ply the necessary food for wintering themselves. But ac- 

 cording to my way of thinking this is not all that is required 

 of you. 



You must provide a suitable winter shelter to protect 

 them from the elements of our long, cold and stormy win- 

 ters. For this purpose I build a bee-house, and it is for bees 

 only. The accompanying rough drawing will give a fair 

 idea of its construction. It is 8 feet between each space, 

 double-deck, and intended to hold 4 hives between each 

 space. It is 6 feet wide, with 2 platforms 30 inches wide 

 for holding hives, with a slant to the front of l|i inches ; 

 leaving the balance of space behind the hives for a walk. 



My bees are kept in this house in winter as well as sum- 

 mer. The hives are always dry, which, in my opinion, is 

 much better for wintering than one that is cold and frosty. 



As soon as stormy weather begins I close the two open 

 spaces with heavy canvas, which keeps it so dark that the 

 bees never leave the hives. The warm sun warms the air 

 through this canvas, and the air is always pure. 



This house faces the south-east, while in the rear a high, 

 uneven bank furnishes the best shelter from the northwest. 

 My building standing to the northeast is another shelter 

 from that direction. 



Two or three times during the winter I raise the can- 

 vas curtain and allow the bees a good flight ; at the same 

 time I tip back the hives and brush off all dead bees from 

 the bottom-boards. 



I do not advise others to do as I do, but I will say that 

 while others in this locality have lost nearly all their bees I 

 have met with small reverses, and shall continue as I began 

 until I have proven to myself that I am following the wrong 

 trail. 



The wise man profits by experience, while the otherwise 

 spend their time in experimenting. What the foolish man 

 does in the end the wise man should do in the beginning. 



I am a subscriber to the American Bee Journal, and 

 find in it many items of merit which are of great interest 

 and profit to every bee-keeper of our great country. 



Cheshire Co. ,'N. H. 



Bees Dying from Spraying TVIiile in Bloom. 



by c. h. lake. 



Editor Amekic.\n Bee Journal : — 



The first paragraph that caught my eye in the July 3rd 

 edition of the American Bee Journal was the Richland Co., 

 Wisconsin, case of "Poisoning from Spraying.'" and I take 

 the liberty of being one of the many who will probably 

 comply with your invitation to answer the questions there 

 put forth. 



1. The effect of spraying with any of the arsenical solu- 

 tions, the trees or any kind of plants the bees work on, 

 will be death to the bee that works on the flowers in quest 

 of honey. 



2. Would it affect the working bees ? Yes, it would kill 

 them. 



3. Would it affect the brood, etc. ? It would kill jvery 

 larva fed with the honey gathered from sprayed fruit-trees. 



4. Would the brood hatch ? No, it would die within 24 

 hours after the nurse-bees fed it to any hatching brood, be- 

 sides killing the nurse-bees. 



5. Would it produce healthy bees if it should hatch ? 

 This I cannot answer, as in the case I am about to relate 

 but few bees hatched at all, after the trees began to blossom. 



I base these replies upon mj' own experience of 4 years 

 ago. I had a small apiary of 39 colonies of as fine Italians, 

 and in as fine condition, as I ever saw, when the spring 

 opened. I had wintered them under a covered shed, with 

 plenty of protection all about them, even leaves packed 

 snug beneath the stands and between the hives, with a we 



