Jan. 17, 1907 



American Hee Journal k 



year wc li.ivc practically only ducks 

 and bees to care for, in live stock, and 

 the fruit and writing. So again I feel 

 hopeful of unhurried, happy hours with 

 my bees next year. Wc have recently 

 not had nearly so large a crop of honey 

 as in seasons past. 1 think that the 

 young apple-trees have grown so as to 

 shade our bee-yard too much, and 

 that the felling of the basswoods and 

 other varieties in our neighborhood, 

 tend to lighten the crop. Also that per- 

 haps our yard needs rcqueening. It may 

 be "run down," as they are native bees 

 with a cross of Italians about 20 years 

 ago. 



I know that 4 miles from us bees do 

 fine. There is a splendid range of sweet 

 clover and a large field of alfalfa and 

 grain and buckwheat. The small apiaries 

 scattered through that section do well. 

 They run for comb honey and produce 

 more pounds of it per colony than do 

 mine in extracted. They are the na- 

 tive bees, are never requeened, and are 

 given very little attention. This is a 

 new experience for Clovernook, as, until 

 recently, we produced away ahead the 

 heaviest crops af any apiary in northern 

 New York, and near-by apiaries in Can- 

 ada. We usually run some 80 colonies, 

 but this year they have dwindled to 58. 

 From these we produced only about 500 

 pounds of white and Soo pounds of dark 

 honey. From the same number of colo- 

 nies, or a half-dozen more, in former 

 times, we harvested between 4 and 5 tons 

 With so nice an outfit as Clovernook's, 

 we can not afford to lose our record and 

 our good income, and must get to work 



in the spring, ■md bring our yard up to 

 its former IiIkIi standard. 



I will take this opportunity to wish 

 one and all — sisters and brothers — a 

 Happy New War, and to hope that 

 those of us will I have had a good 1906 

 will succeed in liaving a still better 

 1907; and that our misfortunes may 

 hold for us "a precious jewel" in ex- 

 perience, by wliicli we may mount next 

 year into tin- sunshine of prosperity. 



I'UANCES E. WllEF.LKR. 



Clinton Co., N. Y., Dec. 12, 1906. 



It comes as a sort of disappointment 

 that the thief, Procrastination, should 

 have prevented you from routing com- 

 pletely the enemy, for one can fancy that 

 it would be rather an agreeable sensa- 

 tion to be routed by so pleasant a router. 

 That's one of the nice things about bee- 

 keepers — however fierce the combat over 

 this or that plan or principle, the com- 

 batants become only the closer friends. 



It is perhaps well that you did not tell 

 us in advance that there was any ques- 

 tion whether bees and White Wyan- 

 dottes could both hold the field, for the 

 sisters would have been in unpleasant 

 suspense lest the larger birds should 

 win the day. 



It is doubtful that the shade of the 

 apple-trees lessens your crops. Loss of 

 basswood may, and very likely fresh 

 blood would be a good thing. But aside 

 from all that there are variations in the 

 seasons that one can not account for, 

 and next season may be one of your 

 best. Get at least one new queen, and 

 then hope. 



touthern 



.)»'' 



Conducted by Louis H. Scholl, New Braunstels, Tex. 



January Texas Honey-Plants 



It is of much value for every bee- 

 keeper to know his honey-plants, when 

 they bloom, and their value to his bees. 

 Here in Texas we have some plants 

 blooming practically the whole year, that 

 are of some value to the bee-keeper. 

 Even in the month of December, the 

 mistletoe — about which everybody knows 

 — comes into bloom. It is of value for 

 its pollen. This is soon followed by 

 others in January, and by many more as 

 the season advances. 



My collections contain specimens of 

 most of our important honey-plants, and 

 of these I have made a card catalog 

 from which I will each month give the 

 names of the plants blooming at that 

 time, together with their distribution 

 in the State, as far as is possible, and 

 their value as honey or pollen yielders. 

 I should be glad to hear from others 

 about the honey-plants of their respec- 



tive localities, not only in this but in 

 other Southern States. 



American Mistletoe. 



Phoradendron flavescens ( Pursh ) 

 Nutt. American Mistletoe. Family 

 Loranthaccae. Mistletoe Family. This is 

 a shrubby, evergreen, parasitic plant on 

 branches of trees, such as the elms, oaks, 

 mesquite, bois de Arc, and others. It 

 has jointed and much-branched stems, 

 thick and firm green leaves. The flow- 

 ers are small and greenish yellow. The 

 fruit is a small, white, viscid berry. It 

 grows in bunches or clusters, and is 

 somewhat odd and pretty in appearance, 

 hence much used for decorative pur- 

 poses, especially during the Christmas 

 holidays. 



Mistletoe is the first source of the 

 season, beginning to bloom in Decem- 

 ber and into January, yielding an 

 abundance of bright yellow pollen and 

 honey, which makes it valuable for 

 early brood-rearing. It is widely dis- 



tributed throughout the entire State o£ 

 Texas. 



I'.usii Honey-Suckle. 



Loniccra franrantissima, Lindle. Bush 

 Honey-suckle. Family CaprifoHaceae. 

 Honey-suckle family. A shrubby vine, 

 cultivated, with yellowish-white flowers, 

 blooming in January. Honey-yield ex- 

 tremely early and also pollen. Much 

 visited by bees and valuable to stimu- 

 late the bees if the weather is favorable. 

 Throughout Texas. 



Triple-Leaved Barberry. 



Barbcris Irifoliata, Moric. Triple- 

 leaved Barberry. Family Berberidac. 

 Barberry family. 



An evergreen shrub with yellow wood, 

 growing 4 to 6 feet high, and often 

 forming large thickets. The leaves are 

 cut into 3's, and these are lobed with 

 3 to 5 spines. The flowers are yellow, 

 and are borne in clusters close to the 

 stems. The berries, about as large as 

 peas, and red in color, are the fruit. 

 These are sweet and acid when ripe, 

 and can be eaten. The fruit is much 

 used for preserves, jellies, and for bar- 

 berry wine. "Agberites" is the common 

 Mexican name for this shrub. It is 

 found mostly on gravelly slopes and 

 foot-hills, from the Gulf Coast to the 

 Limpia Mountains, according to Coul- 

 ter. It yields honey and pollen in 

 abundance, and is the best of our early 

 bloomers for brood-rearing, blooming 

 from the latter part of January into- 

 February. 



From Ireland— Reading- Bee- 

 Papers 



The editor of the Irish Bee Journal 

 has sent me several marked copies of 

 his paper, calling attention to several ab- 

 stracts (?) which he has made from the 

 American Bee Journal. This is much 

 appreciated, and we understand his good 

 meaning. We shall use our " honest 

 opinion" and investigate the matter of 

 "keeping bees by reading one or more 

 bee-journals," etc., and report as soon 

 as the results have been obtained. Yes, 

 'tis true it makes a difference whether 

 "a bee-journal is filled up with stuff suit- 

 able for a dime novel," and also whether 

 such journals are "paid for, or gotten 

 for nothing, free of charge." My "hon- 

 est opinion" is that bees can be kept bet- 

 ter by reading one or more good bee- 

 papers than without them, whether you 

 pay for them or get them for nothing. 



Honey as a Healtli-Food. — This 

 is a 16-page honey-pamphlet intended to help 

 increase the demand for honey. The first 

 part of it contains a short article on " Honey 

 as Food," written by Dr. C. C. Miller. It 

 tells where to keep honey, how to liquefy it, 

 etc. The last part is devoted to " Honey- 

 Cookins Recipes" and "Remedies Ufing- 

 Honey." It should be widely circulated by 

 those selling honey. The more the people are 

 educated on the value and uses of honey, the 

 more honey they will buy. 



Prices, prepaid— Sample copy for a 2oent 

 stamp; 50 copies for 70 cents; 100 for-*1.25; 

 2.50 for $2 25 ; 500 for $4.00 ; or 1000 for $7.50. 

 Your business eard printed free at the bottom 

 of front page on all orders for 100 or more 

 copies. Send all orders to the office of the 

 American Bee Journal. 



