114 



Feb. 7. 1907 



1 "^^^c^^^pAmgrican ^ee Journal 



what uneasy, flying out in unseason- 

 able weather. Whether this uneasiness 

 is caused by the bees' food being al- 

 most exclusively buckwheat, is hard to 

 say, but there is no question that a 

 nice, warm day (which we are not 

 likely to have for some time) would be 

 welcomed by bee-keepers in this 

 locality. 



A nice blanket of snow to cover the 

 clover would also be a benefit, for, 

 although the clover is in no immediate 

 danger, if we happen to get severely 

 cold weather, frost penetrates very 

 deeply into the ground, and this condi- 

 tion greatly tends to produce "heav- 

 ing " of the alsike in the early spring. 

 We had no snow last winter, and if the 

 result of last season's honey crop is a 

 safe criterion, certainly prospects are 

 none too assuring for next season's re- 

 turns. 



ing hand in this matter of eradicating or a dozen inspectors to help us in the 

 foul brood, whether we have but one fight. 



Bee-Inspectors for Ontario 



As will be noticed in the report of 

 the Ontario convention, next season 

 will see a radical change in methods 

 of foul-brood inspection for Ontario. 

 Whether the proposed changes will 

 work out well in practise remains to be 

 seen. 



Formerly, Mr. McEvoy was inspec- 

 tor, with Mr. Gemmill as assistant, 

 who, however, was not often called 

 upon. This year it is proposed to have 

 6 men in the field, each having a speci- 

 fied territory to work in. At present 

 it is understood, I believe, that Mr. 

 McEvoy is to have a "say" in the 

 matter of selecting the other 5 men ; 

 also to have a certain amount of super- 

 vision over the work, and act as referee 

 in case of any disputes. However, as 

 far as I am aware, the Department has 

 not as yet definitely decided upon the 

 course of action to be taken. 



While at the convention the Minis- 

 ter of Agriculture expressed the view 

 that there would be no difficulty in get- 

 ting 6 capable men to take charge of 

 the work ; and right here I confess to 

 being a bit skeptical about the matter. 

 In the majority of cases the men most 

 qualified for the work would not think 

 of leaving their own business and tak- 

 ing up the work of inspection. 



One of the arguments against hav- 

 ing one man to do all the inspecting, 

 was that such work should be done 

 during fruit-bloom, or at other times 

 when honey was coming in ; and 

 that it was physically impossible 

 for one man to be at all places 

 where his services were required, in 

 these limited periods. As a matter of 

 fact, the same arguments hold good if 

 6 men are employed, for very few bee- 

 keepers would care to leave their yards 

 during a honey-flow, unless they had 

 competent help to leave in charge. 



Of course, these views are merely 

 speculation on my part, and possibly 

 we may be surprised when we learn 

 who are to take up the work. At any 

 rate, this matter of inspection is a work 

 that deserves the earnest, tactful atten- 

 tion of the Government, and it should 

 be gratifying to the bee-keepers of 

 Ontario to know that the Department 

 is taking the interest it is in our busi- 

 ness. Certainly, every bee-keeper in 

 Ontario should be ready to lend a help- 



Send Questions either to the ollii-e of the American Bee ..lournai, or to 



Dr. C. C. Miller, Marengo, 111. 



Ji^° Dr. Miller does not answer Questions by mail. 



How Many Colonies for the Pasture ? 



My bees have at least 300 acres of clover 

 and alfalfa within 3 miles. How many colo- 

 nies can I pasture to be safe? Utah. 



Answer. — That's one of the very hard 

 thing's to say. You don't say whether you 

 mean red or white clover. If you mean red, 

 it probably doesn't count for much, while 

 while clover counts heavily in good years, 

 although some years it blooms a plenty and 

 yet yields no nectar. If you had said 300 

 acres of white clover, meaning 300 acres 

 solidly occupied with white clover, I should 

 guess that 200 colonies might get good pick- 

 ing. Alfalfa varies more. If it is all used 

 for raising seed, then it probably counts as 

 much as white clover. If used for hay, it 

 counts for less, and may count for nothing, 

 depending upon the times when the hay is 

 cut. If always cut just before it blooms, then 

 it counts for nothing; if cut when in full 

 bloom, it may count perhaps on being enough 

 for 100 colonies. You will easily see that as 

 you slate it, the whole thing is a varying 

 problem. It may be mostly white clover, or 

 it may be mostly alfalfa, and the alfalfa may 

 be treated so differently as to make a big dif- 

 ference in the amount of nectar got from it. 

 My guesses may not be reliable, and it any 

 one can give anything more reliable I will 

 cheerfully yield the floor. 



Storing and Capping Glucose and 

 Sugar Syrup 



I heard a beekeeper say a few days ago 

 that bees would not carry in glucose, and that 

 they could cap neither glucose nor sugar 

 syrup. I have supposed all the time that 

 they would cap any sweet they stored in the 

 cells. I have had no occasion to test this. 

 What is your experience? Illinois. 



Answer. — I can give no positive answer 

 from personal experience, for, although, I've 

 done a lot of fool things with bees I never fed 

 glucose. I have, however, fed sugar syrup, 

 and had it sealed. Others have said they 

 could not get bees to take glucose, and I 

 don't remember seeing a report of any one 

 who had been successful in getting Oees to 

 store it. Even if they could be induced to 

 store it, it does not necessarily follow that 

 they would seal it. for they have been known 

 to till cells without sealing them for a long 

 time, if, indeed, they ever did. 



Wood Splints for Staying Comb 

 Foundation 



What are your splints for staying founda- 

 tion i How are they used? 



P. E. Island. 



Answer.— They are splints 1-16 of an inch 

 square, of basswuod or some other straight- 

 grained wood, about '4 inch shorter than the 

 distance from top to bottom bar. It would 



be full better to have them touch both top 

 and bottom bar, hut it would be more difficult 

 to put them in. They are put in something 

 like 3 inches apart, the 3 outer ones within 

 half an inch to an inch of the end-bars. The 

 splints are put in a dish of hot wax and left 

 there till all frothing and bubbling ceases, 

 and then they are lifted, one by one, by a pair 

 of pincers, laid upon the foundation, which 

 must be properly supported upon a board, 

 and an assistant presses each splint into the 

 foundation by means of the edge of a little 

 board kept constantly wet. If put in while 

 too hot, there will not be a good coating of 

 wax on the splints. The foundation enters 

 the groove in the top bar and goes down 

 through the bottom-bar, which is in 3 parts, 

 the lower edge of the foundation being 

 squeezed between the 3 parts. The advan- 

 tage is that the comb is built down to the 

 bottom-bar. If, however, such a frame of 

 foundation be given at a time when they are 

 gathering nothing, the bees will gnaw a pas- 

 sage over the bottom-bar. 



Colors for Painted Hives 



Should I paint my hives all the same color? 

 It so, what color would you advise? I see 

 from reading the American Bee Journal that 

 some bee-keepers advise painting hives dif- 

 ferent colors, as one color bothers the bees in 

 locating their hive. Indiana, 



.\nswer. — There would be some advantge 

 to the bees in the way of recognizing their 

 hives if they were of different colors, but it is 

 hardly necessary. Bees locate their hives by 

 means of surrounding objects, and except on 

 a bleak plain utterly without any surrounding 

 objects there is very little difficulty where the 

 hives are 5 feet or more apart from center to 

 center. But you can just as well have double 

 the number of hives on the same ground by 

 having them in pairs. Set two hives close to- 

 gether on the same stand, then leave a space 

 of 3 feet or more, then another pair, and so 

 on. Ground may be still further economized 

 by placing another row close to the Inrst, let- 

 ting the hives stand back to back. 



There is probably no better color, all things 

 considered, than white, using good white 

 lead. 



Changing Supers Over to T-supers- 

 Overstocklng 



I. I am interested in the T-super. I think 

 it is a good one to adopt. I wish to ask if I 

 can make T-supers out of my 10-frame supers 

 (dimensioas 16x20 inches outside) to make it 

 pay, and how to do this the best way. lam 

 a novice, or was 3 years ago, and was some- 

 what puzzled in the American Bee Journal, as 

 was Mr. M. F. Soule. I think if he can have 

 Dr. Miller's " Forty Years .\mong the Bees,'' 

 and read it, he will soon pick it up. At least, 

 I did so, and I am no scholarat all, and am ib 



