?44 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTUHE. 



Sept. 



queen; and on May Uth, after trying- every thing- 

 else, I could not get ahead of the robbers; so I 

 tried dealing on the rog-nc plan. I moved the col- 

 ony, that was doing- the most robbing-, from its 

 stand, fin '1 j)laecd the July swarm in ils (jlace; and 

 I found that it was not long- until 1 had a g-ood 

 working- colony, and they filled the first story of 

 the Simplicity ; and on the 11th of this month they 

 threw out a very large swarm. I then examined 

 the albinos, and found that they had 5 queen-cells 

 on hand. Now, what 1 want to know is. How am I 

 to deal with those 5 cells? as I shall like to save the 

 queens if i can, and introduce them into some 

 black colonies that I have; and I know that, if left 

 to themselves, they will be destroyed, or possibly 

 swarm out, as it is too late for that kind of busi- 

 ness. J think that, by feeding- the swarm that 

 came off on the 11th, I may Ije able to carry it over 

 the winter; they are doing good work, i i)ut them 

 on fdn., and they are drawing- it out very fast, and 

 g-athering- very fast. 



I am clerking- in a store in this place; and at 

 night, after working-hours, I have made 5 chatl' 

 hives and 4 Simplicities; and this winter I e.vpect to 

 make more of the chafl' for next season. 



A. Ti. Lane. 



Duncannon, Perry Co., Pa., Aug-, is, iSi-ii. 



Friend L., there is no way yon can utilize 

 queen-cells vmless yon have qneenless colo- 

 nies to receive them. A lamp nursery would 

 receive them, it is true ; but you would be 

 in just as much need of (jueens to receive 

 the hatched queens as you were before. It 

 does not need, liowever, a whole colony of 

 bees to take care of a queen-cell until the 

 queen begins to lay, and lierein is tlie saving 

 of utilizing nuclei. One of your black col- 

 onies should have been divided into two or 

 more parts a few days before queen-cells 

 were ready to be removed. 



BKES VERSUS FRUIT. 



Mr. A. Cameron, on page 019, has suggested a 

 g-i-and idea. In his defence of bees. No. ;J, it should 

 say, " Without bees or <ither hixectf^, many kinds of 

 bloom would not bear," etc. 



In No. 3, he cays they do suck the juice from iiU 

 broken fruit. The word all should not be used, as 

 there are nianj' kinds of fruits they do not work 

 on. 



There is some ignoramous prejudice working- up 

 against me, that my bees work (Ki apple-bloom so 

 that our trees do not bear enough apjiles. Never- 

 theless I have nearly 0.1 acres of standard orchard, 

 and a general nursery stock for sale, besides the 

 orchard. How jnconsistant, that I would go to the 

 expense of raising- a large apple-orchard, then keep 

 a lot of bees to hinder it from producing me an 

 income! Send me a sample of Mr. Cameron's 

 hints, as soon as printed. E. Liston. 



Virgil City, Cedar Co., Mo., Aug. r,, 1880. 



FEEDING MILK DUUINO A DROUGHT; UOVf BEES 

 I, IKE IT. 



You wish to know if any one has tried feeding- 

 milk during- a drought. Yes; and I will give you 

 my method of doing- so. I take new milk, direct 

 from the cows, boil it a little, which makes the clot 

 rise to the toj). I skim this olf and add a teacupful 

 of sugar to a quart of milk; V)ut sometimes I do not 

 put in any sugar at all, and the bees seem to take 

 it " straight," just as well after once getting- started. 



Boiling- prevents souring, and coag-ulates the ex- 

 cess of fatty mattei'S, which are indigestible, and are 

 best removed. 



HOW TO FEED. 



I nuidc some boai'ds, as described in the ABC, for 

 giving- water to bees, and inverted glass fruit-jars 

 of milk on them. Is it a success? Yes. I have a 

 lot of young- Yorkshire pigs, and it is bard to tell 

 which acts most like a hog-, the bees ov the pigs. 



The drought continues, and for severity it has 

 not been equaled for 35 years, says the " oldest in- 

 habitant." During- the early spring, honej' was 

 abundant; but making swarms and nuclei it was 

 speedily used up, and I have been feeding- since 

 •July 1st, and 1 have not taken a pound of honey 

 this season. The honey-<lew never failed us before 

 in a dry season; Vmt this yeai- it is a total failure 

 with everj' thing. H. W. Pai.I-,ies. 



Meharaa, Marion Co., Oregon, Aug 10, 1886. 



UEES going down A STOVE-PIPE FROM WHICH 

 SMOKE WAS ISSUING. 



A few days ago I was baking- a pic which I had 

 sweetened wilh honey. Our oven was defective, 

 so that a draft went directly through it. In a little 

 time I saw bees coming- down the pipe and escap- 

 ing halt' dead, through a little opening on top of 

 the oven. I went out and found that a lot of bees 

 were darting into the smoke, while now and then 

 one found its way into the pipe. That pie was e.\- 

 Ijensive, as 1 think iJ.iO bees perished before it was 

 baked. As soon as I took the pie out of the oven 

 the bees ceased " lighting with the pipe," Per- 

 haps you would do well to ask some of your read- 

 ers if the above is not the real secret of bees fight- 

 ing with stove-pipes. Mrs. Jas. Fennell. 



Shelburne, Ont , Canada, Aug. 18, 1886. 



HONEY TO be named. 



I send you this day a stnali liottleof something my 

 bees have been gathering, principally through July. 

 I think it will kill the bees nextwinter. Is it honey- 

 dew? 47— E. B. Smith, 70. 



New Milford, Susq. Co., Pa., Aug. 30, 1886. 



Friend S., I do not think the sample you 

 send is honey-dew, nor do I think it will "kill 

 the bees. The color is pretty fair, and the 

 flavor comes, it seems to me, the nearest to 

 the wild snntlower, growing in swamps, of 

 any thing I know of. Have you not a swamp, 

 within a radius of a mile or so of your apia- 

 ry, that was covered with yellow blossoms 

 when the bees were gathering this honey V 



IS HONRY-DEW the CAUSE OF THE NAMELESS BEE- 

 DISEASE? 



In Gleanings, August 15, page 644, H. D. Mason 

 mentions that new bee-disease. I think it is cer- 

 tainly caused by honeydew. By removing combs 

 containing said honey, I can see lio trace of it. I 

 have one frame of honey I think would start it in 

 any colony that it was given to. You can have it to 

 experiment with, if you wish. Samuel Heath. 



Uimer, Pa., August 24, 1880. 



No doubt, friend II., the honey you have 

 affects the bees so as to make them resemble 

 those having the nameless bee-disease ; but 

 as we have seen it so many times when no 

 honey-dew was being gathered, I am quite 

 sure that honey-dew is not always the cause 

 of the trouble. AV^e do not care for any sam- 

 ples that will make bees sick. Thanks for 

 your kind offer, however. 



