1S8G 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



757 



mistakable bumble-bee honey Ihivor, tor which we 

 boys used to pay so dearly. So much of this red- 

 clover honey has coiuc in of late that we shall not 

 be obliged to feed nearly the (juantity of sugar 

 syrup wo hail anticipated. Neighbor Chase, wiio 

 furnishes us such nice comb honey, says that his 

 50 colonics have gathered ;.'{I00 lbs. of this same red- 

 clover honey within the last few days. Our bees 

 have all been roaring, and as hard at work, appar- 

 entlj-, as if on white clover. I have marked two of 

 the colonies whose bees have especially distinguish- 

 ed themselves. One was an imported, and the oth- 

 er a daughter of an impoi'ted. We propose to 

 breed from these next season, if all goes well. 



WINTF.UlNCi, AND MOW WE PKOPOSR PUTTING THE 

 liKKS UP FO!l TIM.S WINTEK. 



I will say lit the outset, that our colonies will be 

 put into winter quarters, essentially the same as 

 last year; that is, in ehatf hives on their summer 

 stands. As red-clover honey has been coming in 

 very freely of late, some colonies will be given nat- 

 ural stores; l)ut a large number will have to be fed 

 granulated-sugar syrup. Having met with gocd 

 success in outdoor wintei-ing for the past few j'ears, 

 doubtless many of the AUG scholars would be 

 pleased to know that we are still using the plan 

 recommended in the A H C of Bee Culture. In or- 

 der that T may give more definite information as to 

 some of the miiuitiif. I insert below the following 

 letter, « hieh will doubtless cover many of the que- 

 ries in the minds of the ABC Fcholars: 



Gr.EANiNGS of Sept. 1st came to hand in due time, 

 and 1 was in hopes I should see something from 

 you or Ernest, under the head of " Our Own Apia- 

 ry," as to how you intend to iirepare your bees for 

 wintering. 



1. Have you changed anj' from the rules you gave 

 in the A B C book of two years ago? 



'Z. How much opening do you leave at the en- 

 tranee? 



;! Do you use the Hill device now? 



4. When the lii\e is full of stores and bees, very 

 heavy, do you remove anj' of the frames and jnit in 

 ehatf division-boards? 



:"). When a hive is rather short of stores, when and 

 how do you feed, and how fast? 



When you introduce a queen by hanging the cage 

 with queen and escorts between the combs, do you 

 spread the combs so the bees can pass between the 

 cage and the opposite comb, or do you put the 

 combs tight up to tlie cage o7i both sides? Some ad- 

 vise never to use a ijueen with her own workers or 

 escorts. 



If you will give this information I think you will 

 oblige nuiny, as rules coming from the "Boss "of 

 the •• Home of the Honey-Bees." J. H. Smith. 



Stowe. \'erniont, Sei)t. 0, 11S8U. 



Your first question I have already answered. 



;J. With chatt' hives Ave always leave a full-width 

 entrance. 



3. We have used, and still purpose to use, tlie Hill 

 device. We i)lace it over tlie center of the brood- 

 nest, with the backbone |>arallel to the frames. 



4. 1 think r.ot, if I understand the condition of the 

 colony you have in mind. We have sometimes had 

 colonies so strong and well supi)lie(l with stores 

 that we have givi-n them the full capacity of the 

 lirood-ehamber. They were placed on eight frames, 

 spaced out so as to fill the lower story. During win- 

 ter, combs need to be spread a little further apart 

 than at other times. Whether the colony be sti'ong 

 or weak, it should be cmwdeil on us few frames as 

 possible. When the cold weather comes, their con- 

 tracted apartment, if sutficient stores are pro\ ided, 

 will be none too small for them. I would say, that 

 most of our colonies are put on from five to si.x 

 frames, with a division-board on each side. 



.5. When short of stores we feed sugar, as recom- 

 mended in the AB C of Bee Culture; namely, 35 lbs. 

 of sugar to a gallon of water. Perhaps the easiest 

 way, when steam is not to be had, is to pour the 

 water at a boiling temperature upon the sugar; 

 then stir vigorously for a short time. Of all the 

 feeders ever invented, we use and prefer the bread- 

 pan feeder, holding about a pint of syrup. To pre- 

 vent the bi'es from drowning, the ordinary cheese- 

 cloth is spread over the pan of syrup. This pan is 

 placed directly over the cluster, the enameled cloth 

 or covering being rolled back. At this time of the 

 year we raise the cover and pour in ab(U]t a pint 

 every evening. If late in the fall, and the colony is 

 short of stores, wo use a milk -pan, prepared as 

 above, filled with syrup. We can thus feed from 

 ten to fifteen pounds in an evening. 



In regard to introducing a queen, her escorts will, 

 as a rule, occasion no trouble. I think, however, 

 with a valuable queen I would remove the atteti- 

 dant bees bel'ore caging her majesty. We space 

 the two combs, between which the queen is caged, 

 a little further ajjart, so as to permit the bees of 

 the hive to become "acquainted " with her. 



E UN E.ST. 



HOW TO WINTER BEES. 



Essays l>y .Tames Heddon, Prof. Cook. G. M. Doo- 

 little, A. E. Manum, C. W. Demaree, J. E. Pond. .Jr., 

 .1. H. Martin, C. W. Dayton, and P. H. Hussell, all 

 will appear in the Oetolier luunber of the American 

 Apiculturist. Send IDc iti stamps for copy. 



Address AMEKICAN APICULTURIST, 



18tf Wenham, Mass. 



DADANT'S FOUNDATION FACTOEY, WHOLESALE AND 

 RETAIL. See advertisement in another <!olumn. 



A BARGAIN IN HONEY-TUMBLERS. 



Among the nnxny cheap jjackages for retailing 

 extracted honey, the 'c-lb. and 1-1 b. tin-top glass 

 honey - tumblers hold a prominent place. Though 

 not quite as handy to carry as the glass honcy-pails. 

 they are nuich cheaper, and will be preferred by 

 some. We have at last succeeded in obtaining these 

 direct from the manufacturers, and get jobbers' 

 prices instead of buying them from jobbers, as we 

 have had to do in the past. We can thus ofter them 

 to you at the following reduced prices: 



I'j-lb., ;3c each; 3.')c for Hi; •><;.'. -fi per box of 100; 

 $5.35 per bbl. of 350. or $31.(10 per Kino. 



Mb.. ;5c each; 38c per 10; «3.75 per box of 100; 

 .¥5.30 per bbl. of 30O. or $34.00 per 1000. 



Orders for 1000 will be filled direct from the fac- 

 tory in Pittsburgh. Yo\i will notice that the tum- 

 blei's are nuich cheaper in barrels, as a barrel costs 

 us 3.5c, and a box of half its size costs 50c. 



A. I. ROOT, Medina, Ohio. 



Black and Hybrid Queens For Sale. 



Kov the benellt of friends who h.ave l)lai-k or hybrid uueens 

 wliich they want to dispose of, we will insert notices free of 

 cliartre, as belnw. We do tliis l)ee»use there is tiai-dly value 

 enoutfh to these riiieens to jiav f"r Ijuvint? them up and keep- 

 intrlheni iTi stock; and vet if is olti-ntiincs (|iiite an aeeommo- 

 datioii to those wliu can not atloid liitrher-priced ones. 



My queens are all gone. T have been overrun 

 will) oi'ders for black and hytirid (pieons. 

 lO-lT-lS J. A. BucKi.EW, Clarks, Coshocton Co., O. 



Good hybrid queens, 35 cts. each. Some 1 year 

 old, some a month oi- two old. 



.1. H. JonNSDN, Middaghs, Noi-thamp. Co., Pa. 



Foi- side, 10 hybrid queens, i)rolJlic, the l)ees being 

 aliout one-eighth dark, or gray, fiom them; excel- 

 lent honey-gatherers, easy to handle. Price, one, 

 40 cents; two or more, HO cts. apiece. 



Chas. L. Hill, Dennison, Ohio. 



