HK 



gleani:ngs in bee culture. 



Nov. 



combs, having abundance oC stores;, then a boo- 

 tight division boai-d made of ^s-ineh boards, then 

 another colony, and so on. This v/ould allow 12 or 

 ir> colonies to bo packed in a length of 10 feet, and 

 the box or hive might be made double, having a 

 central board running the whole 10 feet, and serv- 

 ing as the back for each hive. Thus there would 

 be great economy of heat, each colony helping to 

 keep its neighbor warm; but a serious practical 

 objection in my mind has always been that these 

 colonies could not be moved in spring or early 

 summer without Hying back to their old location. 

 As Mr. Jewett has had practical experience on this 

 very point, T should like to ask him what has been 

 his experience. Is there no loss of bees from fly- 

 ing back when the hives are moved in the spring? 

 and if so, what is done to prevent it ? 



DOES CELLARING LESSEN THE VIGOR OF BEES ? 



I have heard some claim, that, of two colonies, 

 wintered the one on its summer stand and the 

 other in the cellar, exactly alike in the fall, the 

 cellar bees would be more tender in the spring 

 from lack of exposure, and, as a consequence, 

 ■would build up more slowly than the others. If 

 there is any truth in this, it ought to be taken into 

 account in comparing the two methods of winter- 

 ing. If Ernest should conclude to cellar some 

 colonies, I wish he would especially notice as to 

 this point in spring. 



S.VLT FOR BEES. 



Until this year I never tried giving salt to bees. 

 During the past summer, however, I found in the 

 bees' drinkjng-pail "wigglers." or mosquitos, in 

 the larval state. To prevent this I threw a good 

 quantity of salt in the water. The bees worked 

 away at the water, and some of them worked di- 

 rectly on the piles of wet salt, which, lying on 

 pieces of wood, had not yet dissolved. To find out 

 whether any of them were after salt more than 

 clear water, I put a pail of clear water beside the 

 salt water. Scarcely any bees worked on the fresh 

 water; but bees are always slow to commence on a 

 new place, so I made the fresh and salt water 

 change places, an<l in a little while the salt water 

 appeared to be the favorite. 1 had never before 

 thought that bees need salt; but where there is an 

 eagerness to obtain something, it is pretty good 

 evidence that they need it. I am aware that every 

 now and then some one raise.-* the cry that salt 

 is injurious, especially to the human family: and 

 while 1 believe that. lik«! almost e\ery thing else, 

 an excess may be injurious, a certain amount i.s 

 required. 1 accept as a literal truth, the words of 

 our Savior, " Salt is good." C C. MilI/ER. 



Marengo, 111., Nov. :!, lS8fi. 



Friend M., the idea of packing bees in 

 long l)oxes has been tested pretty thorougli- 

 ly ; and one of the obstacles in the way. if 

 not the grenl obstacle, is loss of bees by 

 changing their location, both when they are 

 put in this long box, and when they are tak- 

 en out and put in regular hives. If the bees 

 were carried throe or four utiles, however, 

 when putting them in and taking them out, 

 T think this trouble would be perfectly rem- 

 edied. You would, howevei', be obliged to 

 have the bees and (,'ombs in a movable case 

 that could be lifted out of your long box. 

 and carried to its destination before they are 

 allowed to fly. I am inclined to think it will 

 be found almost too much machinery.— 



When 1 practiced cellar wintering, and com- 

 pared it with outdoor wintering, I was in- 

 clined to think the colonies wintered out- 

 doors were, as a rule, in the best condition, 

 when ready for honey -gathering. — Many 

 thanks for you clear and satisfying experi- 

 ment, to prove that bees prefer salt water to 

 pure water. Now, 1 should like to know if 

 you made any experiments to see just how 

 much salt had better be used — say to a pail- 

 ful of water. I, too, believe that salt is good ; 

 and it seems to please our domestic animals 

 so much that I would give it to them as I 

 give them apples, even if I did not believe it 

 to be conducive to their health. 



WINTERING. 



BROOn-REARINO LATE IN THE F.4LL NOT ALWAYS 

 A NECESSITY FOR SAFE WINTERING. 



BUT of 77 colonies and 3 nuclei, my only loss 

 last winter was three queens. I used the 

 queens in the nuclei, and doubled the re- 

 maining colony with another. 1 have now 76. 

 The bees were wintered in a temporary cave, 

 which, for the benefit of some, it maj' not be out of 

 place to describe here. 



1 have no land of my own as yet, so I can not 

 build a cellar with underground ventilator, etc., as 

 I should like to do. I made my cave 3 feet below 

 the surface, 10x16. Three upright posts were placed 

 on each side, and three rafters were laid on top of 

 these. The sides of the cave were the only support 

 to the posts. Boards were laid around the outside, 

 and banked up with straw and earth to the top. 

 The roof was made by laying boards on the rafters, 

 then 3 inches of chaff, and then another layer of 

 boards, lapped, to keep out the rain. It was 6 ft. 

 high inside, roof slanting one way; a door in the 

 end, and two blind ventilators, completed the cave. 

 I have used it successfully the last two winters, 

 and would much prefer it to any cellar under a 

 house, which is used for general storage— any thing 

 except a cellar built expressly for bees. Old 

 cellars usually have more or less foul air, while in 

 this cave the air is jjure, and it never reaches the 

 freezing-point. I do not think the thermometer 

 fell below 40°, any time last winter. 



I can build such a cave in two daj's, by using new 

 IH-ft. lumber; and it would surely pay any one, 

 having thirty or more colonies, to build such a cave, 

 if bees have no better place for winter quarters. 



My bees are all in Gallup ten-frame hives. The.\- 

 were contracted to six and seven frames. I tilled 

 the space behind the division-board with chatf, and 

 chaft' covers, with four inches of loose chaff on top. 



BROOD AND YOUNG ItEES. 



We read a great deal about colonies having plen- 

 ty of brood and young bees previous to their going 

 into winter quarters. With this I heartily agree; 

 but I made some observations last fall that were 

 not quite in accordance with it. The first week in 

 September, 1?8.5, was \v\y cool, and the bees 

 huddled close on the combs. Then the weather be- 

 came very warm, and honey came in so fast that 

 the brood-comb was tilled as fast as the young bees 

 hatched out. Extra combs were given, but it seem- 

 ed as if honey were stored every wht-re, and several 

 of my best queens could not be induced to com- 

 mence laying again. 1 reasoned that, if the queen 



