1884 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTUKE. 



U7 



THE BEES AND THE FISH-POND, AND THE GERMAN 

 CAKP. 



Uncle keeps bees; ho does uot take (iLEAxiNGs, 

 but his friend Mi-. Stone does, so we get it in that 

 way. Uncle has g-ot 7.5 swarms of bees ; he also has a 

 tish-pond with German carii in it. They are quite 

 large now. The pond is very pretty, but uncle was 

 nearly a whole year making- it. I received the Story 

 of the Bible, and thought it was very nice. I am 

 sure Huber will make a good man. 



Cheviot, Ham. Co., Ohio. Flora Hildheth. 



Thank you. Flora, for your description. 

 and also for your kind words. 



ANOTHER COLT THAT HAD A RIDE IN THE WAGON. 



My papa has a colt that we gave a ride in a wagon. 

 We were going to Lomjjoc, and the colty got tired, 

 and papa was going to try to lift it into the wagon 

 himself; but a man came along, and pai)a asked 

 him to help, and they put him in the wagon. Cal- 

 ifornia wagons have high seats, and the colty could 

 .iust stand under it, with his head over the dash- 

 board. His mamma would not go on without her 

 baby; and as she was trying to tind him. she hap- 

 pened to look u]), and saw him looking down at her. 

 She gave a jojful whinny, and trotted on lively, 

 looking back at him once in a while to see if her 

 " Dicky " was all right. It made folks laugh when 

 we got to town. The ne.xt day we carried him home 

 the same way. Our horses like sour milk; and 

 when papa is milking the cows, the colts bother him 

 if he lets them in the yard, for milk. My brother 

 has a little dog that gets so jealous if another dog 

 is kept, that he won't eat nor look at us till manuna 

 t>oxes the other dog's ears; then he makes friends 

 with it and us. . Lew y Hilton, age ;i' 2. 



.V .JUVENILE HAPPY. 



1 have just received my watch as a i>resent tor 10 

 new subscribers for Gleanings, and I feel like 

 writing a little to you, to give expression. I thank 

 you for your kindness and liberal offer. 1 think the 

 juveniles should never forget you, but ever per- 

 severe in doing all the good they can for you and 

 others, and thereby gain knowledge themselves. 

 My watch is now hanging up over the tire-board, 

 running nicely, and keeping time with pa's clock. 



about bees in NORTH GEORGIA. 



Pa's bees ai-e doing very well at this time, but 

 have been checked up by the frost. He has had no 

 swarms yet, but have several that have entered the 

 hone.v-chambers. 1 gave mine a honey-chamber to- 

 day. I shall look anxiously for them to move up 

 there. My hive has a young Italian queen, and her 

 bees are large and industrious. 



Mr. Root, if j-ou know any reason for so many 

 (jueens dying, please let us know. Pa has lost one- 

 ttfth of his (jueens since brood-raising time. 



Home, Ga., Apr. 18, 1884. Nettie Bryan. 



Friend Nettie, it is liard to tell why so many 

 (pieens fail in the sprin<j;. unless it is they 

 are subject to S(tinethin,<i()f tlie same malady 

 as the worker-bees, wliich has so often l)eeii 

 called si)i-in,u dwindlin.a;. Where the bees 

 j^et this disease, many of the (pieens are 

 found missing, and sometimes we lind them 

 out in front of the hive. 



TWO swarms from the same hive going in 



together. 



1 live near Lake Ontario. My i)apa has colonies 



of bees. He keeps them in chaff this wintei-. Last 



summer a swarm came out; we hived them, and 

 about two hours after, we hived the second swarm. 

 Very soon the second swarm came out and went in 

 with the first. Was this any thing unusual":' 



ISRYE-FLOUR FEEDING ADVISABLE'/ 



Is it of any account to feed rye flour to the bees 

 at this season of the year'/ 



Edith A. Hersey, age 9. 



Red Creek, N. Y., Apr. 8, 188f. 



It is not unusual for two swarms to go out 

 as you state, and go together, when they are 

 both c/yr/-- swarms. Where several (]ueens 

 hatch in a hive at once, they often go out in 

 separate bodies, and sometimes one goes a 

 little before the other. The hunnning of 

 the first swarm would be very ;ipt to attract 

 the others, and thus induce tlieni to go along 

 with them.— 1 think rye-tlour feeding ben- 

 elicial, if done judiciously ; and 1 should say. 

 let the bees have it wlipuever they will takp 

 it. uidess there should be circumstances that 

 might induce them to go out in unseasona- 

 ble weather. Some seasons 't has seemed 

 detrimental; luit on the whole. I thiidv it 

 prohtable to give it to them whenever they 

 go around picking up sawdust and other like 

 sul>stances. indicating they are in want of 

 pollfMi. ^ 



WHERE DO THE BEES GO TO/ 



We have not had any swarms this year, but are 

 looking for them every day. One of our neighbors 

 has had 3 swarms. We have had a terrible overflow 

 down in this part of the country, and it did some of 

 our bees right bad. We have got some swarms of 

 bees (if it be called a swarm) that have good queens 

 and plenty of honey, and only about .50 bees at the 

 largest. Can you tell mr what the cause of it is? 

 Papa thinks that they got drowned. We went down 

 the Mississippi River a few days ago in a skiff; and 

 coming back through the lake we saw a great many 

 bees on the water; some were dead and some were 

 not. We saved a few by lifting them up out of the 

 water on our oars, and put them in the boat until 

 they got dry, then they flew away. Do you suppose 

 that it is something that they get off the flowers 

 that is poison, and it kills them before they get 

 home'/ or what do you think is the cause of their 

 falling into the water'/ You will confer us a great 

 favor by giving us your ideas about it, through 

 Gleanings; and yet we have some as good swarms 

 as anybody. Thomas C. Kincade. 



Sterling, Chicot Co., Ark., April 8, 1884. 



Friend K., I believe it is generally thouglit 

 not quite so well to keep bees liear large 

 bodies of water; for if they get down into 

 the water they will seldom "get out again ; 

 but I am inclined to think in your case it was 

 more what is called spring 'dwindling than 

 the flood. When the bees have this sjtring 

 dwindling they go out of the hive when tlie 

 Aveather is too cold, and ai'e tlien soon scattei'- 

 ed around on fences, the sidewalks, and on the 

 ground. Some of them get back to the hives, 

 and a good many do not. If near I)odies of 

 water, and they'should get chilled, and drop 

 into the water,' of course that would be Ihe 

 last of them. What you need is steady warm 

 weather without high winds. Heavy winds 

 during chilly weather are very destiu'ctive to 

 bees in the spring. Cutting off the forest- 

 trees has something to do with this spring 

 dwindling. 



