1884 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



595 



you are sure no poisonous symptoms follow ; 

 iuitl even if such should be the case, I think 

 that, after being fully ripened in the liive, it 

 will be found to be harmless. 



SIDA STIPULATA. 



The bees seem to like this phiiit very much; 

 whether for honey or pollen! can not tell. It is 

 known here as wild tea-plant, and some make tea of 

 the leaves. T. G. Ashmkau. 



Jacksonville, Fla., Nov. :J1, 1883. 



This plant is .Sirtasd'pufoto, Cav. (.S. /ii.spi'du, Ph.), 

 belong-inji- to the Mallow family, an order that pro- 

 duces an abundance of pollen, for which bees visit 

 the various species, of which the hollyhock, low 

 mallow, tiower-of-an-hour, and cotton-plant are 

 well-known representatives. This species from 

 Florida is a branching- plant growing- a foot or so 

 high, with yellow flowers about half an inch across, 

 usually in clusters in the axils of the leaves, bloom- 

 ing- in July and August. The whole plant is some- 

 what hispid-pubescent; the leaves vary from lance- 

 olate on the older parts of the plant, to rhomboidal 

 on the young- stems. It probably yields little or no 

 honey. W. S. Uevol. 



Columbus. ()., Feb. :, USL 



TEXAS ANU THE HORSEMINT HONEY. 



We are having- (juitc a flow of honey; but the 

 great trouble is to get vessels that will hold it. I 

 think your iron-jacket cans must bo the thing-, but 

 fear the cost, and then the long- time required to 

 get any thing- from up there. We have several bar- 

 rels of the horsemint, like that sent you by Mrs. 

 Goodrich, from our adjoining- county of Hill, also a 

 darker article made later, but very nice. Bees still 

 at work. 



BERMUDA GRASS, AGAIN. 



The last issue of Gleanings came as usual, 

 freighted with interesting matter. I was surprised 

 to learn that the Bermuda grass flourished with you. 

 I thought it too cold there; also to hear that bees 

 worked on it anywhere in the United States, as it 

 never produces seeds, and can attord but little for 

 them. Prof. Devol is certainly mistaken as to its 

 nativity, in evidence of which I take the following- 

 from The Southern Cultivatnr, Vol. XIV. (Apr., 1855), 

 page 116, credited to " Affleck's Rural Almanac:" 



The grass known in Southern Mississiiipi under 

 this nanie, Hiiiniida iirass, is that known to bot- 

 anists as ri/(i.»/ri(i 1/iii-tuUni, :ui(l is unil()uht<Mll\- the 

 Dual) (or honh) orass (it the Hindoos — their sacred 

 grass, and is a nati\(' of the \-alle}" of the (iaiiges. 

 How it uc(iuiri'il its iin-sent local name is not known, 

 unless 1 i-om lia\ing- been introduced to South Car- 

 olina from liermuda at an early day, or supposed 

 to have been derived from thence." 



No man in his day knew better what to say on 

 such a subject, or when to say it, than Thomas 

 Affleck. 



What is the evidence in supi)ort of Prof. Cook's 

 view, that the genus. 4pi.s did notc.xist on the Amer- 

 ican continent until the advent of the Caucasian 

 race'i? The historian of De Soto's expedition records 

 the finding of pots of honey in possession of the In- 

 dians of Western Georgia in 1541. Where did it 

 come from'/ Toll me some time where the subject 

 is discussed. W. T. Co.v, M. D. 



Groesbeck, Tox., Aug. 10, 18^4. 



I can not tell where the subject of the in- 

 troduction of honey-bees is discussed, friend 

 V. Perhaps Prof. Cook can enlighten us. 



THE BEE DISEASE WITHOUT A NAME. 



WHO WILL tell us what IT IS, HOW IT COMES, 

 AND HQ-Wr TO TREAT IT? 



SENT you a few of my bees, which appear to be 

 diseased. You will observe that they are Ital- 

 ians; they are fi'om the queen last sent me by 

 you, and consequently comparatively young 

 bees. The stock was prepared for the queen 

 by taking- five frames containing honey and brood 

 from a stock of my black bees, together with a good 

 supply of bees. Owing to the loss of the first queen, 

 they were a few days without any queen. I suc- 

 cessfully introduced the one sent, and she has prov- 

 ed a prolific layer. The hive soon became popu- 

 lous; but I soon observed that, instead of working 

 as my others did, they clustered in lai-ge numbers 

 outside the entrance, and seemed to be uneasy. I 

 looked more closely, and found that there were a 

 good many bees that were small, slender, black, na- 

 ked, and shiny, and that the others were constantly 

 seizing them, and appeared to be endeavoring to 

 sting them. Two or three would be after one of 

 these black fellows, but I have never yet seen them 

 actually sting one of them to death. These black 

 bees appear to grow weaker and weaker, and at 

 last die of general debility. I can assign no reason 

 for the trouble. P'our other stocks standing near 

 these are at work lively, and appear to be doing 

 well. I took them all down yesterday, and examin- 

 ed every frame. I found very little honey stored 

 during- the past three or four weeks, vei-y little un- 

 sealed brood, and a general appearance of demoral- 

 ization. The queen appears to be all right, and a 

 few freshly laid eggs were in one frame. The bot- 

 tom of the hive was covered with dead bees, at least 

 half a pint. I also found in one or two of the brood- 

 combs, larvte of the bee moth. I put the frames on 

 a new bottom-board, cleaned up the combs, and put 

 them all back. The bees appear to be dispirited and 

 listless. To-day I find them outside in considerable 

 numbers, working away at the black fellows, appar- 

 ently endeavoring to drive them away. In my oth- 

 er stocks none are outside, and they are working 

 well. 



I have written you thus at length that you may 

 understand the case fully, and, if possible, suggest 

 a remedy. This was the best of those that I put 

 Italian queens into, and I hate to lose it. 



S. C. Olmstead. 

 ; Clifton Springs, N. V., Aug. S^ 1884. 



I Several of our readers will recognize by the 

 above description the disease which has been 

 described for several years in the A B C 

 book. It seems to start up here and there, 

 and sometimes results in tlie loss of a colony 

 or two, but 1 have seldom heard of more 

 than that. Oue or two have suggested that 

 replacing the cpieen would prove a remedy, 

 but this wouki likely l)e a remedy for any 

 diseased colony, unless the disease were con- 

 tagious, like foul brood. A good many times 

 a colony recovers of itself. JSIay be a new 

 hive and a new location might nuike a 

 change. Some years ago we feared it might 

 prove disastrous ; but of late we have seen 

 nothing of it, imless it were occasional indi- 

 cations in the shape of emaciated and shiny 

 bees aroinid the entrance. These the bees 

 almost always seem bent on drivuig off or 

 driving away, as friend O. describes it. 



