1884 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



729 



for it is liable to melt in time when it is sub- 

 jected to a warm temperature. Sugar and 

 honey ground up together will be little af- 

 fected by changes of temperature. At the 

 present low prices of sugar, this mixture 

 could be furnished very cheaply with the 

 proper kind of a mill ; and wlio knows but 

 that it may tind a market as a substitute for 

 butter; i.e., to spread on your bread? Of 

 course, the name of the manufacturer would 

 need to be on every can. 



MOVING BEES TEMPORARILY TO A 

 BETTER LOCALITY. 



FUIEND ANDREWS' EXPERIENCE IN THE MATTER. 



fKIEND ROOT:— As we do not have white clo- 

 ver cnoug-h tog-ive any siu-plushonej', I took a 

 carload of bees, 131 colonies, 44 miles north 

 into a clover locality. The yield of honey 

 was small, only about one pound per day to 

 the hive dui-ing the clover-bloom of about one 

 month. The hives moved were my strongest, selected 

 from 235 colonies. 1 ran them to extracted honey 

 exclusively. While returning them, about the mid- 

 dle of July, two of the colonies smotliei-ed, part of 

 the combs melting down in those hives, notwith- 

 standing they occupied two sets of comb, had wire 

 cloth over the whole top of hive, and about half of 

 the bottom, an'\ were carried in an open stock cai-. 

 They were in the car onlj' about 13 hours. Thus it 

 will be seen that strong colonies of bees, during 

 transportation, develop a great amount of heat, and 

 require a large amount of air. 



I give it as mj' opinion, that the transportation of 

 bees by rail to better pastures in hot weather is not 

 likely to become a popular branch of our business. 

 Farina, 111. T. P. Andrew. 



Many thanks, friend A., for your repox't ; 

 but it seems to me that one pound per colo- 

 ny is a pretty small result. However, 124 

 strong colonies in one locality is a pretty 

 good number; and if they averaged one pound 

 each for '60 days it was not so very bad, al- 

 though during a good yield in the lieight of 

 clover-bloom, 5 lbs. per colony would not 

 have been extraordinary. I think, laid you 

 had wire cloth over the whole bottom of the 

 hive, as well as the top, you would liave had 

 no trouble with the combs melting down.— 

 I know by experience that it is a big bother 

 to move colonies, and I should want pretty 

 good pay for it if I went to the trouble. Aft- 

 er having moved bees a few miles and back 

 again, 1 have sometimes declared that I 

 wanted every colony to have a permanent 

 abiding-place; and unless some very great 

 inducement should be offered, they should 

 alvvavs stay there. 



" iB|^«^ & 



WINTERING BEES WITHOUT PROTEC- 

 TION. 



UY ONE WHO HAS SUCCEEDED TOLEUAIJI.V WELL. 



"Up S winter is rapidly appi'oaching, many of your 

 qJ^ readers no doubt are asking themselves, 



jPP " How shall I prepare my bees for winter?" 

 •^^ especially those living along the noi-thcrn 

 lakes, or wherever exposed to the blasts of a 

 rigorous winter. This question has been discussed 

 pro an^ con, jind still there seems quite a diversity 

 pf opinion as to the best an^l cheapest plan. Tt. 



would relieve many a bee-keeper's mind if he only 

 knew he could winter his bees with very little ex- 

 pense. 



I have been familiar with the nature, habits, and 

 wants of the bee, by experience in handling them 

 for over 4.5 years, and very successful in wintering 

 them, and getting much honey. And right here I 

 frankly acknowledge I am now getting much valu- 

 able information from ABC and Gleanings in re- 

 gard to modern or scientific bee-keeping. I really 

 hope the pages of Gleanings will continue to be 

 honoi-ed with many articles like those from the pen 

 of A. J. Cook, Frank Benton, G. M. Doolittle, Mrs. 

 L. Harrison, W. Z. Hutchinson, Root, White, and 

 many others. But, see here. I think this has noth- 

 ing to do with wintering bees. Well, I was going to 

 tell you how 1 do it every winter, and we have very 

 cold weather here. 



To find where 1 am located, put your finger on the 

 map, about 8:.° west longitude, and 41° north latitude. 

 Now look at the northern lakes— Ontario, Erie, Hu- 

 ron, Michigan, and Lake Superior; then imagine the 

 cold winds of these ice-bound lakes in mid-winter 

 sweeping down on you. This is where 1 have been 

 wintering bees many years, where the mercury fre- 

 quently fell 1.5 to 20 degrees below zero. 



This is the way I did it. I make no cellars, dig no 

 pits, build no houses, nor bury the bees in hay, 

 straw, and leaves, to call rats and mice, neither do I 

 build board fences to keep the wind away. 



I always winter on summer stands, and would.ask 

 no better way for myself. I find it not necessary to 

 put any thing between them and the congealing in- 

 fluence of Jack Frost, so far as my experience goes, 

 except a good hive made of inch lumber, well paint- 

 ed, and good cvishions on top of the frames. Give 

 them plenty of combs and honey; keep them dry, 

 and they will make their own fires. I ventilate my 

 hives in such a way as to carry off the vapor gene- 

 rated by animal heat before it has time to condense. 

 If the vapor is permitted to remain in the hive till 

 condensation takes place, then the bees are emi- 

 nently in danger. 



Last winter I carried a small colony (as an experi- 

 ment) through winter, safe, on not to exceed 15 lbs. 

 of honey, in a hive only ?» of an inch thick; this 

 hive stood in the bleak wind all winter. I presume 

 more bees die from dampness in cold weather than 

 from all other causes put together. Last winter, 

 when the snow was 8 or 10 inches deep, and mer- 

 cury 30° below zero, I visited all my bees, and they 

 instantly responded to my call, assuring me all 

 was well. 



Last spring they all came out clean and dry. I 

 put 1000 boxes (got of you) on 15 of my colonies, ex- 

 pressly for white-elover and locust honey; in a few 

 weeks nearly all were filled with as beautiful honey 

 as I ever saw. This honey is all sold at 32 cents per 

 pound. Forty colonies made over 3300 lbs. 



The basswood did nothing this season; the drought 

 was unfavorable to honey-gathering. 



Now, my friends, 1 do not wish to mislead any 

 one in this matter, but simply give you my experi- 

 ence; then if you wish to try it, take only a few col- 

 onies till you arc satisfied, lest, through some cause, 

 you should fail, and roHect on me. 



John W. Niman. 

 Spring lAIiU, Richland Co., O., Ocf. 23, 1884. 



Friend N., I think the secret of your suc- 

 cess is that your bees have always had a 

 good article of mce. we)l-ripened honey to 



