800 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Dec. 



tor com fort. With a house built, and the family in 

 it, bees and hens can be kept, and bee culture 

 studied at odd times, until the knowledge requisite 

 to running- a larg-e apiary is acquired. 



There is little doubt but that his wife will be re- 

 stored to health, as our climate certainly does work 

 wonders in that direction. As to your friend's lo- 

 cating- nenr me, I will say I am truly glad to have 

 new neighbors; but if he is to keep bees, I would 

 advise the south-west coast, or some location where 

 the country is not so fully stocked with bees as it is 

 here. « 



There is almrst no malaria along the banks of 

 salt-water rivers, or in the lake region of the interi- 

 or. Along the low ground of the St. John's, or near 

 stagnant fresh water, or where fresh and salt water 

 come togethei-. there is more or less fever, some 

 years. It is the only prevalent disease known here, 

 and is of a mild type, and easily cured. A fatal 

 case is almost unknown. The insects (sand-flies and 

 mosquitoes! are at times exceedingly bad along the 

 coast. A little back from the salt water there are 

 no sand-flies, and many portions of the State ai-e al- 

 most entirely free from mosquitoes. Here on the 

 coast we have netting on the doors and windows 

 during the weeks that they are plentiful, and in 

 that way keep out of their way. They seldom trou- 

 ble much during the middle of the day, except in the 

 heavy timber. 



The quality and color of our honey is of the best. 

 Rev. L. L. Langstroth said to me, " It can'not be ex- 

 celled." All the large honey dealers and producers 

 of the North who have tested it pronounce it equal, 

 and some sui)erior, to white-clover honey. 



I will further say, for the benefit of all inquiring 

 friends, that I am not in need of help at present, 

 either in my apiary or groves. I have help that has 

 been with me from one to three years, and I am 

 well satisfied with it. There is, however, plenty of 

 work to be had at good wages, $1.50 per day being 

 the usual price for common labor. Board is from 

 $4.00 to $7.09 per week in the boarding-houses, some 

 less in private families, and much higher at the ho- 

 tels. Unimproved land ranges from government 

 price ($1.25) to $100 per acre. M'. S. H.\rt. 



New Smyrna, Fla., Ni)v. It, 18S4. 



CRYSTALLIZATION OF SUGAR SYRUP. 



SOMK FrilTIIi;i! f-A( TS I .\ 1! I;(i A I! 1) T( ) THE MATTEK. 



aN page '.(il, last Oleaxisos, friend Doolittle in 

 his letter describes his severe trouble with 

 regard to the crystallization of syrup made 

 of sugar and water, after which you, in your 

 remarks, said that your apiarist says that 

 " he lias hail very little trouble this season with crys- 

 tallization, excf'pt where he had the syrup too 

 thick." And further you (jiiote, " He says he has 

 fed many colonies where he saw no crystallization 

 upon nor in the hives; while at other times, lor 

 some reason not known to him, luiless it was because 

 he put in too much sugar for tlio fpiantity of water, 

 it turned back to sugar badly." 



Now let me say, that in my experience crystalliza- 

 tion is a difHculty which nuiy be entii-ely overcome, 

 if the sugar is properly melted. It is a well-known 

 fact, that by boiling sugar down thick it will grain 

 according to the amount of stirring it has. If it is 

 stirred a dood deal, the grain wjU be tine; wbcrcas 



if it is stirred but little, the grain will be very 

 coarse. And now I believe that if it is thoroughly 

 melted, and not stiri-ed at all, it will not turn back 

 ' to sugar. 



j AVhen it is melted directly over a stove, with- 

 out being in a large dish of hot water, it will of 

 i necessity have to be stirred to prevent burning; 

 but there is no necessity for stin-ing it after the 

 sugar is dissolved, and it should be thoroughly 

 boiled after it has been stirred. By using granulat- 

 ed sugar, one has to be particularly cautious in this 

 I direction; pouring from one dish to another before 

 [ cold will often cause it to crystallize. 

 j Since I i-ead Mr. Doolittle's article I have, for the 

 I purpose of a late proof, taken granulated sugar 

 ' and water, and boiled it down so that by setting 

 it outdoors where it was freezing cold (24° F.) it 

 became hard and brittle, and yet was as clear as 

 when tak?n off the stove, and did not show the least 

 indication of turning back to sugar, 

 j Now let me ask, friend Root, if your apiarist, in 

 looking back, will not find that the syrup that crys- 

 '< tallized was not stirred more than that which re- 

 mained liquid. 

 I I am not in the bee business extensively. My 

 ' number of colonies ranges from 5 to 15. It has 

 been a vei-y poor season here, basswood being a 

 I complete failure; my bees gathered their winter 

 j stores, and an average surplus of 20 lbs. from white 

 j clover. My increase has been from 8 to 14. I see 

 , by the reports that I am more fortunate than many, 

 j that I did not have to feed this fall. 



I have kept bees five years; have not had any ex- 

 I perience feeding a mixture of sugar syrup and hon- 

 I ey, as friend Doolittle speaks of, but have had to 

 I feed sugar syrup several times, and have had some 

 I trouble with its crystallizing, and in the above I 

 have tried to describe the trouble as found by my 

 j experience. L. H. Bannister. 



j Rochester, N. Y., Nov. 18, 1884. 



I Since you mention it, friend B., I do re- 

 member tliat wlien Ave were studying cliem- 

 istry the std)ject of crystallization was gone 

 over pretty thoroughly, and one of our old 

 ciiemistries speaks particularly of the effect 

 I of agitation on crystals in saturated solu- 

 tions. If a saturated solution be made by 

 l)oiling,and allowed to stand perfectly (juiet, 

 j it will often become quite cold without any 

 ' traces of crystallization wliatever : Init a 

 j single stir witli a spoon or i)ad(lle at the 

 ! right moment would start crystals, and the 

 I whole mass Avould soon becoihe full of solid 

 matter. With some salts, the matter hangs 

 ! on so delicate a thread, so to speak, that 

 I even striking the vessel containing the liquid 

 I a smart blow would set crystals at work ; 

 and after they once get started they would 

 i go through the whole liq.uid. In making 

 ' rock candy, bits of string are suspended in 

 the li(]uid, to start the rock crystals forming. 

 i After one crystal forms, the rest shoot out 

 ' from it rapidly. A most beautiful experi- 

 ' inent is performed by iijaciug a dro]) of sat- 

 m'ated licpiid on a glass slide luider tlie mi- 

 croscope. When tlie ]i(iui(l lias evaporated 

 ! sulKcientlv. crystalli/ation starts suddeidy. 

 and slender needles shoot out in a hundred 

 different directions, alnu)st at once; and, as 

 if l»y magic, tlie drop of li(piid turns sudden- 

 ly to solid frostwork. Now, we can not feed 

 sugar syrup very well without disturbing it 



