Vol. XYI. 



Jan. 15, 1888. 



No. 2. 



TERMS: $1.00 Per ANNUM, tN Advance; 1 JPc.^^rfhJjf'h^rl ill 1 R'7 ^ 



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 made at club rates. Above are all to 

 be sent to ONE postoffice. 



PUBLISHED SEMI-MONTHLY BY 



^A.L ROOT, MEDINA, OHIO. 



Clubs to diffei-cnt postofRces, not less 

 than 90 cts. each. Sent postpaid, in the 

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TWO ITEMS OP IMPORTANCE. 



KNOWLEDGE OP A LOCATION, AND KNOWLEDGE 

 OF THE ADVANTAGE TO WHICH BEES GATH- 

 ER HONEY. 



'E have been having, for a few days back, 

 a regular blizzard here, blockading roads 

 and keeping all indoors. To best use the 

 time, I have been looking over my cor- 

 respondents' letters, classifying them, and 

 storing them away in such a shape that I could re- 

 fer to them at a moment's notice in the future, 

 should it be necessary to do so. The result of this 

 " looking over" has led me to write the following 

 article, on two old subjects. If these things, 

 "knowledge of a location," and " age at whicli bees 

 gather honey," could l)e more thoroughly impress- 

 ed on the mind of every bee-keeper, much more 

 would be realized in honey, according to my opin- 

 ion, than is now obtained. 



KNOWLEDGE OF A LOCATION. 



Successful bee-keeping is made up of numerous 

 items, all of which bear an important part toward the 

 success attained; lience the more thoroughly a per- 

 son understands when to attend to all these items, 

 so that the right thing is done at the right time and 

 in the right place, the more sure that person is to 

 attain the success desired. Among these items, a 

 thorough knowledge of the location in which we 

 are situated, as to its honey-producing flora, is by 

 no means the least. Best hives, best strains of 

 bees, and best locality, all play an important part 

 in the success of the apiarist; but none of these are 

 more important than a knowledge of our location. 



Some of the letters received the past year show- 

 that there is great ignorance along this line among 

 bee-keepers; and as lung as this ignorance re- 

 mains, no one can expect to secure the best re- 

 sults. How are we to know when to commence to 

 build our bees up so as to have our hives filled with 

 bees and brood at just the right time, when to put 

 on boxes, and when to have our swarming all done 

 up, unless we know which flowers produce our 

 honey? The getting of bees at just the right time 

 is the great secret of success, and hives full of bees 

 at any other time amount to nothing. 



When I first began bee-keeping T was told by an 

 old bee-keeper, that, when he lived in my neighbor- 

 hood, his bees got an early start by getting pollen 

 ott the willow-buds when they first swelled in the 

 spring, as there was considerable golden willow on 

 his place. So I set it down that golden willow pro- 

 duced the first pollen. Soon after, I read in 

 Quinby's book that golden willow produces no pol- 

 len, but that the lirst comes from skunk's cabbage. 

 About April 10 I saw the first pollen coming in, and 

 I at once went for the willows, but not a bee was to 

 be seen about them. Next I went to the swamp, 

 around which the skunk's cabbage grew, and there 

 I found the little fellows rolling up the pellets of 

 bright yellow pollen, and carrying it home, thus 

 showing that Quinby knew more of what he was 

 talking about than did my old bee-friend. Then as 

 every new variety of pollen came into the hive I 

 traced it out and kept in my diary the date of its 

 blooming, from the skunk's cabbage in the earliest 

 spring, to the witch-hazel in latest fall. Then the 

 same was done as regards honey-producing plants 



