1888 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



How can we prevent the bees from building the 

 combs together? Daniel Hoke. 



Goshen, Ind., Feb. 23, 1888. 



[To prevent the bees running brace-combs be- 

 tween the upper and lower set of combs, use a 

 slatted honey-board. To prevent their bracing to- 

 gether in the brood-chamber, space each comb so 

 that there is a distance of from VA to 1 % from cen- 

 ter to center.] 



My hives are made for 9 frames. How many 

 frames should be put la the top story for extract- 

 ing? I have usually put in 8. Our honey-flow lasts 

 about three weeks. U. Robinson. 



Laclede, 111. 



[For extracting, 1 should fill the upper story full 

 of frames. It may be an advantage sometimes to 

 contract the lower story to 6 or 7 frames.] 



WILD-BUCKWHEAT HONEV. 



I do not want to give up Gleanings. I need its 

 valuable suggestions in the pursuit of bee-keeping. 

 I have in winter quarters .51 swarms, which are rest- 

 ing from their summer's laboi'S. I secured con- 

 siderable wild-buckwheat honey last fall, and some 

 the season before. Our winter has not been as 



cold as usual for the time of year. 



A. D. Shepahd. 



River Falls, Pierce Co., Wis., Dec. 23, 1887. 



THE JAPANESE BUCKWHEAT YIELDED AT THE RATE 

 OF 150 BUSHELS TO THE ACRE. 



The Japanese buckwheat I got of you (I have 

 not yet cleaned it, for it is in the chaff) I think 

 yielded at the rate of about ].")() bushels to the acre, 

 while the common kind, sown in the same field, did 

 not yield any thing. I did not harvest it. If I 

 could not get ans' more of the same kind I would 

 not take 35 dollars for what I have got. 



Nelson Holt. 



Prairie Depot, Wood Co., O., Jan. 30, 1888. 



more ABOUT THE ALLEGED BEE-BAIT SO DE- 

 STRUCTIVE TO BEES, AS RELATED ON PAGE 

 99, FEB. 1. 



I see that a correspondent from Pittsburgh wrote 

 that a farmer from Kittanning told him that the 

 bees had been poisoned by bee-bait within 30 or 40 

 miles around Kittanning. In answer to that I will 

 say that I live 13 miles from Kittanning, and have 

 23 colonies of bees in good condition, and I have not 

 heard of any bees being poisoned in this neighbor- 

 hood. Bees made very little honey in this locality 

 last summer; but mine are wintering well on sum 

 mer stands. S. Yingst. 



Sydney, Pa., Feb. 23, 1888. 



FEEDING IN EARLY SPRING, AND HOW TO DO IT. 



I have four swarms of bees in good frame hives, 

 and they need feeding. Would you put them in the 

 cellar, or leave them on their 8umm.er stands? 

 What is your method of feeding? F. Bassett. 



East Kendall, N. Y., Feb. 23, 1888. 



[I should leave the bees where they are. At this 

 time of year you can give them bricks of granulat- 

 ed-sugar candy, according to directious given on 

 page 220.] 



HOLY-LAND BRES. 



Please let me know if you have any Holy-Land 

 queens on hand. If so, what is the best you can do 

 on one, as I lost the one 1 got from you in .July, 1886. 

 There are plenty of bees and stores in the hive. 



Waynesburg, Pa., Feb., 20, 1888. B. F. Wallace. 



[We do not handle the Holy-Lund bees any more. 

 The progeny of a pure queen is so vicious and other- 

 wise undesirable, nobody seems to want them. We 



don't know any one just now who furnishes them. 

 We presume, however, you can get them of D. A. 

 Jones, Beeton, Ontario, Canada. See also adver- 

 tising columns of this journal.] 



OLD BEE-LITER .VTUKi; FREE OF CHARGE, TO THOSE 

 WHO WILL P.^Y THE POSTAGE. 



I have a bo.\ full of old bee-literature which I 

 think ought to he a source of pleasui-e to some one 

 during these winter months. To the enthusiastic 

 boys and girls or adults who feel that they can not 

 afford bee-literature, I will send, out of this stook, 

 a reasonable amount to each one who may send the 

 postage. Orders to be filled in rotation, and as my 

 time will permit. Postage will be returned to those 

 whose orders can not be filled. Give address cor- 

 rectly and distinct. Geo. F. Graff. 



3518 Cap. Avenue, Omaha, Neb., Jan. 21, 1888. 



BEES FLYINCJ OUT WHEN THE MERCURY IS SIX 

 BELOW ZERO. 



Bees fly at si.v below freezing. Can you account 

 for it? Feb. 14, bees had a fine fly. That night the 

 mercury went down to 13 below freezing. Feb. 15, 

 about 12 o'clock, I was out about the hives, and 

 saw about 25 bees come out of a strong colony, fly 

 away, and never return. The mercury was six be- 

 low freezing. W. J. Gore. 



Bloomfleld, Ky., Feb. 22, 1888. 



[The reason of your bees flying out when the mer- 

 cury was below freezing was because they were af- 

 fected with dysentery, and the whole colony doubt- 

 less was more or less uneasy. Those bees the most 

 affected fly out, cold or no cold. We have observed 

 bees doing the same thing; an examination of the 

 colonies generally shows that they are affected with 

 dysentery.] 



FOUNDATION MADE ON FINE WIRE NETTING. 



In a German bee-paper I see that they sell 

 foundation on fine wire netting, and also on gauze 

 (about like mosquito bar). I drop you these lines 

 hoping you find it to your interest to manufacture 

 wired foundation, or for publication, that people 

 may see it is not a new invention, and nobody could 

 get a patent on wired foundation. P. 



Martinsburg, W. Va., Feb. 21, 1888. 



[The matter of making foundation on fine wire 

 netting, cloth, lace, and every thing of that descrip- 

 tion, is very old. ('. C. Vandeusen, who advertises 

 in our columns, has for years furnished foundation 

 strengthened by wire; and as a slender wire every 

 two inches answers every purpose of the netting, 

 why go to the expense of the latter? Most of the 

 foundation used nowadays in brood-frames is 

 strengthened by more or less wires; and as netting 

 would only add to the expense. I do not know why 

 it should be considered desirable.] 



ALLAYING SWARMING. 



Please let me know how to keep my bees from 

 swarming. I have a small apiary of 15 colonies. I 

 want to work for honey instead of increase. 



Jacob Schiefla. 



Caledonia, Mich., Mar. 1, 1888. 



[Friend S., this matter of prevention of swarms 

 is a difficult one. When comb honey is the object 

 it can be allayed to a great extent (but not necessa- 

 rily prevented) by giving the bees an abundance of 

 room. The brood-chamber should not be contract- 

 ed, and the supers should be tiered up so that the 

 bees will not at any time begin to be crowded. The 

 queen should also have room to lay, to her heart's 

 content. When the bees find that she has filled all 

 available space they are apt to go where they can 

 get more room for her mnjesty. The prevention of 

 swarms when extiiicted honey is the object is not 

 so diflicult. I believe E. France, of Platteville, 

 Wis., manages by giving the queen a large amount 

 of room, even giving her accessto the second story; 

 and he takes care that the bees have plenty of 

 empty combs for the storage of their honey.] 



