olG 



GLEAKINGS IN BEE CULTUKE. 



July 



ly that some evil or calamity which befalls and de- 

 stroys those our iiuoA friends, ever and anon, ex- 

 plains why our insect-enemies often prevail in such 

 ovcrwhelminjr numbers. Even this; year the army- 

 worm and cut-worms are doing terrible damage in 

 many parts of our country. 



These ground-beetles are often sent me by per- 

 sons like Mr. Stephens, who know not their habits 

 and value, svith the inquiry: " How shall we exter- 

 minate them?" I always say, "Never kill them. 

 They lire your very good friends: to kill them is to 

 slay the goose that laj's the golden egg." How de- 

 sirable it is that our very children should be taught 

 the nature and habits of some of these most com- 

 mon and important of nature's agents! 



Let me add, that these ground-beetles are usuallj- 

 black, with long slim bodies and long legs, and so 

 are very swift of foot. Thus it is easy to know 

 them. A. J. Cook. 



Agricultural College, Mich. 



Thiiiiks, friend Cook. I will tell you 

 what I should like, friends. I should like a 

 picture and description of all our useful in- 

 sects ; and if it would not cost too much, I 

 should like a little case containing a sample 

 of every bug that ought not to be killed. 

 Every little while the boys ask me whether 

 such or such bugs shall be killed or not. On 

 our squash-vines we sometimes find a bug 

 doited over with round black spots, and 

 somebody has said that these are lady-bugs, 

 and that they should not be killed. Friend 

 C, will you please enlighten us a little? 



MODERN BEE CULTURE ON THE ISL- 

 AND OF MINORCA, SPAIN. 



AN ENCOURAGING REPORT FROM SOME OF THE 



FRIENDS OF GLEANINGS ON AN ISLAND OFF 



THE SPANISH COAST. 



R. ROOT:— As I promised, I think I must 

 drop you a line. And, first, allow me to 

 explain. Three years ago I introduced the 

 first movable-comb hive into these islands. 

 The thing was so novel and unheard of, 

 that people in their blissful ignorance laughed at 

 me like so many " goodies." My only ambition 

 was to produce section honey, of which I had read 

 a great deal; and when, finally, 1 succeeded in tak- 

 ing over 100 one-pound sections from a single 

 hive, no boy with a new top was ever so happy, 

 and I was praised and lauded to the skies by the 

 press. 



Having no direct communication with the Unit- 

 ed States, my goods were brought from England. 

 Now, my eldest son manufactures and keeps on 

 deposit all sorts of bee-fixtures, for this fascinat- 

 ing industry has become quite popular. We send 

 hives and all that the word signifies to many parts 

 of Spain, where we have many adepts, owing to the 

 Madrid lUu>itrated Nnvs having published an en- 

 graving of our home apiary of some 30 hives. 

 This spring we have set up an apiary of over 100 

 hives in the interior, and the .joint products of the 

 two are now being set up for exhibition in the r?ar- 

 celona Exposition. The honey is very fine, and 

 the honey-How not so short in the interior. Rose- 

 mary, clover (alsike), thistle, orange, and other 

 flowers and medicinal plants produceabeautifuland 

 superior article. Heather bloom in the fall (No- 

 vember and December), and almond-bloom and 



rosemary in January and February, keep the bees 

 —well, not in clover, exactly, but something very 

 much like it. 



Gleanings is so welcome here, that, by its side, 

 our French and Italian apicultural reviews sink in- 

 to insignificance. We are also constant readers of 

 the British Ber Journal, and like it very much. In- 

 deed, at one time I had come to the conclusion that 

 it was about the best apicultural review published 

 in the vernacular; that, somehow, American bee- 

 writers were more inclined to "sling ink." This 

 was before I commenced reading Cleanings, and 

 your matter-of-fact way of editing it. I am now 

 again "loyal to the Union." Allow me to except 

 its (Gleanings') dogmatical part. Pardon me, but 

 dogmas, like politics, seem somewhat out of place 

 in a purely apicultural publication. However, one 

 can not but honor the sincerity of its editor, for, 

 after all, a sensitive and especially a clean con- 

 science is a good thing in a family. 



This reminds me how, some 40 or .50 years ago— so 

 long ago, in fact, that one hardly remembers— I 

 was occupying the post of printer's devil in a New 

 England office, and how, on fast-days and Thanks- 

 giving, the editor, Mr. Stowe, used to " spread 

 himself." Those were happy times! Now ire also 

 publish an apicultural review— a wee little thing, 

 with no pretensions at all. 



Well, well, friend Root, let me say that such pub- 

 lications as your A B C and Gleanings are not to 

 be found on every or any bush, and the Milan Api- 

 coltore evidently thinks so too, for it translates 

 many passages from your writings, and holds you 

 as one of the prophets. 



I have this season tried Mr. Cowan's system of 

 dimhling on five of my best colonies. The push in- 

 fused into the alread}' strong stocks was remarka- 

 ble. Those despoiled of their brood— all with second- 

 year (jueens- also worked wonderfuUj-, in ten or 

 twelve days pulling out the eight frames of 

 foundation (they were allotted to supers), and cap- 

 ping the brood in them, some of these' combs not 

 containing a single cellful of honey— all brood, 

 clear up to the top and side bars. I never saw such 

 splendid brood-combs. But we had a drouth, and 

 the honey-flow lasted only some 20 days; and dur- 

 ing that time but a small percentage of forages 

 could be spared from these hives. Result, almost a 

 failure, and too many bees when not needed. 



The hives doubled with their brood worked won- 

 ders, but I rather think our queens are too prolif- 

 ic; and the greater part of the stock.*, instead of fill- 

 ing these combs with honey, allowed the queen to 

 again monopolize them. Result, some 18 or 20 

 frames, nearly two stories occupied with brood, and 

 now too man J' bees lying idle. 



Let me conclude by asking. Does what you call 

 the T super mean the top super, or what does' it 

 meanV F. C. Andreu. 



Port Mahon, Island of Minorca, May 27, 18S8. 



Friend A., I feel greatly encouraged in- 

 deed l)y your kind words and kind letter ; 

 and I value them all the more, from the 

 fact that they come from a brother-editor. 

 Now, I want to thank you again for the 

 high compliment you pay me, even if you 

 do make a little hit" at the Home Papers. I 

 have tried to conduct them in such a way 

 that every good man and woman could as- 

 sent to most of the points I have made, 

 without discussion. Our readers will find, 



