564 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



July 



sac. So with what I have investifrated as to wheth- 

 er maple-blossoms yield nectar, I have come to the 

 conclusion that I don't know. Is the nectar ever 

 in the stamens? Seems to me that the tube, or cup, 

 that all flowers have is the place for the nectar. 



I lilic to look at fiowers under the magnifier. The 

 most dull and insignificant flowers are then gor- 

 geous and beautiful. The currant, gooseberry, 

 sassafras, and maple are all interesting. But the 

 most delicate and beautiful of all that I have seen 

 is the cherry. The petals look as if one could almost 

 see through them, while the many stamens spread 

 every waj". Nature seems to be vei'y free with her 

 stamens, placing them not only where they are 

 needed, but also where they are not needed. I find 

 that the maple-blossom has eight (or seven) stamens 

 protruding from its bell-shaped flower. No more 

 are to be seen anywhere; but in some days— a 

 week perhaps— when the wings are half grown, if 

 we turn down the husK that was once the flower we 

 find six more stamens, with the anthers bigger and 

 more full of pollen than any of the eight that pro- 

 truded from the flower. Now, these si-x stamens 

 are useless. No bee, no insect of any kind can get 

 to them to carry the pollen away, and the seed in 

 the seed-pod is much too far along to need pollen. 

 Mahai.a 15. Chaddock. 



Vermont, 111., May, 1888. 



Mrs. C, I am afraid you are getting into 

 deep water ; and 1 am afraid that even our 

 botanists have not suttlcienlly considered 

 tlie things you tell us about, to be able to 

 explain it all. I have noticed a good deal 

 that you tell us, and I have often wondered 

 whether anybody else had enjoyed looking 

 at the little insignificant flowerets as I have 

 with the aid of a microscope. The currant 

 and gooseberry flowers are indeed gor- 

 geous, with even a magnifier of small power. 

 1 can not give up thinking, however, that 

 our bees get honey from hanl maples; but all 

 I know about it is, that the trees are roaring 

 with them, and when we tip up the combs, 

 the thin honey runs out, and it tastes so 

 much like our best evaporated maple syrup 

 I can hardly think there is a mistake. How 

 do you know that this second crop of six 

 stamens is useless? May be they are, as 

 you say, useless to the bees ; but don't you 

 supi)0se, my good friend, that maple-trees 

 know what they are doing, and what they 

 are not? Where is there a botanist to help 

 us? 



SUGGESTIONS FOR A NE'W VEIL. 



BETTER VENTILATION NEEDED. 



D]TOKGLEANINGS:-A good deal has been 

 i^^ said about bee- veils; but the right thing has 

 not as yet been arrived at. The present veil 

 is entirely too hot. It acts on the principle 

 of the Charter Oak "wire-gauze ovens"— the 

 gauze of the wire or veil does not permit the heat 

 from the face to escape or the cool air to come in, 

 and, as a consequence, our hot breath, and heat 

 from our faces, render the veil unbearable, and re- 

 sult in headache, reddened eyes, and parched 

 skins, which are almost cooked by the extreme 

 heat generated under these veils. 



Now, the point to be arrived at is for some in- 

 ventive genius to invent a veil, with openings or 



meshes at least half an inch long, and a little less 

 than bee-space, so arranged that a bee can not get 

 through it, but at the same time the hot air can get 

 out and fresh cool air can come in. The present 

 veil is the worst thing connected with bee culture. 

 The heat that is retained is unwholesome, unbeara- 

 ble for any length of time, and prostrating. We 

 want a veil that will let our breath and heat pass 

 off, and the cool, pure air to constantly take its 

 l)lace; and until we have such a veil there will be 

 no comfort in bee-keeping for those who wear a 

 veil, and almost every bee-keeper has occasion to 

 wear one occasionally. 



The man who will invent such a veil as I speak of 

 will not only be a benefactor to mankind, but he 

 will reap a large profit from the same. I should 

 think that some wireworks company could do some- 

 thing in this direction. Perhaps a half-inch rim of 

 thin zinc, punched like your honey-boards, and 

 tacked to a hat, and a veil to that, might answer 

 the purpose. The punched holes, if they are a little 

 less than bee-space, might let out the hot air and 

 let in the cool. At any rate, a veil of the kind 

 mentioned is badly needed. Who will supply it? 



Atlanta, Ga., June 27, 1888. T. E. Hanbury. 



We recognize to a certain extent some of 

 the difliculties you mention ; but such a 

 bee-veil as you describe in your letter, even 

 if it could be made, would not be bee-proof. 

 A mesh ^ inch long, and a little less in 

 width than zinc perforations, when wrin- 

 kled, folded, or bent up, would let the bees 

 pass through readily. It is true, heavy wire 

 could be used, but that would obstruct the 

 vision so as to be objectionable. We have 

 in former times written the manufacturers 

 of wire cloth, and we fount! that a large 

 mesh of fine wire could not well 1)6 made. It 

 seems to us you very greatly oveidraw the 

 disadvantages accruing from the use of 

 veils already in use. Those we sell will 

 never cause a person's face to become parch- 

 ed and almost " cooked," as you express it. 



ANTS. 



PROF. COOK TELLS US HOW TO OET RID OF THEM. 



T AM troubled very much with a gray ant which 

 1^ infects my hives and honey-house. As soon 

 ^l as a stand gets a little weak, the ants will eat 



■^ every egg in the brood-cell and thus stop 

 brooding. They will kill bees, and, I think, 

 sometimes even kill the queen. I have tried every 

 thing that I can hear of for killing them; but so 

 far I have not been successful. I can not find their 

 nests. What will kill them? J. W. Towns. 



Verdugo, Cal., June 10, 1888. 



Prof. Cook replies as follows : 



It is always best for inquirers to send specimens 

 of the insects that trouble them, then there can be 

 no mistake. Mimicry is so strong and common 

 among insects that many mistake one insect for a 

 totally ditt'erent kind. 



There are two good ways to destroy ants. One 

 is to find their nest and make a hole in the center 

 of it with a crowbar or other iron rod, then turn in 

 half a gill of bisulphide of carbon, and immediately 

 fill the hole and cover it with a little clay, which 

 should be tramped down. The liquid quickly va- 

 porizes, and kills all the ants. Like gasoline, this 



