1888 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTUEE. 



653 



Every boy or girl, under 15 years of age, who writes a let- 

 ter for this department, containing somk valuable fact, not 



GENERALLY KNOWN, ON BBKS OR OTHER MATTERS, will receive 



one of David Cook's excellent flve-cent Sunday-school books. 

 Many of these books contain the same matter that you find in 

 Sunday-school books costing from 81.00 to 81.50. If you have 

 had one or more books, give us the names that we may not 

 send the same twice, we have now in stock six different 

 books, as follows; viz. : Sheer Off, Silver Keys, The Giant-Kill- 

 er; or. The Roby Family, Rescued from Egypt, Pilgrim's 

 Progress, and Ten Nights in a Bar-Room. We have also Our 

 Homes, Part I., and Our Homes, Part II. Besides the above 

 books, you may have a photograph of our old house apiary, 

 and a photograph of our own apiary, both taken a great many 

 years ago. In the former is a picture of Novice, Blue Eyes, 

 and Caddy, and a glimpse of Ernest. We have also some pret- 

 ty little colored pictures of birds, fruits, flowers, etc., suitable 

 for framing. You can have your choice of any one of the 

 above pictures or books for every letter that gives us some 

 valuable piece of information. 



CONDUCTED BY ERNEST R. ROOT. 



fHIS time we have quite a lot of letters 

 from the young folks, almost entirely 

 on the subject of how they or their 

 papas hive swarms. These are a little 

 late to be seasonable ; but as it is eas- 

 ier to write about things that have just 

 transpired (before they " get cold "), our 

 young friends are quite excusable. As these 

 reports are fresh with recent experience we 

 have no doubt but tliat we have gotten some 

 facts that we might not otherwise have ob- 

 tained. Besides the presents sent, we extend 

 our thanks to you. 



Now, what shall you write about next 

 time V Let's see. Suppose you take for 

 your next subject, How you or your papas 

 stop robbing— whether in your own opinion 

 it is the result of carelessness. Please tell 

 us what would be the effect of closing the 

 entrance of a colony on a hot day, to stop rob- 

 bing. You need not try this experiment to 

 find out, for 1 am going to guess you know 

 already. You see, we want to find out how 

 much vou know about robbing. 



A POWDER-CAN FOR A 8WAKMER. 



My pa uses a powder-can to catch swarms In. He 

 cuts out one end, and with a wad-cutter he cuts the 

 holes in it. He likes it much better than the box, 

 because it is so much lighter to handle, and the 

 bees are so easily shaken out. Alonzo A. Green. 



Lyons, Ohio, June 34, 1888. 



HOW HATTIE'S PAPA HIVES BEES. 



We have no hiving-boxes. Our bees always settle 

 on the fruit-trees. When they settle up high, papa 

 moves a table right under the tree, and sets the 

 hive upon the table, then shakes the bees on it; 

 and when they are low he spreads a sheet on the 

 ground, and sets the hive on it. We have had a 

 good many swarms this year. Hattie Brown. 



Ashbysburg, Ky. 



THE FIRST POM.EN. 



Our bees get their first pollen from the pussy wil- 

 low in February. I have two kinds of flowers in my 

 garden, which bloom almost as early as the pussy 



willow. One is the variegated balm, which has a 

 dark-red bloom. The bees get a red pollen from it. 

 The other is the daffodil, which gives a yellow pol- 

 len. Addie F. Pai>lies. 

 Mehama, Ore., Apr. 14. 1888. 



30 STANDS OF BEES. 



My uncle has about 30 stands of bees. We did not 

 take any honey, last year; but in the fall they 

 made honey enough to winter on. The honey did 

 not taste like any I ever saw. Sadie Brown. 



Bloomfleld, Ky. 



how FANNIE HIVED TWO SWARMS. 



I hived two swarms this summer. One alighted 

 on a little limb, and I then cut it off and put it down 

 by the mouth of the hive, and then smoked them in, 

 and the other alighted on a limb where I could 

 not do the same, so 1 set the hive as near as I could, 

 and then took a broom and brushed them off and 

 shook the limb also. Fannie Borton. 



Flint, Mich. 



And we suppose the bees of the last swarm 

 were likewise successfully hived. 



ANOTHER SWARM OF BEES WHICH LIVED OUT OF 

 DOORS FOR SIX WEEKS WITHOUT PRO- 

 TECTION. 



Last summer one of the neighbors' children told 

 me there was a swarm of bees on their fence, which 

 I could have. I went home and told pa, and asked 

 him for a hive. He thought it would be a little late 

 swarm, but I persuaded him to come and see. 

 When we got there he found a nice swarm of bees 

 with combs, but not a spoonful of honey. He cut 

 off the end of the rail, and carried them home on it. 

 He wintered them safely, and we are expecting a 

 swarm now. Those bees had been on the rail near- 

 ly six weeks. Ethel, Edwards. 



Ingersoll, Ont., Canada, June 4, 1888. 



Y^ou have indeed given us quite a valua- 

 ble piece of information, friend Ethel. 

 From your letter we take it that the swarm 

 had little if any protection. We should like 

 to know more about tliat swarm. 



CLIPPED QUEENS PREFERRED. 



My father has 13 swarms. He says that is all he 

 wants, because they will supply us with honey, and 

 he can sell all the swarms that come out. He has 

 almost all methods for hiving bees, but he thinks 

 the method of clipping the queen's wings is the 

 best. This is the way he does it: After the queen 

 is fertilized he clips her wings. When the bees 

 swarm he finds the queen and puts her in a cage. 

 Then he moves the hive they come out of away, and 

 sets the new hive in its place and waits till they 

 come back (for they will not alight without a queen). 

 He then puts the queen on the alighting-board, and 

 she goes in with the rest. Then he sets this hive 

 where he wants it, and sets the old one back. I 

 have hived but one swarm, and that was in the way 

 described. We have not had much honey this year, 

 as it is so tar a poor season. Charlie P. Orwick. 



Centerville, Mich., July 14, 1888. 



A chinaman's experience with DRONES; HE 

 "NO LIKEE A HEAP BIG BEE." 



Papa and Ernie and I went uj) on a hill one Sun- 

 day, and there were some stands of bees. They 

 had some honey in them. I think I counted 9 of 

 them. We found a bee-tree on the way back. A 

 Chinaman was once hired in an apiary, and he 



