868 



GLEANINGS IN BEIJ CLfLT'lJIlE. 



Nov. 



must be kept, that sucli a queen was cag-cd, and 

 that the cage should be removed next day. If hon- 

 ey is coming in slowly, or bees are disposed to rob, 

 or bees to get mixed with other s%varnis, 1 would 

 always release her in some such way, rather than 

 let her run in with bees, as it saves time and mon- 

 ey in the end. Mrs. L. C. Axteli.. 

 Roseville, 111., Sept. 19, 1888. 



Mrs. A., you have made a good point 

 there where you speak of the importance of 

 having queen-cages where they can be easi- 

 ly caught hold of when several swarms 

 happen to issue all together ; and I believe 

 you are right, too, in giving a caution in re- 

 gard to placing them where they may con- 

 tract a bad scent. We have had troul)le 

 several times by leaving queen-cages where 

 the ants could get at them. I believe the 

 very best way would be to put them in the 

 top of the hive where the bees can keep 

 guard over them. You might, however, 

 get some stings if you attempted to pick 

 them up too hastily when swarms are out. 

 If a new swarm is put into almost any sort 

 of a new hive or other receptacle, and the 

 bees are shilt in with little or no ventilation, 

 they are very likely to smother in hot 

 weather. 



MOVING TO FIELDS Ot* BUCKWHEAT. 



NEARLY 350 LBS. OF BUCKWHEAT HONEY SECURED 

 PROM 10 COLONIES IN 5 DAYS. 



aU'R season here has been very poor; In fact, 

 the poorest ever known. I began the season 

 with 71 colonies, and our crop is 50 lbs. of 

 comb honey and 700 of extracted. This is 

 what I have left after feeding. Comb honey 

 is selling at 25 cents. No. I extracted, 15 cents. 

 Buckwheat, VZK cents. I fed back 600 lbs. It Is all 

 beautifully sealed, and the bees, I think, are in fine 

 condition, part packed in chaff and part with leaves. 

 I prefer leaves. 



BUCKWHEAT. 



In Oct. 15th Gleanings I see a short editorial on 

 buckwheat. After July 30 I knew our fall flow 

 would not amount to any thing. I visited the 

 Chautauqua at Niagara, I think about the middle of 

 August. Coming home I took the river road (which 

 is along the Niagara River bank from Niagara to 

 Queenston) home. When about half way I noticed 

 a small piece of buckwheat; one-fourth of a mile 

 further I saw another piece, about four acres, as 

 white as snow. Being acquainted with the first 

 man T met, I asked him if I could find a place to 

 put some hives. " Yes," said he; "and Mr. B., a 

 quarter-mile further on, has 35 acres more." 



I drove on to Mr. B.'s, and asked him if he would 

 give me the privilege of bringing down 10 or 20 col- 

 onies. After asking me several questions about 

 bees troubling peaches and other fruit, he gave me 

 the privilege of bringing as many as 1 wished. I 

 drove home. This was Friday evening, and I began 

 making preparations for moving 10. On Monday 

 morning early we started with them, having 6 miles 

 to travel. We arrived about 8 o'clock; and at 9, 

 when we left them, they were bringing in pollen. 

 On the following Friday I drove down to see how 

 they were succeeding. T never was more astonish- 

 ed in my life, for 9 of them had 8 frames well filled 

 above, while the 10th, being a swarm, had its brood- 

 combs all filled sufficient for winter. I returned 



home, and that evening we packed up 10 more; and 

 at daylight next morning we were off. After set- 

 ting them down, we took 4 combs out of the first 

 and put them into the second 10, thus leaving all 

 with four full and fbuf empty combs. On Friday, 12 

 days after, we took our tent, extractor, honey-can, 

 knife, pans, etc., to extract. We extracted 3.50 lbs. 

 from 19 colonies. This was nearly all gathered by 

 the first 10 in the first five days. A week after we 

 extracted the above we went down again, expect- 

 ing another good extracting. I never was more 

 disappointed than to find they had not gathered 

 any. When we were there the week before, the 

 field was white. I should have been there 2 weeks 

 sooner. I also moved '30 to Niagara Falls, 4 miles 

 south of my place, to 20 acres. It was dusk when I 

 visited the fields. They looked white and beautiful. 

 I went home and packed up 20 and brought them 

 up. When I was going home I met the owner (that 

 is, after 1 had taken the bees up), and he stopped 

 me and said I wo hid not get any honey from them, 

 as the grain was forming, and the blossom now 

 would not produce any honey. I told him I had no 

 experience as to which blossoms produced the hon- 

 ey. He said he was sorry I had not taken the bees 

 to his place. Two weeks alter, I brought them home. 

 They had not gathered a pound ; in fact, some were 

 2;^ lbs. lighter, so you see he was right in what he 

 said i-egarding the blossoms. I had no trouble in 

 finding a place to set them. Everybody seemed 

 tickled to have me bring them, except one man 

 north of me 3 miles, who was afraid of his children 

 being stung. 



I will give you my mode of packing for moving 

 bees to different localities, at another time. 



This was a good season for buckwheat, being cool 

 and damp. Three years ago I gave my neighbors all 

 the grain they would sow, but it did not pay, as the 

 season was very hot, and the bees did not gather 

 any honey after 10 o'clock. Will Ellis. 



St. Davids, Ont., Can., Nov. 5, 1888. 



You have given us a valuable report, friend 

 E. Thirty-five acres of buckwheat, as it 

 was, kept ten colonies booming. It is too 

 bad we could not liave known what the 35 

 acres would have done if the bees had been 

 moved two weeks earlier. Never mind; 

 perhaps you will have a chance to try again. 



GOLDENRODS AND ASTERS. 



THEIR VALUE TO BEE-KEEPERS. 



fRIEND ROOT:— I was much pleased and in- 

 terested at Columbus to learn of the knowl- 

 edge and evident interest of so many bee- 

 keepers, in our bee-plants, as evinced in the 

 fact of their bringing honey-plants, and the 

 desire expressed to know the correct names. A 

 large number of bee-keepers showed me plants, 

 and wished to know if they were correct in their 

 opinion. I found nearly every one knew the cor- 

 rect names of our common plants. It was a mat- 

 ter of real encouragement and pleasure to me. You 

 and I know full well that such habit of close obser- 

 vation not only makes better bee-keepers but hap- 

 pier and hence better men. Show me a genuinely 

 happy man— what if we should think of Dr. Mason 

 right here ? we have a right to think of our presi- 

 dent—and I will show you a good man. Did you 

 think, friend Root, of what a nice lot of men (of 



