GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



875 



is a little difficult to tell to which variety a particu- 

 lar specimen belong-s. As a rule, though, they are 

 quite distinct. P. Persicarla grows only from 13 to 

 18 inches high. Its minute flowers are densely 

 crowded on a short spike, and are usually of a deep 

 rose color, though varying from that to greenish 

 white. 



P. Pennsylvanicum is larger in every way. Fre- 

 quently it stands three feet high, and may be 

 stretched to a height of five feet or more. Its flow- 

 ers, larger and looser than the foregoing, are of a 

 light rose color. Both varieties are good honey- 

 plants, and both prefer but do not require fertile 

 and rather moist soil. Neither of them deserves to 

 be called smartweed, which is an entirely distinct 

 variety of the same family. 



Polygonum hydropiper, smartweed, or water-pep- 

 er, grows to about the same size as heart's-ease. 

 The leaves are more slender, and of a lighter green. 

 The flowers are greenish white in color, and sparse- 

 ly set on a long raceme-like spike. If you chew 

 one of the leaves, you will need no one to tell you 

 why it Is called smartweed. They have a pungent, 

 burning taste, which is entirely absent in heart's- 

 ease. It seldom grows except in moist places, 

 hence the specific name. Polygonum hydropipcr, the 

 last word meaning the same as one of its common 

 names, " water-pepper." 



A tea made of the leaves and stems has the prop- 

 erty of inducing perspiration, and is considered an 

 excellent remedy for colds. Inexperienced per- 

 sons are frequently heard to complain that the 

 smartweed they have gathered for this purpose 

 "hasn't any taste to it." They have been gather- 

 ing heart's-ease instead of smartweed. 



Owing to the unusually cool weather that pre- 

 vailed so much of the time this fall, many days pre- 

 venting the bees from leaving the hives, our crop 

 of heart's ease honey is not nearly as large as it 

 should have been, though it is of unusually good 

 quality. 1 send you a sample of It. 



Dayton, 111., Oct. 4, 1888. J. A. Green. 



RAMBLE NO. 8. 



AT THE fair; THE GIRL I LEFT BEHIND ME, ETC. 



fHE Rambler having read much about exhibits 

 at fairs, early in the season he resolved to 

 make a grand exhibit, and astonish the na- 

 tives. The first venture for 40,000 Harmer 

 .5-cent packages resulted disastrously, as 

 heretofore described. This was a sad setback, but 

 it did not entirely discourage me, for I was confi- 

 dent that a grand display could be made with my 

 tons of comb and extracted honey. I prepared to 

 let my bees loose as early as possible on empty 

 combs and sections, but a cold May joggled our 

 hopes a trifle, and it was fully up to the 13th of 

 June before our bees began to contemplate the 

 storing of honey in the surplus stories. Clover 

 yielded sparingly, as though each blossom was 

 afraid it would lose too much vitality. Then our 

 old friend linden sat right back in her old rocking- 

 chair and grimly refused to do any thing for apis, 

 but coqueted through her leaves with a few worth- 

 less aphides. The exhibit scheme was clearly dis- 

 couraged, and, instead of taking a small amount 

 of off-color honey to the fair I resolved to wait un- 

 til a more favorable season. The fair must, howev- 

 er, be attended, and, donning my Sunday clothes, 



and taking pony Nig and my best girl, away we 

 went with the crowd and the dust. It would only 

 tire you to enter into details, how we feasted on 

 peaches, ice-cream, lemonade, popcorn, and pea- 

 nuts. Whew ! didn't we have a good time, even if it 

 was hot and dusty? 



We heard an organ, and some one singing in Do- 

 mestic Hall, and that reminded us that there was a 

 fair going on around us. Honey is usually display- 

 ed in this hall, and we kept up a sharp lookout for 

 an exhibit of sweets, and at length found alongside 

 jars of pickles, etc., a crate or two of honey, and a 

 fruit-jar filled with extracted honey. It seemed 

 there was a lack of interest among bee-keepers, or 

 they were short of exhibiting material. 



No bee-hives or fixtures were visible, but there 

 was a grand display of agricultural machinery. 

 While looking up the honey, I lost my girl in the 

 crowd, but consoled myself by looking over a seed- 

 ing-machine. While thus engaged with several 

 farmers, a word was dropped about alsike clover 

 and bees, and I discovered that three of the crowd 

 were bee-keepers. We three immediately formed 

 an interesting convention. The chief talker bore 

 the name of Palmer. He came from the chestnut 

 hills of Fort Ann, and was a bee-hunter. Already 

 31 swarms had been captured, and many more 

 would have been found but for an unlucky ankle 

 sprain. 



PALMER, THE BEE-HUNTER AND APIFUGE MAN. 



Mr. Palmer did not have a very large apiary, but 

 had always experienced good luck, for he used a 

 bee charm, or balm. He explained that this charm 

 would draw bees from a tree miles away. With it, 

 queens could be introduced immediatelj*; bees 

 could be united, and, when rubbed on the hands 

 and face, bees could be handled with impunity, 

 without a particle of smoke. 



It is needless to say, that the Rambler was all at- 

 tention, and mentally resolved to have this wonder- 

 ful balm, even if it cost a whole dollar. Just imag- 

 ine how we could knock the spots otf from that 

 English Grimshaw with his apifuge. 



Mr. P. was seemingly ignorant of the value of 

 this wonderful balm, for, without urging, he gave 

 us the recipe: Equal parts of the oil of anise and 

 the oil of goldcnrod. Mix thoroughly. A half- 

 ounce bottle would cost only 10 cents each, or 30 

 cents for enough to last all summer. It could be 

 purchased at a drug-store about three miles distant. 

 Our bee-convention soon adjourned, and I saw and 

 thought of no more fair until Nig and I were in the 

 outskirts of the village, three miles away, when I 

 I was overwhelmed with vexation, and almost said 



