1891 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



707 



A GOOD KEPORT FOR THE PfXIC BEES. 



I observe you think the statement of the su- 

 periority of the Punic bees is colored. I have 

 not seen that statement, but I assure you that, 

 if they are all as good as some I have had for 

 two years, it will not be easy to exaggerate 

 their" good qualities. With me they are the 

 best of all imported varieties of bees. 



I also observe that some speak of extra col- 

 ored Ligurian (Italian) bees. Similar beauties 

 I had were neillier more nor less than Ligiuiaus 

 crossed with Syrians, Cyprians, or Holy-Land 

 bees. " Wm. Thomson. 



Auchinraith, High Blantyre, Scotland. 



HONEY FROM SWEET CLOVER— WILL IT D<^ TO 

 WINTER ox? 



For weeks bees have worked but little except 

 on sweet clover and spider-plant. Can you 

 solve the mystery? Is there any remedy, and 

 will not this dark honey kill our bees next win- 

 ter? " J. G. White. 



Stanford, 111., Aug. 14. 



[Honey from sweet clover and spider-plant, 

 what little there would be of it, would be per- 

 fectly wholesome; but sweet-clover honey is 

 not counted dark. Is it not possible that your 

 bees have gathered honey-dew? This would 

 be dark, or darker than any other with which 

 it is mixed.] 



WHY bees hang out. 



I want to know vvhy the bees hang out in 

 front of the hive night and day, and do not 

 work. Tliey have been that way for the last 

 lour weeks with me. Frank Jacobs. 



Peshtigo, WMs., Aug. 17, 1891. 



[The reason your bees hang out now is be- 

 cause it is warm, and thei-e is probably nothing 

 for them to do. Give, if possible, a wider en- 

 trance. If this is not practicable, tilt the cover 

 up at one end. If they ai'e not already in the 

 shade, this may explain why they hang out. In 

 this event, put on a shade-board made of thin 

 lumber, and large enough to project four or 

 five inches on all sides of the hive.] 



TO CLEAN BEESWAX FROM PANS AND KETTLES. 



Pour into your pan or kettle a small quantity 

 of water, say half a teacupful. then add half as 

 much kerosene; warm over the fire until quite 

 hot; then with an old rag rub all parts of your 

 dish. You will find this removes every particle 

 of wax as easily as you could remove any other 

 substance from the dish. Any kind of grease 

 will answer, but kerosene is best. 



Mrs. Mattie A. Bonfoey. 



South Riverside, Cal., June 2. 



[My good friend, I should be a little careful 

 about advising kerosene in the way you do, es- 

 pecially where you use the utensil over the 

 tire. Remember the many accidents, and lives 

 lost, by the use of kerosene in this way.] 



A STUBBORN CASE OF BEE-PAKALYSIS. 



I can't stop the nameless disease by changing 

 queens. I will kill my bees and commence 

 with new ones. Could I use the old hives and 

 combs again without disinfection ? If not, 

 what shall I do ? Fred A. Hund. 



Casco, Mich., June 10. 



[Friend H.. it is possible that infection can 

 hang about the hives. But nobody can settle 

 it without making a test. Take a hive where 

 they have had it the worst, put in a new swarm, 

 and see whether you tind more of it. See Doo- 

 little's aiticle elsewhere.] 



TARRED PAPER FLAVORIN(i HONEY IX THE 

 HIVE. 



I have lost about 700 or 800 lbs. of comb honey 

 from using taiTed paper in the bottom of those 

 one-story chalT hives. It gives the hont'y a 

 terrible flavor. M. W. Breece. 



Delaware, O., July 13. 



[Friend B.. I am sure that the tarred paper 

 has nothing to do with the flavor of the honey; 

 that is. the terrible flavor came from something 

 else. We have used tarred paper on the bot- 

 toms of chaff hives for toward twenty years, 

 and never heard of such a thing before.] 



WHAT SHALL AVE DO WITH HOXEY DAMAGED 

 BY HOXEY-DEW? 



My crop is ruined for sale with honey-dew. 

 I have nearly two tons of this stuff. What can 

 I do with it? My hives are all full from top to 

 bottom with the disagreeable stuif. 



Marissa, 111., July 1.5. Wm. Little. 



[I do not know what you can do with your 

 honey unless you sell it to confectioners, vine- 

 gar-makers, manufacturers of printers' I'ollers, 

 or for some other manufacturing purpose.] 



AN AVERAGE OF 2.i00 I-BS. OF HOXEY A 

 AVEEK. 



The bees are doing well. They are making 

 an average of 2.500 lbs. a week at present. I 

 have 1.50 capped hives, and 50 weak one-story 

 hives and nuclei. Our best honey-fl )w comes 

 next month; then I expect two tons each Aveek, 

 and perhaps more. I have about 30 of my best 

 hives making comb honey. The rest are Avork- 

 ing for the extractor. I sold yesterday 5000 lbs. 

 extracted, at 5 cts. G. W. Camp. 



Armona, Cal., July 21. 



GLEAXINGS AXD ITS COXTEXTS. 



I think the man who complains about the in- 

 dex in Gleaxixgs is not as interested in it as 

 I am. I always commence in front of the paper, 

 and read it through, and then the index Avill do 

 me no good. There is nothing in it that I do 

 not like. I only Avish there were more of it. Is 

 Bro. Manum alive yet? J. P. Meyers. 



Fort Dodge, Iowa. July 21. 



[We will let Bro. Manum speak for himself. 

 We think he is alive yet; but he is probably 

 pretty busy.] 



successful MOVING. AXD BEES BOOMING OX 

 ALFALFA. 



I moved my bees, 150 colonies, from NeAvark, 

 Ark., the last of May, without the loss of a 

 single colony— pretty good success, I think. 

 Alfalfa is just noAv in full bloom, and you ought 

 to see the bees Avork on it. They are just 

 booming, but they Avill have to boom all sum- 

 mer to pay back the money I have spent in 

 bringing them out here. Albert Arnold. 



Duff, Col., June_23^ 



WHITE CLOVER NEARLY A FAILURE; BUT 

 PLENTY OF DARK HONEY-DEW. 



White clover yielded no honey until about 

 July 15. Until the present, all the honey Ave 

 have taken is honey-deAV. and extremely dark. 

 The season has been extremely Avet. and the 

 prospect for a fall flow is very encouraging, as 

 there is a rank growth of vegetation every- 

 where. A. A. Weaa'ER. 



Warrensburg, Mo.. July 30. 



The basswood bloom was the least here for 

 ten years. C. J. Barber. 



Rodney. loAva. July 20. 



