332 



(JLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



May 1. 



thf center of the claim, the claim extending 750 

 feet north and south, and 300 feet east and west 

 from the monument. We first stuck up a scrag- 

 gly pole, then piled a large number of stones 

 around it, placing the tin can and the document 

 near the top. This gave fair warning to every- 

 body that we had laid claim to all that was 

 valuable on that piece of land, all the way down 

 to China. The Rambler has a share "in the 

 mine for lifting some of those big stones, and 

 expects at no distant day to strike it rich. 



Thus in airy castle-halls of gold and precious 

 stones dreams the Rambler. 



SPRAYING FRUIT-TREES WHILE IN BLOOM. 



SOMETHING THAT SETTLES THE MATTER. 



Mr. Editor:— I read with great interest the 

 discussion on this question, which occurred at 

 Albany, and was very glad of the outcome of 

 that discussion. 1 am sure that bee-keepers 

 owe nothing but the kindliest feelings to Prof. 

 J. A. Lintner. He is one of our most able, most 

 candid, and most cautious entomologists. He 

 had previously believed that it was unwise to 

 spray fruit-trees while in blossom, and had ad- 

 vised that no one do so. At Washington, it 

 seems, several entomologists expressed the 

 opinion that there was no danger to bees in 

 such early spraying. I regret that official du- 

 ties as secretary of Section F prevented my 

 being present at the discussion of the entomo- 

 logical club, where these sentiments were ex- 

 pressed, or I should surely have corrected them, 

 and should have shown that they were errone- 

 ous, as I could easily have done from careful 

 experiments which we have made here at this 

 college. Prof. Lintner, supposing the points 

 made to be well grounded, changed his opinion 

 and resolved in future to advise spraying at 

 any desirable time, without reference to blos- 

 soms or bees. But before acting, he came befoi-e 

 the bee-keepers and expressed his convictions 

 and the reasons for them. Upon hearing the 

 opinions of bee-keepers, and learning of their 

 experience, he at once changed his decision, and 

 will continue as before to advise all to spray 

 with London purple or Paris green only after 

 the blossoms have all fallen from the trees. 

 Surely there was a fairness and candor about 

 all of this which rightly claims our respect and 

 admiration. From a long acquaintance with 

 Prof. Lintner, it is just what I should have ex- 

 pected. 



I regret that I could not write you earlier re- 

 garding our experiments in this matter, which 

 I am sure settle the question beyond doubt; 

 but you know how four months' absence from 

 home fairly swamps a man with work. This, 

 together with larger classes than usual, have 

 given me no time till now to consider the mat- 

 ter and write you the facts. 



Mr. Elwood's article shows that he, one of 

 our best-informed apiarists, as well as Dr. Lint- 

 ner. feels that the matter is in an unsettled 

 state, and pleads for more experiments that we 

 may know the exact truth in relation to this 

 important matter. 



I am very happy to give you in advance the 

 experiments which we have made, that I am 

 sure will convince all. These are now in type, 

 and will soon appear in the Report of the Mich- 

 igan State Board of Agriculture, so there is no 

 need that any other station should demonstrate 

 these facts, except that, the more that do such 

 work, the sooner will the results be known to 

 the people, and the sooner will practical results 

 be obtained. 



Let me premise by saying that, in several 

 cases in Michigan and other States, especially 



Illinois— -States where the value and safety of 

 spraying were first demonstrated, and hence 

 wheie spraying has been most general — there 

 have been serious losses of bees at the time of 

 apple-bloom. Not only did the mature bees die 

 oft rapidly, but there was extensive mortality 

 of the brood. These colonies were strong, and 

 had survived the period of the so-called " spring 

 dwindling." Every well-informed experienced 

 bee-ket'per like Mr. Elwood knows that such 

 mortality at such time was previously unknown. 

 In every case, large orchards in the immediate 

 vicinity had been sprayed with the arsenites 

 while the trees were in bloom. Previous to this 

 I had tried several experiments in feeding bees 

 sweetened water, with the common London 

 purple and Paris green of the drugstores added 

 in the same proportions that we use it for 

 spraying. In every case the bees were poisoned. 

 Yet they did not die at once; indeed, they lived 

 many times longer than would be necessary to 

 carry the poisonous liquid to the hives and 

 store it there. This explains why the brood is 

 also poisoned. As these people wrote to me of 

 their losses — quite a number have done so. and 

 from at least three States — I had no doubt that 

 the spraying at the wrong season was the cause. 

 1. The poison would do it. as I had repeatedly 

 proved; 3. The poison was thiown on to trees 

 while in bloom, and the flowers had been freely 

 visited by the bees; 3. Such loss of bees in this 

 manner and at this season was entirely unprec- 

 edented in our bee-keeping history. I at once 

 recognized the danger, informed the bee-keepers 

 directly interested, proclaimed through the 

 bee-papers the dangers that threatened bee- 

 keepers, warned fruit-growers of the danger, 

 and urged them for their own interests, as well 

 as for the good of their bee-keeping n<'ighbors, 

 never to spnty while the trees are hi bloom. I 

 have also tried to secure legislation that would 

 prevent such untimely spraying. 



No bee-keeper need be told that negative tes- 

 timony counts for little in this matter. That 

 some one has sprayed his trees while in bloom, 

 and yet no bees were known to be lost, would 

 deceive an entomologist who was not an apia- 

 rist; but a bee-keeper would know that the 

 spring is often so cold that the flowers secrete 

 almost no nectar, and the liees an? often unable 

 to fly at all. While, then, in many eases, spray- 

 ing the trees while in bloom would cause no 

 loss, yet in another case when the weather was 

 mild so that nectar was abundant, and the bees 

 out in force, the loss would be most serious. I 

 presume this explains the repoils from the 

 entomologists at the meeting in Washington. 



Our experiments the last summer, already in 

 print (Report of Michigan State Board of Agri- 

 culture. 1891, p. 137), are as follows: 



HOW STRONG SHALL WE USE LONDON PURPLE? 



Some years ago we tried a series of expei-imeTits 

 to determine tlie minimum stieiig'th of Lmidnn [lur- 

 ple or Paris green tluit would surely (irove etfective 

 in the de.struction of insects. The conclusion was, 

 that 1 lb. to 2iK) gallons of water was as weak as we 

 could safely use it. This year we repeated the ex- 

 periments. We used two'species of oals-caterpillar 

 — Anv«tta stigma, and Aniftata se)nt(irin; a lialry 

 caterpillar on tlie oak— Hdlrs'dnfn tesi^elntn; tlie cab- 

 bage caterpillar — Pierig rapce; the potato beetle — 

 Doryphoi-a tenlineata, both larva and imago, and the 

 honey-bee. All excejit the honey-lwe wi're treated 

 outdoors, on the plants or trees, and all, iiu-ludiiig 

 bees, were fed in cages in the lalioratorj'. We used 

 the London purple, 1 lb. to 200, to 300, to 400. and to 

 .500 gallons of water. In every case 1 11>. to 2(X) gal- 

 lons of water was quickly fatal. The weaker mix- 

 tures were not satisfactory, especially on the older 

 larvfe and the imago. The weakest mixture, 1 lb. to 

 500 gallons of water, failed to do thorough work in 

 every case. The other mixtures. 1 lb. to 3X) gallons 

 of water, and 1 lb. to 400 gallons of water, were tardy 

 in their action, and did not do the execution that 

 1 lb. to 200 gallons did. 



