324 



GLEANIKGri IN BEE CULTURE. 



AIay 1. 



I have often noticed the same shaking move- 

 ment; but instead of a backward and forward 

 movement it was from one side to the other, 

 holding on to each other by their fore feet, 

 wiggling their bodies from side to side with all 

 their might. I used to think they would swarm 

 the same day, or soon, but they did not always. 

 I noticed their wiggling in that way this sum- 

 mer in our home apiary, where we had but one 

 swarm, and none from that hive. I should like 

 to know what makes them wiggle so. They 

 act like a lot of little children who are wonder- 

 fully pleased over something. 



Dr. Miller's big brush is all right, pi'ovided 

 he can get the grass and weeds (which we can 

 generally get, all we need, and more) ; but in 

 one of our out-apiaries this summer we could 

 get but very little of either grass or weeds. 

 The ground was so bare that we retained the 

 old brush and gathered what we could and 

 wrapped around it, making it fresh on the out- 

 side. 



In the Fancier's and Br'eeder''s Journal it \s 

 mentioned that Mr. Root says, in convention, I 

 think it was the Northwestern, that it is un- 

 profitable for bee-keepers to breed for any pure 

 race, as many of his customers asked for hy- 

 brids and would have nothing else. If hybrids 

 are really as good for honey-producers as the 

 pure race, then why change more for the pure ? 

 Our experience is, that, in a real good year for 

 honey, a good hybrid will gather as much as a 

 pure colony; but in a poor year the pure colo- 

 nies are ahead, and are much easier handled — 

 that is, the Italians. Mrs. L. C. Axtell. 



Roseville, 111. 



[There is no question but that the space un- 

 der the frames, especially for cellar wintering, 

 is a good thing. We arrive at the same result 

 by leaving off the bottom -boards and piling the 

 hives on top of each other in such a way that 

 the one above stands over the space between 

 the two others below, a la Boardman. 



The reporter in the Breeder's and Fancier's 

 Journal must have got things pretty badly 

 mixed when he quoted us as saying that it was 

 unprofitable for bee-keepers to breed for any 

 pure race. We have never knowingly given 

 utterance to such a statement. We might have 

 said that bee-keepers as a class do not make 

 any very great effort to keep their Italians 

 strictly pure.] 



ALFALFA, OR LUCERNE. 



THE STATEMENT THAT IT IS CUT BEFOKE IT 

 BLOOMS IS ALL FOLDEROL. 



I have noticed with considerable interest that 

 the quality of lucerne honey is coming to the 

 front, as we in this section consider it equal to 

 the best honey produced anywhere. Now, what 

 I wish to say is, that we have a continuous hon- 

 ey-flow from it, commencing about June 1st and 

 lasting from three to four months. We do not 

 know what it is to have a poor season for hon- 

 ey. Of course, some seasons are better than 

 others; but we always get a surplus. All this 

 talk about cutting lucerne before it blooms is 

 all folderol, so far as this section of country is 

 concerned. A farmer who would cut his hay 

 before it bloomed would be looked upon in about 

 the same light as one who would cut his grain 

 before it was headed; and theic is so much dif- 

 ference in time of cutting after haying has 

 commenced that some are cutting their first 

 while others are cutting their second crop. In 

 fact, we are haying all the time for three or 

 four months. And, besides, there are thousands 

 of bushels of seed raised which is cut only once. 



generally the latter part of September or the 1st 

 of October, and then our roads and ditches are 

 completely lined with some which is never cut 

 at all. We also have sweet clover, but the bees 

 do not work on it any more than on the lucerne. 



RUNAAVAY SWARMS OCCUPYINCt HIVES AVHEKE 



BEES HAVE DIED FROM FOUL BROOD, 



AND PROSPERING. 



Did you ever hear of bees going into an old 

 hive where the bees had died with foul brood? 

 About a year ago I was called upon by my 

 neighbor, Mrs. Streeter, to look at her bees. 

 She had two swarms which were all dead, as I 

 found on examination, having apparently died 

 with foul brood. I was surprised, a few days 

 ago, when her son came and asked me to come 

 and look at the bees ayain. I asked him if his 

 mother had bought some more bees, as I sup- 

 posed she had cleaned up the old hives as I ad- 

 vised her. 



" Oh, no! " said he. " The bees have all come 

 back. They stayed away only about three or 

 four months." 



I went and found bees in both hives, one hav- 

 ing a good strong swarm, while the other had 

 only a few robbers. I did not think it possible 

 for them to thrive in such a hive of combs as 

 those. E. M. Whiting. 



Mapleton, Utah, Mar. 14. 



INCREASE BY PURCHASE VS. DIVIDING. 



HOW TO SECURE INCREASE BY SPREADING 

 BROOD. 



On page 893 of last year's Gleanings Mr. 

 A. C. Brown, of Smithfield. Tex., asks if it 

 would be cheaper to buy bees at $4.00 per colo- 

 ny or divide, using full frames of foundation, 

 and feeding sugar syrup to have it drawn out. 

 And on page 131 of this year's Gleanings is an 

 article from L. Stachelhausen, " How he does 

 it;" but he fails to give the information asked 

 for. 



I will endeavor to give Mr. Brown what light 

 lean on the subject. 1. As soon as it will do, 

 or as soon as the nights are warm enough not 

 to chill the brood, go through your 45 colonies 

 and spread the brood, placing one or two empty 

 combs in the centerof the brood-nest. In seven 

 or eight days go over them again, doing the 

 same thing, keeping the unsealed brood as near 

 the center as possible, this time drawing one or 

 more frames of brood from the stronger colonies, 

 and give them to poor ones. Repeat this once 

 a week until all are strong, and at the same time 

 feed, if necessary to keep up brood -rearing. 

 Now you are ready for increase. Your queen- 

 cells should be ready, abou. eight or nine days 

 old. Now for the divisions. Take from each 

 colony the queen with half the brood, honey, 

 and old bees. Place them in a hive on a new 

 stand, closing the entrance with wire cloth for 

 24 hours. Now open up. and the most of them 

 will remain. Now look through the others; de- 

 stroy all queen-cells, and introduce your queen- 

 cells, which should hatch in two or three days. 

 In one or two days look through to see if all 

 are right. If any cells are torn down, replace 

 them. Now till your hives with full sheets of 

 foundation. Never use starters if you can 

 avoid it, as they will be filled out with drone 

 combs. 



When they are ready for the upper story, fill 

 it with frames of foundation; raise one or more 

 frames of comb from below as baits: crowd the 

 frames rather close at first, spreading them as 

 they are drawn out. placing outside ones in the 

 center, and you will have nice straight combs 

 drawn in due time. I think you will find that 



