364 



(iLKAMlNGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



May J 5. 



soe sharply, as any one who has been in the 

 bottom of a deep well knows that, by looking 

 up, even in midday, stars can be seen in the 

 heavens. R. Wilkin. 



Ventura, Cal., April 18. 



[In photography we always seek to get what 

 is called "good contrast;" that is, we try to 

 group persons and things of dissimilar colors in 

 such a way as to show sharp conti'asts. For 

 dark objects we prefer light backgrounds, and 

 vice versa. This brings out the picture strong 

 and clear. In practice you have endeavored 

 to secure the same results in nature.] 



BEES AT THE FOOT OF THE ROCKIES. 



J, F. McINTYRE IN HIS APIARY. 



HOW COLOKADO AS A HONEY COITNTKY DIFFERS 

 FROM THE EASTERN STATES. 



To a bee-keeper in this I'egion many of the 

 instructions and suggestions found in the books 

 and periodicals of the States east of the Missis- 

 sippi are entirely unsuited. They are generally 

 based on the well-marked honey seasons of 

 white clover and basswood. But here we have 

 neither of these. I have never seen a basswood- 

 tree this side of the Mississippi River except a 

 few small ones planted for ornament. As to 

 white clover, I know of none in the State except 

 a little that I have sown along the ditches, 

 amounting to probably less than half an acre 

 all told. So all instructions in regard to readi- 

 ness for the white-clover season and for manip- 

 ulations during the basswood flow are thrown 

 away on us. 



Our early pollen is derived from maple, wil- 

 low, and Cottonwood. The bees seem to collect 

 some honey from these sources also, as they are 

 carrying in more or less at present, and there 

 appears to be no other source from which it can 

 be obtained. Our main honey sources are, 

 fruit-blossom, alfalfa, and cleome. or Rocky 

 Mountain bee-plant. In this vicinity are hun- 

 dreds of acres of orchards and small fruit- 

 ranches. These furnish rich pasturage for our 

 bees early in the season. Unfortunately a se- 

 vere freeze in March killed much of our fruit in 

 the bud, so we shall not have the profusion of 

 bloom that we usually' have; but we expect 

 enough to build up our bees into good working 

 trim for the alfalfa harvest, which begins in 

 June and continues till frost. There is a large 

 amount of this within bee range of my place; 

 but, being raised only for hay, it is generally 

 cut as soon as it is in full bloom, so we do not 

 get the benefit in honey from it that we should 

 if it were raised for seed. But it generally hap- 

 pens that some of it is in bloom within reach of 

 my bees all of the season. Of cleome there are 

 hundreds of acres on waste grounds and on 

 roadsides up and down the river, within reach 

 of my bees. This begins to bloom in July, and 

 stays in good condition about two months. I 

 have never known this to fail to produce abun- 

 dance of nectar. The honey from both this and 

 alfalfa is of excellent grade, being light-colored 

 and fine-flavored. 



Bees have come through the winter in fine 

 condition. The winter problem seems to be a 

 secondary matter here. The past winter is the 

 first that I have tried to carry bees through. 

 But men who have kept bees for many years 

 tell me they always go through the winters 

 safely on their stands without any special prep- 

 aration provided they have plenty of stores. 



I have adopted the New Heddon hive; and 

 from one year's experience with it I think it 

 just " beats the world." L. J. Templin. 



Canyon City, Colo., April 2.5. 



PI-AN OF ARRANGING HIVES IN CALIFORNIA; 

 A CONVENIENT HONKY-CART, ETC. 



The engraving shows a near view of the 

 south half of the apiary, taken from the honey- 

 house door. The honey-cart in the foreground 

 is one of the most satisfactory implements 

 which I use in connection with the bee-business. 

 I have two of them, and they are both in con- 

 stant use during the extracting season. While 

 one is being filled in the apiary, the other is 

 emptied in the honey-house. The wheels are 

 30-inch hose-cart wheels, and cost here $4.00 

 per pair. The boxes which hold the combs are 

 made of half-inch lumber. They are 12 inches 

 deep, and in the bottom of each box is a drip- 

 ping-pan made of tin. 3 inches deep and full 

 size of the inside of the box. which catches all 

 the honey that drips from the combs. I find it 

 much more convenient to have the combs run 

 lengthwise, as shown in the engraving, than 

 across the cart. You can lift a comb from the 

 cart and place it in the super, or from the su- 

 per and place it in the cart, without moving 

 your feet. That little tin box in front of the 

 large ones is used to hold water. I always 

 brush the bees from the combs with a wet 

 brush; it does not irritate the bees so much as 

 a dry one, nor get sticky with honey. 



I was just opening a hive in the usual way, 

 and watching the bees run down from the 

 smoke, when the photographer snapped his 

 camera, with the remark, "I caught you at 

 work that time." For the last three or four 

 years I have used an extra large smoker, and 

 burn straw altogether for fuel. If the straw is 

 packed in tight it will burn a long time; and it 

 makes a cold white smoke which is just the 

 thing to quiet the bees. 



The lines in this apiary are arranged in 

 straight rows six feet apart, with a five- foot 

 alley between the backs for the honey-cart to 

 run up and down, and 12 feet clear between the 

 fronts with a low of grapevines in the middle. 

 Most of th(^ large apiaries in this county are 

 arranged this way. You can get the honey- 

 cart up close to the back of the hive where it is 

 in the most convenient position to load. The 

 Miller plan is better for queen-rearing, but not 

 for producing extracted honey. Almost any 

 plan will do for a small apiai'y; but when the 

 apiary covers over an a^-re of ground, the bees 

 will get MU)re oi' less demoralized with any plan. 



You will see a number-stake at the back cor- 

 ner of a hive just above the honey-cart. It 

 reads 19 K. That means K row. No. lU. The 

 rows ar(^ lettered fi'om A to V. and the hives 

 numbered from 1 to 23. By having a book in- 

 dexed on the margin I can open it at any row; 

 and as all the n umbers are on that page. I can 

 see the record of any hive in about two seconds. 



The rows run east and west, and the liives 

 face north and south. I have come to the con- 

 clusion that bees prefer their entrance on the 

 south side, and do a little better in the rows 

 facing south. The plan of my apiary on page 

 77.5, last year's Gleanings, is not this apiary, 

 but an out-apiary, and the engraving on page 

 772 is looking north; on page 773. south. This 

 engraving is looking southwest. 



THAT COWAN EXTRACTOR. 



Before I close I wish to say a few words for 

 that new Cowan extractor. I felt enthusiastic 

 the moment I opened Gleanings and saw the 

 cut; and the only thing that prevented me 

 from sitting right down and expressing my ad- 

 miration was the fact that I had already rec- 

 ommended and indorsed this principh'. When 

 I showed the cut to my wife she said, "That is 



