1898 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



297 



er. This is especially true when some one 

 else is running the extractor besides myself; 

 but they bother me too much. The small V" 

 inch fence-staples would be all right if they 

 didn't split the frame in driving. Your new 

 spacing-staple is too broad to enter the wire- 

 cloth meshes, which, of course, can not be 

 tolerated; but while in your workshop in Me- 

 dina a year or two ago I saw on your bench 

 just the thing — a wire staple made of very 

 small wire and small bend. I inclose one so 

 you can see what I mean. They answer my 

 purpose perfectly. 



On p. I.'IS Mr. Doolittle discusses the old 

 question of the honey-gathering qualities of 

 the golden Italians, dark ones, or hybrids. 

 He thinks the " true solution of this question 

 depends on whether we are producing extract- 

 ed or comb honey." I think he is only partly 

 correct. The time of season when the main 

 honey- flow comes is also a very important fac- 

 tor in determining which will be the best bee 

 for any one of us individually to keep. I am 

 referring to the production of extracted honey 

 only, not to comb honey. My keeping bees 

 in such widely differing condiiions as prevail 

 in Iowa, Cuba, and Florida, has taught me 

 many things that I should have given little 

 attention lo had my work been confined to 

 one locality. Italian bees, especially the more 

 uniform lighter-colored ones, seem to have the 

 storing instinct more fully developed than the 

 hybrids. Whenever the honey-flow is heavy, 

 either early or late in the season, they devote 

 their work to storing honey at the expen-ie of 

 brood-rearing, while the hybrids, early in the 

 season, retain more of a disposition to raise 

 brood at the expense of honey-storing. Later 

 in the season there is much less difference in 

 this respect between the two kinds of bees. 

 Thus, if one is in a locality where the main 

 honey-flow comes earlj' in the season, like 

 most white-clover localities, the yellowest and 

 purest Italian bees we can get will give the 

 best results; at least, such was true with me 

 in Iowa. If the main honey-flow conies later 

 in the season, say in July, as it does with Mr. 

 Doolittle, the hybrids will do fully as well. 

 If the flow is very late, like that from buck- 

 wheat and goldenrod, I should prefer hybrids, 

 possibly even blacks. In both Cuba and Flor- 

 ida I have had much the best satisfaction 

 from hybrids — better than with either of the 

 pure races. 



Stuart, Fla., March 14. 



[In the few cases where I have seen bee- 

 paralysis in the North, I have never come 

 across one yet where the colony seemed vig- 

 orous enough to cast a swarm. My experience 

 has been more in line with your thought, that 

 the bee-paralysis Mr. Walker reported was 

 either not bte-paralysis, or something a little 

 out of the order of that disease. 



I believe the majority of people of sedentary 

 habits, or those who do not perform hard 

 labor, would be better off with two meals a 

 day than three. But a laboring man would 

 hardly be able to get along without three 

 meals; and even then I know that many of 

 them say they are " mighty hungry when the 

 next grub time comes around." 



Yes, Dr. Miller did catch me up, but I 

 thought I crawled out of my hole pretty 

 gracefully, especially when I said that the 

 combs on which I based my estimate of 10 lbs., 

 of years ago, were spaced 1 Yz inches from 

 center to center. You remember I did find 

 some combs spaced 1 Y-^ from center to center 

 that weighed 8>^ lbs. Still, 5 lbs. is a fair 

 average, taking combs as they run. 



So you think that my 75-lb. estimate for a 

 full super was probably too high. Don't for- 

 get that I was talking about those "awful 

 heavy supers," the regular back-breakers. 

 Every comb was filled out solid with honey, 

 and as such run over 8 lbs. in weight — say it 

 is 8^4 — it makes (iS lbs. That leaves only 7 

 for the weight of super and cover. There, 

 don't you see how I get my 75 lbs., especially 

 when I set it as the extreme limit ? We have 

 had supers more than once at our out-yard 

 that were crammed in just the way I speak of, 

 and they were regular back-breakers, I tell 

 you; but it would be more exact to say that, 

 on the average, extracting-supers would run 

 between 40 and 50 lbs., counting that the 

 super was 8 frame, full size. 



When we last fall adopted spacing-staples, we 

 placed them just far enough from the end-bar 

 so that, when the frame was placed in our 

 regular extractors, the staples at both ends 

 would just "clear" the wire cloth and its 

 binding at both ends. We make our comb- 

 pockets quite a little shorter than the length 

 of the Lang^troth frame. 



With regard to hybrids for late flows of 

 honey, your experience would agree very well 

 with that of the York Staters. Like the rest 

 of us, they have a white-clover flow, but, un- 

 like the rest of us, later on in the siimmer 

 they have buckwheat — thousands and thou- 

 sands of acres of it. I do not think I saw an 

 apiary of pure Italians anywhere in York 

 State, except at Doolittle's and Salisbury's. 

 Hybrids are used because they are less trouble 

 to raise, and because the}^ are no doubt better 

 for buckwheat. — Ed.] 



HIVES ON FOUR BLOCKS. 



The Pettit Method; the Divider and the Fence: 

 an Objection to Deep Entrances. 



BY JAS. CORMAC. 



Reading your comment on one of Dr. Miller's 

 Straws, where he remarks that an entrance of 

 Y% inch the whole width of the hive is not 

 enough for him, and that a chance for a cur- 

 rent through is needed, I would say that, from 

 my point of view, the doctor is, as in most of 

 his remarks as to changes and improvements, 

 in accord with my experience, except as to -T 

 supers. Having practiced the placing of 

 blocks under each corner of the hive, to give 

 ventilation, I find it is an improvement during 

 the heated term ; but, unless one's attention 

 were given to their removal at a time when 

 the honey-flow ceases suddenly, trouble might 

 ensue that would set the whole apiary wild on 

 account of robbing. 



Last season the Pettit method was tried. 



