1898 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



583 



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SUNDRY QUESTIONS ANSWERED. 



A correspondent, after telling that he has 

 just commenced to take Gleanings, and in- 

 timating that he is onl}' a mere tyro at bee- 

 keeping, desires me to answer several ques- 

 tions in short plain style, which I will en- 

 deavor to do, not only for him, but because 

 some of them have been asked by several 

 others. 



PURCHASING BEES. 



Oiiestio?!. — What price ought I to pay for a 

 colony of Italian bees in a movable-frame 

 hive ? 



Answer. — Much depends upon the season 

 of the year and the condition of the colony. 

 They are usually sold for from three to four 

 dollars in the fall, and from five to six in the 

 spring. The reason for the difference in price 

 seems to be the risk in wintering. Some win- 

 ters bees winter universally well, not only 

 with the specialist, but with the novice who 

 knows nothing about getting bees in good 

 shape for winter. Other winters, like the 

 early eighties, from fifty to seventy per cent 

 of all the bees die throughout the United 

 States and Canada. If ten or more colonies 

 are purchased of one party the price should 

 not be over $3. .50 in the fall for each colony, 

 or ^5.00 in the spring, the buj-er receiving all 

 good ones at that. Colonies could be bought 

 for less; but good first-class colonies, in good 

 frame hives, ought to command as much as 

 that, even in these low prices for honey, and 

 I would not advise a beginner to purchase 

 poor colonies to start with. In an average 

 season, in a favorable locality, such a colony 

 of bees should give fifty pounds of comb hon- 

 ey, besides one good swarm. That is, the old 

 colony and the swarm should produce that 

 amount. The honey should bring ten cents 

 per pound, or !?5.00, which would give the 

 purchaser his money back, even if he lost one 

 of the colonies, or fifty per cent of his bees 

 during the winter. 



DISEASED BEES. 



Question.— Axe: bees seized with disease or 

 epidemics ? 



AnSiVer. — There is only one of any amount, 

 aside from our occasional wintering troubles, 

 and that is termed "foul brood." The cause 

 of our wintering trouble, "doctors" do not 

 agree upon, some claiming that continued 

 cold causes it; others, confinement, dampness, 

 pollen, lack of ventilation, etc. Whatever 

 may be the cause, our greatest mortality oc- 

 curs during the latter part of a long steady 

 cold winter, an open winte" being favorable 

 to the successful wintering of bees. 



Foul brood is of a different nature. The 

 character of the season has nothing to do 

 with it. So far it is doubtful whether any 

 know the cause, except to guess at it. How- 

 ever, all agree that the disease is carried in 



the honey. One bee-load of honey taken 

 from a diseased hive to a healthy colony is 

 sure death, in time, to that colony, unless the 

 bees are driven from their combs to a clean 

 empty hive; so the greatest possible care 

 should be used, where a colony is discovered 

 having the disease. For symptoms and cure 

 I would refer the reader to the A B C of Bee 

 Culture, as published by The A. I. Root Co.; 

 and not only for foul brood, but for all gener- 

 al information on the subject of bees. No 

 beginner should try to keep bees without first 

 procuring one of the many good books we 

 have on the subject of bee culture. 



COST OF BEE-HIVES. 



Question. — What should be the cost of a 

 bee-hive 16x24x11, with chaff box and tin 

 cover, the same to be painted two coats ? 



Answer. — I should guess from !?3 00 to $4.00 

 for a single hive; while if ten to twenty were 

 wanted at one time, $2.50 each ought to buy 

 them, including frames, sections, and all. 

 But, let me ask, why make such a hive ? It is 

 out of the regular size of hives, and could not 

 possibly give better results than any of the 

 hives now in use. There are four styles of 

 hives in quite general use — the Langstroth, 

 Ouinby, Gallup, and American, any of which 

 would give as good results as the one spoken 

 of, and at a less cost. Besides, all of the sec- 

 tions, frames, etc., to these hives fit the ship- 

 ping-cases, extractors, and other conveniences 

 manufactured by most of our supply-dealers. 

 A complete Langstroth hive can be bought at 

 considerably less than the lowest figures quot- 

 ed, in lots of ten or more. 



HONEY-YIELD. 



Question.- — How much honey should an 

 Italian colony average annually ? 



Answer. — Very much depends upon the lo- 

 cation and management. Taking the United 

 States through, fifty pounds per year to a col- 

 ony, on an average, among the bee-keeping 

 specialists, is about what they secure. My 

 average yield for nearly twenty years, up to 

 the time I went into the queen-rearing busi- 

 ness to so great an extent that I had to weak- 

 en nearly every colony in the apiary to make 

 queen-rearing a success, was about eighty 

 pounds to each colony, spring count. Best 

 average during any one year was 106 lbs.; 

 poorest, 30 lbs. 



ALSIKE CLOVER. 



Question. — Does alsike clover suffer from 

 drouth ? 



Answer. — To about the same extent as does 

 red clover, as it has a very similar root; but 

 no kind of clover is infallible as to its honey 

 yield. Very dry or very wet weather is 

 against the secretion of nectar in flowers, and 

 especially are cool or cold nights damaging. 

 In my opinion this last is the cause of more 

 failures of honey than all other causes com- 

 bined, unless it be days in succession of 

 cloudy rainy weather, together with high 

 winds, which prevent the bees from leaving 

 their hives in search of stores. There is an 

 occasional season when bees are kept at a loss, 

 seasons in which they hardly secure a living 



