394 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Apr. 15 



All plants secrete honey more profusely 

 when there is plenty of moisture in the soil 

 and in the air. Here the plants thit bloom 

 duiing' the rainy season give a more abun- 

 dant flow than those that ccme in dry times. 

 But the honey gathered in the rainy season 

 is very inferior in quality, and ferments 

 upon the slightest provccntion, while that 

 of the dry season is cf good body, and keeps 

 well. The summer honey is also usually of 

 poor flavor and color. These reasons have 

 led the bee keepers to look for fall and win- 

 ter locations. During the rainy season, when 

 every thing in dripping moisture about all 

 the time, it is not possible to get honey 

 properly ripened; and, also, the rain pre- 

 vents the bees from working much of the 

 time. Of course, the ideal location here 

 would have honey all the year round; but 

 such places are not easily found. There 

 are very few places where one can extract 

 for six months of the year. 



Pas J Real, Feb. 17. 



CUTTING CANDIED HONKY WITH A WIRE; 

 HOW THE PLAN SUCCEEDED IN THE 

 HANDS OF ONE OP OUR SUBSCRIBERS; 

 PUTTING FOUNDATION INTO SEC- 

 TIONS SO THAT IT WILL NOT 

 KINK, WARP, OR BUCKLE. 



Just about three months ago I was tak- 

 ing some candied honey out of our uncap- 

 ping can, placing it on the stove until loose, 

 then proceeded to cut it into chunks, when 

 the thought struck me, and I made mention 

 to my son that, with an electric wire, we 

 might be able to cut our candied honey into 

 a shape to handle. A few months later we 

 noticed in Gleanings the success cf Mr. 

 Wairen in cutting the honey with a fish- 

 line or wire. We immediately set to work, 

 and in a short time we were successful in 

 cutting 45 21b. biccks and 18 ;2-lb. out of 

 a 60-pound can, leaving 4 lbs. of odds and 

 ends; and. as you say, the honey sells all 

 right. My son was so enthused that he 

 proposed we make a cut of our machine 

 and send it in for Gleanings; but I said 

 we'd better wait a while, as some one 

 would likely have something more perfect. 

 On receiving March 15th Gleanings I ran 

 over the contents, and there it was. Yes, 

 it is what we want, and what we need in 

 this lanr of solid honey. 



Now, there is one thing more, at least, 

 that we want more light on, and that is, 

 putting full sheets of foundation into sec- 

 tions in a way so they will not warp, kink, 

 nor buckle when placed in the super. As 

 we ha\e been successful with a few thou- 



sand the past season, and as it is mentioned 

 on page 634, 1903, th: t it has not been prac- 

 tical to fasten foundation to the end as well 

 as top, for the benefit of those wishing 

 to produce the most perfectly filled sec- 

 tions we will, in the near future, send a 

 drawing and explanations how it is done. 



G. J. Yoder. 

 Meridian, Idaho, March 24. 



[We should be pleased to receive the 

 drawing and description referred to. — Ed.] 



A simple and effective method of get- 

 ting ALL THE WAX OUT OF OLD COMBS. 

 I have read all you have published about 

 wax and wax-presses, etc. I have rendered 

 several hundred pounds in the last two 

 years, and my way of separating wax from 

 the original combs is very inexpensive, to 

 say the least. I sre some make the claim 

 that the majority get only about 50 per cent 

 of the wax. Now, if I thought I was leav- 

 ing 25 per cent in the slumgum T would buy 

 a press. I have just rendered some wax; 

 and if you are making experiments I should 

 like to send you seme slumgum from the 

 batch I have just rendered. 



Some two or more years ago some one told 

 how he rendered wax. I forget now wheth- 

 er it was in Gleanings or elsewhere. He 

 said he used a big kettle the same as some 



use in making soap, and he took an iron 

 pail, holding about two gallons, and punch- 

 ed it full of holes and nailed a three- foot 

 handle on it, and used that to push around 



in the hot wax; and as the wax runs in the 

 pail through the holes he skimmed it ofi^ 

 with a common dipper. That is the way I 

 get my whx. A. L. Dupray. 



Camanche, Iowa, Feb. 16. 



[W^e asked Mr. D. to send us by mail a 

 small sample of the slumgum, which he did. 

 We put it to the test, and found that all the 



