260 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



MayI 



tion to control swarms is a success or not. 

 It is so simple to apply that we wonder 

 more bee-keepers have not made use of it. 

 Our readers will remember that we have 

 described a scheme very similar to this in 

 these columns, saying it worked very suc- 

 cessfully in our locality. See Gleanings, 

 page 504 for 1909, also last edition of A B C 

 and X Y Z, under head of Entrances and 

 Swarming. 



SECTIONS WELL FILLED AND CAPPED NEXT 

 TO THE WOOD NOT AS WELL ADAPTED 

 TO SHIPPING AS THOSE WHERE THE 

 CELLS ABE EMPTY NEXT TO THE WOOD. 



The time was when there was an effort 

 made to have sections with every cell of 

 honey sealed, including those next to the 

 wood of the section itself. While such 

 combs look very pretty, and are classed as 

 "extra fancy," yet experience shows that 

 they are the very first sections to leak as a 

 result of rough usage in shipment. The 

 combs that stand the hardest treatment are 

 those that are fastened on all four sides, 

 with the cells next to the wood empty. A 

 little racking of such sections, breaking 

 the combs partly from the wood, will not 

 be nearly as likely to cause leaking as a 

 like treatment on those that have every cell 

 sealed next to the wood. A slight breakage 

 or cleavage from the wood when the cells 

 are empty does no particular damage; but 

 it makes a bad mess when the line of cleav- 

 age runs right through sealed honey — that 

 is, when the honey and the cappings are 

 built right up against the wood. 



NO ADJECTIVE NEEDED BEFORE THE WORD 

 "HONEY." 



Letter after letter has come in with sug- 

 gestions as to a substitute for the word "ex- 

 tracted;" but, as we mentioned before, we 

 doubt whether the publication of these let- 

 ters would help matters to any great extent, 

 for they are so conflicting. No less an au- 

 thority than Samuel Simmins, however, 

 agrees with the sentiment that we expressed; 

 for, before he saw our editorial, page 85, Feb. 

 15, he wrote: 



In Great Britain the word "extracted" is often not 

 used at all on the label. The contents are referred 

 to as " Pure English honey," " Pure Flower Honey," 

 ete., while in Ireland and Scotland, as the case may 

 be, the bee-keepers have their own distinctive ap- 

 plications without any intention of disguising the 

 fact that the honey has been extracted. The pur- 

 chaser realizes that the product is from a pure 

 .source, and he takes it In bottles or cans for what it 

 it is. according to description, without troubling as 

 to the method in which it was removed from the 

 comb. In Scotland, Indeed, the heather honey is 

 not extracted in the ordinary way, and can be re- 

 moved from the comb only under powerful pres- 

 sure. Such honey is not labeled as " expressed hon- 

 ey, but simply " Pure Heather Honey," etc. 



If all bee-keepers and dealers would be 

 willing to omit the word "extracted" on 

 the labels, but use it, of course, as it always 

 has been used, every place else, a misappre- 

 hension in the mind of the consumer would 

 often be prevented. The less the consumer 

 thinks about honey compounds, honey ex- 

 tracts, extract honey, etc., the better. 



SENDING SUSPECTED BROOD SPECIMENS TO 



DR. E. F. PHILLIPS RATHER THAN 



TO MEDINA. 



As the warm weather comes on, samples 

 of foul brood are beginning again to come 

 in to this office for identification. In view 

 of the fact that the Bureau of Entomology, 

 Washington, D. C, will examine and re- 

 port on all brood sent, free of charge, we 

 ask our readers not to send any more sam- 

 ples to us. There are two reasons for this. 

 We have a large investment in bees in and 

 about Medina; and too often specimens of 

 brood are improperly packed. As we ship 

 bees all over the United States we feel that 

 we have no right to have specimens of 

 brood probably diseased come to Medina if 

 we can help it, especially as the Bureau has 

 a corps of experts who can give a much 

 more accurate determination than we can. 



We have in hand one sample of brood 

 that was sent to us in a paver box, all 

 broken out at the corners. Fortunately it 

 arrived in cold and rainy weather. But no 

 bee-keeper should send foul brood in paper 

 boxes. Strong tin or wooden boxes should 

 always be used, and then securely wrapped 

 in heavy manilla paper to catch any drip 

 that may leak out. The Bureau, we under- 

 stand, if you will ask for it, will send a 

 suitable box and instructions for sending. 

 Address Dr. E. F. Phillips, Bureau of Ento- 

 mology, Washington, D. C. 



THE OLD ROOT TWO -STORY CHAFF HIVE; 



THE NEAREST APPROACH TO THE 



" WORK-FOR-NOTHING-AND-BOARD- 



YOURSELF" PROPOSITION. 



In this issue, page 271, will be seen an 

 illustration of the old-fashioned two-story 

 Root chaff hive. It is not manufactured 

 any more, simply because the average bee- 

 keeper would not be willing to pay the price 

 for so large a hive; and because, in modern 

 apiculture, it has been found to be more 

 practicable to have the upper story separ- 

 able from the lower one, as will be explained 

 later. Aside from these two objections we 

 doubt if there ever was a hive designed that 

 wintered bees outdoors as this one would. 

 The packing was 5 inches thick on the sides, 

 and 4 irlches on the ends. On top there 

 was a cushion 12 inches thick that projected 

 4 inches on the sides and 2 inches on the 

 ends over the brood-nest. When this cush- 

 ion was carefully tucked into the upper 

 story the bees below could stand any zero 

 weather. 



In the summer time, or during the period 

 when honey was being gathered, the upper 

 story would take in 15 frames, making the 

 total capacity of the hive 25 Langstroth 

 frames; and what jumbo colonies we could 

 raise in those hives! And when it came to 

 the production of extracted honey, or comb 

 honey either — well, we doubt if there is any 

 modern hive that will beat it. The secret 

 of its success was due to the fact that brood- 

 rearing would start very early in such a hive 

 with its very thick packed walls, and to the 



