726 



Gleanings in Bee Culture 



projecting Xyi feet 

 over the front, as in 

 Fig. 3. This shades 

 the entrance from the 

 noonday sun till 1 

 o'clock; then I put 

 the board on the west 

 side of the hive eight 

 or ten inches to the 

 front, where it shades 

 the front and west 

 side till night, when 

 the boards are shift- 

 ed over to the east 

 side, ready for the 

 morning. This makes 

 three moves a day, 

 and keeps three- 

 fourths of the hive 

 in perfect shade, 

 much to the comfort 

 of the bees, keeping 

 them all working, 

 and reducing swarm- 

 ing to a minimum. 

 There is thus no loss, 

 but a probable in- 

 crease in yield of 

 honey. I find these 

 boards a great help in 

 keeping off bad winds 

 in spring by stand- 

 ing them against ilie 

 hive on the windy 

 side; and just now, 



Aug. 8, they are of great benefit to the bees, 

 as we have a terrible plague of wasps. The 

 entrances have to be contracted, which 

 would make the hives so hot that the bees 

 would cluster out, much to the satisfaction 

 of the wasps. As it is, the hives are in 

 shade, and few bees are out in front of the 

 hive. 



Some may object to the time it takes to 

 shift the boards. I find it takes just five 

 minutes to shift 25 boards, or 15 for the 25 

 hives each day, or one hour per hundred. 

 Surely no bee-keeper would begrudge giving 

 this small attention. If the hives face the 

 east, only two moves are needed. 



Victoria, B. C. 



[As to the value of shade-boards in many 

 localities, there can be no question; but ex- 

 cept in very extreme climates we presume 

 most bee-keepers would consider one posi- 

 tion of the board sufficient for all day.— Ed.] 



SOWING SWEET CLOVER ALONG WASTE 

 GROUNDS. 



What the Hamilton County Bee-keepers' Associa- 

 tion is Doing to Promote the Spread of 

 this Useful Plant. 



BY HENRY REDDERT. 



lOne of the liveliest organizations in this whole 

 country is the Hamilton County Bee-keepers' Asso- 

 ciation, located in Southwestern Ohio, and near 

 Cincinnati. Its secretary. Mr. Henry Reddert, is 

 an enthusiastic believer in the value of sweet clo- 



FiG. 3. — Shading the tops and fronts of the hives during the hottest part 

 of the day. 



ver to the bee-keeper, the farmer, and the railroad 

 companies, who need something to hold up their 

 embankments. It seems that the Hamilton Coun- 

 ty Association is sending out to all its fully paid 

 ui) members, on the basis of 81.50 per meinber, 5 

 lbs. of sweet-clover seed, recommending sucli mem- 

 bers not only to scatter seed In waste places, but to 

 preach the value of the plant to the farmers. 

 Would It not be well for other bee-keepers" societies 

 to follow their example ? In acknowledging the re- 

 ceipt of the editor's membership fee, and saying he 

 had sent on 5 lbs. of seed. Sec. Reddert writes:— Ed.] 



At the last meeting of the Southwestern 

 Ohio and Hamilton County Bee-keepers' 

 Association, Sept. 29, the question of sow- 

 ing sweet clover in waste jilaces in the vi- 

 cinity of our fellow bee-keepers' homes 

 caused quite a spirited discussion. We 

 gleaned that sweet clover had been cut 

 down in many localities before it went to 

 seed. This was especially true on the rail- 

 road banks. About five years ago the slopes 

 of railroad banks were filled with sweet clo- 

 ver for miles and miles, but the companies 

 cut it down from year to year before bloom, 

 endeavoring to destroy it entirely. We 

 wrote to them explaining the good the long 

 roots would do in holding up the ground 

 during heavy rains and washouts, A few 

 replied that they would look into the mat- 

 ter, but others paid little attention to our 

 requests. 



Of the last named, the B. & O. and Big 

 Four let it bloom until about the 18th of 

 .June. The Norfolk «& Western agreed not 

 to cut it down at all. The C. H. & D. de- 

 stroyed it as soon as it began to bloom. 

 They thought that if it was left to go to 



