At»RtL 1, 1914 



245 



Beekeeping in California 



p. C. Chadwick, Redlands, Cal. 



March 10 — no rain since Feb. 21 ; surface 

 g'etting dry; weather very warm; oranges 

 blooming, and sage in places showing nnicli 



bloom. 



* * * 



Never in all my experience have I seen so 



much pollen stored as now. Many of my 



colonies have two full combs at the present 



time. 



^ # * 



Hived my first swarm to-day, which is 

 the earliest I liave ever had the pleasure of 

 capturing a stray. The colony from which 

 it came must have been an exceptionally 



early breeder. 



* * * 



The recent heavy rains brought to most 

 of us only joy ; but some of our beemen lost 

 heavily of hives and fixtures. In the ag- 

 gregate several hundred colonies were wash- 

 ed away, and I should not be surprised if 

 the entire loss would run into figures of 

 more than a thousand, if all wei'e reported. 

 M. H. Mendleson and J. D. Bixby were the 

 heaviest losers of full colonies. Mr. Bixby 

 lost 125, Mr. Mendleson something like 100. 



* * -* 



I wish to announce that I am no longer 

 connected with the exhibit committee of the 

 State Association. I am also informed that 

 chairman M. H. Mendleson, of the commit- 

 tee, has decided to withdraw. It is with 

 much regret that I announce my resigna- 

 tion ; but opposition to our plans, working 

 privately, as well as through the Western 

 Honey Bee, has forced me to the conclusion 

 that with such opposition our efforts could 

 not overcome the prejudice engendered. 



* * * 



There are some peculiar features in 

 connection with our semi-desert plants. 

 One of these in particular I noticed the 

 past year. Much of the wild alfalfa was 

 killed during our freeze in January, 1913. 

 There was very little of it in this locality 

 that ever showed a green leaf during the 

 entire spring and summer of that year, 

 though many of the stocks seemed to con- 

 tain life. Our recent heavy rains and warm 

 sunshine 'have caused fully half of it to 

 revive with the most luxurious gi'owth I 



have ever se-en. 



* * * 



Mr. J. T. Bowen, page 152, takes another 

 " stab " at my opinion on the color of alfal- 

 fa honey. I wish to say to Mr. Bowen as 

 well as to all others who have written re- 

 garding the matter, that I am studying this 



(luestion of the color of honey; and while 

 I may be wrong, it must be proven to me 

 that I am. I know the tendency of the 

 avei'age beekeeper to judge the soui'ce from 

 which his honey-flow comes far too well to 

 back down on this proposition simply be- 

 cause I am opposed. We have the same 

 contention about sage and other honeys in 

 my locality that I consider as having been 

 arrived at by immature observation. 



We are face to face with the earliest 

 season for years. Our winter has been a 

 most unusual one in many respects. We 

 have seen very little trace of frost during 

 the entire winter, our rains have fallen in 

 great storrhs covering a period of a week 

 to ten days with very heavy precipitation, 

 after which the sky clears and the warm 

 weather continues. The oranges are begin- 

 ning to bloom abundantly, and within two 

 weeks will be in full bloom if the warm 

 weather continues. The sage is from four 

 to five weeks earlier in this locality than 

 usual. I have never seen bees build up so 

 rapidly from a small start as has been the 

 case this season. They have come by leaps 

 and bounds; but for all their speed they 

 are yet behind the season. I am informed 

 that things are not cjuite so advanced near 



the coast. 



* * * 



GREAT LOSS OF BEES IN THE PAST YEAR. 



The loss of bees during the past twelve 

 months has been quite heavy in many sec- 

 tions, while other parts have fared better in 

 this respect. The chief trouble in this sec- 

 tion has been the lack of stores; in other 

 places it has been black brood. In this 

 connection I quote from a letter of F. C. 

 Wiggins, of San Diego : 



The beemen that I know hereabout all report great 

 losses of bees owing to some disease, the same as 

 destroyed nearly all of my own in 1907 and '8, I 

 think. The hives would be found empty of bees 

 with plenty of honey. One of my neighbors has a 

 bee-ranch at Dulsura, and he has only 41 colonies 

 left out of 120 last summer. Another in the same 

 section lost all but one out of 50 colonies. Mr. Q. 

 P. Hedye, of Linda Vista, said he thought he would 

 not save over ten or fifteen per cent of two apiaries 

 01 about 300 colonies. A few that I have at present 

 all came through, and are getting honey from soma 

 sources so fast that I put on comb supers yesterday. 



Conditions seem to be a great deal as 

 they were in the spring of 1905, so far as 

 the loss of bees is concerned; and if we 

 should obtain a heavy yield the loss of bees 

 would prevent a very great overproduction 

 at best. 



