AUGUST 1, 1914 



ers have a fair crop while others have no 

 ci'op. 



The mortality since June, 1912, in the 

 sage belt, must figure as an important fea- 

 ture in this report, for no increase of im- 

 portance has been possible, while the de- 

 crease has been steady since that date. 



In the orange belt, conditions have been 

 more favorable; and where the two con- 

 verge, conditions are also better. 



At the beginning of the honey season San 

 Bernardino County stood nearly one half 

 below her normal number of colonies, not- 

 withstanding the vast amount of orange- 

 groves. Los Angeles, Ventura, Santa Bar- 

 bara, San Luis Obispo, Orange, and River- 

 side counties lost in proportion, while San 

 Diego, from all reports, lost 75 per cent 

 during that time. Allowing the best possible 

 figures we cannot have entered the present 

 season with more than 50 per cent of our 

 normal number of colonies in the sage belt. 

 Of these some apiaries have exceeded a 

 fig-ure I shall use as a normal one per colony 

 for a good sage year — one ease of 120 

 pounds extracted per colony, which is low 

 indeed, it being generally conceded that 200 



JH3 



pounds would be nearer correct. By these 

 figures we see our crop cut in halves at the 

 start. To illustrate: In Redlands district 

 there has been produced, approximately, 

 900 cases to July 9, from a total of 2000 

 colonies, spring count, giving an average of 

 less than CO pounds per colony. In San 

 Diego County, our greatest producer, there 

 will be several carloads of honey; but the 

 vast amount produced there in past years as 

 favorable as this year will not be there this 

 year. 



On the other hand, there will be more 

 honey gathered in many localities than has 

 been gathered to date, and I should not be 

 surprised to see the total output for the 

 sage belt increased by one-half, with light 

 ambor and amber grades from wild buck- 

 wheat and many lesser plants that give up 

 their nectar freely after a winter of exces- 

 sive rainfall. All told, however, we cannot 

 by any hook or crook produce half a normal 

 crop for a sage-yielding season. No comb 

 honey of consequence has been produced in 

 the sage belt. 

 Redlands, Cal. 



OF THE HONEY CROP 

 CHUSETTS, AND 



8 Per 



BY J. E. CRANE 



The season has been somewhat peculiar. 

 April was unusually cold and wet, leaving 

 bees quite backward the first of May. May 

 was dry, and the last half of the month 

 warmer than usual. As a result, bees had 

 a good time on fruit bloom and dandelions, 

 so that all fair colonies were able to fill their 

 hives with honey and brood, and in some 

 yards considerable honey was extracted 

 from the brood-chambers, or heavy combs 

 removed and replaced by empty ones. The 

 dry weather continued nearly through June. 

 White clover winter-killed badly in some 

 places, and the dry weather prevented what 

 was left from developing, and kept alsike 

 small and short, with a small amount of 

 bloom. In most places where there wds 

 clover bloom it seemed too dry for it to 

 yield much honey. 



The vetch that has come in many 

 meadows has seemed to yield honey freely. 

 This, with the hives well filled with early 

 honey, and what little they could get from 

 other sources, has set bees to swarming at 

 an unusual rate in many places, with the 

 result that there has been but little honey 



stored in supers up to the second week jn 

 July. Recent rains have freshened up the 

 clover, and it seems now to be yielding some 

 honey. 



Blue thistle has come in in some localities, 

 and is yielding well; but the yards within 

 reach of it arc not many. 



The basswood that formerly gave us rich 

 harvests has been greatly reduced by the 

 lumbermen ; and in many places where bass- 

 wood remains, the forest-worms have com- 

 pletely defoliated them, so we have little to 

 expect from this source. 



It is yet rather early to tell what the 

 harvest will be ; but present indications are 

 that it will be much below the average; in 

 fact, it does not look now as though there 

 would be more than a third of an average 

 crop of white honey in Vermont, northeast- 

 ei-n New York, and northern Massachusetis 

 that this report covers. There will be iso- 

 lated localities where there has been more 

 rain, or the soil is more retentive of mois- 

 ture, where there will be fair crops. Recent 

 rains may bring more clover than we now 

 expect. Very little extracted honey is pro- 



