GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



J-^»Byer, I NOTES FROM CANADA MLjoy^Oet 



I am just leaving to attend the annua) 

 convention of the 0. B. K. A., which is 

 being held in Toronto as usual. While the 

 honey crop has been very small— a failure 

 in most localities in the province — yet I am 

 expecting a large crowd at our meeting. 

 Beekeepers are, as a rule, a hopeful bunch, 

 and place a lot of confidence in the pros- 

 pects of " next year," even if actual condi- 

 tions do not augur too well for their expec- 

 tations to be realized. 



THE DREADED ARMY WORM AN ENEMY OF 

 CLOVER^ AFTER ALL. 



In Gleanings, page 745, October 1, it 

 was stated that the dreaded army worm that 

 was so much in evidence in many localities 

 this past season would not attack clover. I 

 am sorry to say that this is a mistake, as we 

 have prima facie evidence to prove, by the 

 fact that some of our best catches of red 

 and alsike clover fields near us veere abso- 

 lutely denuded. After the worms had passed 

 through the grain-fields in which the young 

 clover was, not a thing could be seen on 

 the bare ground but the droppings of the 

 pest. Yes, they eat clover all right; and 

 from what I can learn from our authorities 

 it is one of their natural foods. [We are 

 sorry to learn this, as we had been given to 

 understand from what we supposed was 

 good authority that the army worm did not 

 attack the common clovers of the East. Per- 

 haps this is another ease of " locality," but 

 we think not. — Ed.] 



FINE WEATHER^ AND PROSPECTS FOR GOOD 

 WINTERING. 



Unusually mild beautiful weather has 

 been the rule throughout most of Ontario 

 for the past few weeks; and up to to-day, 

 Oct. 12, we have had very few days when 

 little pollen has not come in from dandelion 

 and other scattering bloom. Bees are going 

 into winter quarters strong in young bees; 

 and where stores are good and abundant, 

 good wintering should be assured. Our own 

 bees are very heavy, most of the stores here 

 in York Co. being from buckwheat. The 

 320 colonies here have been fed 2000 

 pounds of granulated sugar, which is not 

 a large amount for lliat number of bees. 



Speaking of feeding naturally makes one 

 think of feeders; and this reminds me that, 



judging from what many beekeepers write 

 me, and coupled with our own experience, 

 this would be a poor time for any one to 

 invent a new kind of bee-feeder. Whv? 

 Simply because the common ten-pound 

 friction-top honey-pail seems to be growing 

 in favor above all other feeders. At our 

 yard up north we have a number of Miller 

 feeders — the kind I have always been in 

 favor of in preference to any others. Last 

 fall I was somwhat jarred to have my son 

 report that the pails were away ahead of 

 the other feedei's; and this fall they used 

 the Miller feeders hardly at all. Many write 

 me a like experience; and after using more 

 of them myself I am now inclined to think 

 that the last feeders have been bought for 

 our own use, and henceforth the common 

 ever present pail will be used. In the first 

 place they are easy to get, and cheap in 

 price, as an extra lid can be bought and 

 kept over, the pails being used for honey 

 after feeding is done if de.sired. A few 

 dozen extra lids cost but a trifle. They are 

 easy to put over a colony inside of an 

 empty super, and it is so easy to remove 

 them when empiy or partly empty. It is 

 not easy to remove a partly emptied feeder 

 of any other kind. There is no danger of 

 robbing when using the pails if any ordi- 

 nary precaution is taken ; and it is easy to 

 measure the feed and give one or more 

 pails as required. No doubt other things in 

 favor of the paiis might be mentioned ; but 

 the ones given cover about all there is to 

 the question of feeding in so far as I can 

 think of at present 



To-day (Nov. 9) we have had but two or 

 three killing frosts, and on Oct. 28 we picked 

 cucumbers in our garden. This will give an 

 idea as to how mild the weather has been. 

 More or less pollen came in during many 

 days of October. Bees are. as a rule, going 

 into winter quarters with large forces that 

 were reared during buckwheat bloom; and 

 where stores are plentiful good wintering 

 should be expected. In some localities honey- 

 dew was reported during the season, and I 

 have an idea that a small amount was gath- 

 ered in our York Co. apiaries. Wherever 

 honey-dew is present in hives during winter 

 the outcome is simply a guess with the odds 

 in favor of disaster to the colony before 

 spring, especially if the bees go too long 

 without a flight. 



