GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



^^^^^^s^ THE DIXIE BEE 



Nashville, Tenn. 



In connection with the article, 

 "Nix on the Solar," page 445, June 

 1, I wonder what a straw vote 



would show. 



» * * 



I wonder how long drones will 

 be tolerated in a super. Some 

 frames of brood that we raised contained 

 considerable drone brood (I do hope Mr. 

 SchoU won't read this), and the big burly 

 fellows had hatched out, and were in a 

 crowd just over the excluder when we next 

 opened the hive. Suppose we hadn't open- 

 ed it — would the workers have allowed them 

 to remain up there until the edict was is- 

 sued against drones in general? And would 



they live that long? 



* « * 



Rain and cool weather have kept the bees 

 of this section in their hives for days at a 

 time, with a truly wonderful clover bloom 

 all around just waiting for its nectar to be 

 gathered in. (But, no; that's the pity; it 

 really doesn't wait at all. As soon as it is 

 thru blooming, it stops, whether the bees 

 have taken the nectar out or not.) One 

 prominent beekeeper recently wrote, " This 

 cold weather and rain has spoiled the best 

 honey-flow I ever had." But even at that, 

 his crop will run into tons; so, in spite of 

 our own sympathy, increased by our own 

 little disappointment at seeing our modest 

 hopes fade, we could only smile when some 

 one said, " Well, I wouldn't mind having a 

 spoiled crop like that every year." You 

 see, we're going to have a good crop in 

 spite of the weather; but if we had had 

 clear days and sunshine, what a story we 

 might have had to tell ! 

 » * * 



Talk about advertising, I have just been 

 interrupted by a ring of the front door-bell, 

 and a youth who detained me only long 



enough to say, " Good for one cake of 



soap," while he handed me a printed sheet 

 with" a ct^upon attached bearing the capi- 

 talized legend, " FREE SOAP COUPON," 

 also instructions and descriptive detail. 

 Housekeepers in this city have been fairly 

 " pestered " one time and another by vari- 

 ous ambitious firms who have chosen this 

 house-to-house method of advertising. Oft- 

 en some inducement is offered — a measur- 

 ing-cup, I recall, by the cottolene people — 

 to persuade us to put in an order (thru our 

 own gTocers) before some specified date, or 

 a coupon is presented for part payment. 

 For a while two or thi-ee baking-powders 

 kept my door-bell ringing almost constantly. 

 The soap and scouring-powder people are 



working Nashville now on this coupon ba- 

 sis. You see it's the housekeepers that buy 

 the baking-powders and the cottolene and 

 soap. And it's the housekeepei-s who buy 

 the honey too, I'm thinking. 



* * * 



FOR BEGINNERS. 



If you have not been allowing swarming, 

 and yet want .some increase, you may liave 

 started nuclei with two or three frames of 

 brood and some honey from big, strong, 

 crowded colonies that needed room. But 

 do be sure to watch over them. They will 

 quite surely need to be fed after the honey- 

 flow, if not before, to develop into sufficient 

 strength to be worth anything, even winter- 

 ing. I have seen nuclei started in July and 

 August, and left to depend on their own 

 efforts till fall, when they were given enough 

 syrup to go over winter. But tho they pull- 

 ed thru till spring all right, and started 

 building up, they failed to get strong 

 enoug'li to take advantage of clover when it 

 came. As soon as the flow was on, hive 

 conditions developed rather similar to those 

 described by Mr. Chadwick on page 388, 

 May 15. The bees plunged right into nec- 

 tar-gathering ; but, not being strong enough 

 for super work, they filled up the brood- 

 chamber and soon the queens were honey- 

 bound. It does not pay to have these weak 

 colonies about the yard; so be sure, when 

 you start increase, to give them such good 

 care that they will have a chance to amount 



to something. 



* * * 



In Clover Time. 



Across the hills of spring we drove 



And down the lanes between, 

 Before the breath of summertime 



Had dusted up the green. 

 And, oh the sudden, dizzy sense 



Of worlds blown all abloom, 

 With every breeze eoquettishly 



Flirting some perfume! 



The delicate wild roses blew 



Faint sweets from every spray 

 Where old rail fences ran zigzag 



In their bewildered way. 

 And, oh the honeysuckle scent 



Afloat from first to last, 

 So winey and intoxicant 



It swayed us as we passed! 



But best of all, aye, best of all, 



Was clover by the road — 

 And in the field^ — and up the hills — 



For everywhere it showed; 

 And everywhere its breath was sweet, 



And everywhere a bee 

 Was swaying, raptured, at its tip 



And humming merrily! 



