940 



(i L F A N T >: G S T >\' 



C V I, 



December, 1917 



c 



STRAY STRAWS 



Dr. C. C. MiUer 



U^ 



SH ALLOW 

 e X t racting- 

 supers are 

 so objectionable 

 that it is agreed 

 that the majori- 

 ty of beekeepers 

 would quit bee- 

 keeping rather 



than to use them, p. 850. I question that. 

 To be sure, not many use them. But can 

 they judge very well \vithout trying? I 

 never used them ; but the use of them would 

 not drive me out of the business. Indeed, 

 if I were beginning afresh at beekeeping 

 I'm pretty sure I would use them. Mr. 

 Finley and Miss Fowls haye made out a 

 very strong case in their favor; and another 

 point, if I am not mistaken, is claimed by 

 the Dadants, and that is that with them a 

 queen- excluder is not needed. The fact 

 that such successful and extensive produc- 

 ers as the Dadants have used them for so 

 many years is a strong argument in their 

 favor. [It is our experience, based on ex- 

 tensive travel over the United States, that 

 .shallow extracting-supers are not under the 

 ban of a majority of beekeepers. Where 

 seasons are short, and colonies of only 

 TGedium strength, the shallow super cer- 

 tainly has its advantages. A full-depth 

 Langstroth super is often too much of a 

 good thing. The question of shallow or 

 deep supers is largely a matter of locality, 

 individual preference, and sometimes of 

 what one happens to start with. A bes- 

 lieeper, for example, might happen to buy 

 up a yard equipped with shallow extract- 

 iug-supers only, and, of course, he will con- 

 tinue to use them. — Ed.] 



Regarding the plan recommended by W. 

 E. McEvoy, to replace in fall combs affect - 

 'pd with American foul brood with sealed 

 •pombs of healthy honey, you say, Mr. Edi- 

 tor, p. 854, " You probably left an interval 

 of 24 hours between gi^dng the combs of 

 honey. If you took away the dliseased 

 combs and gave combs of honey at the 

 same operation we see no reason why the 

 bees might not store some of the diseased 

 honey in their sacs in the combs above. 

 Anvhow, is it not safer to advis3 the be- 

 ginner to be on the safe side?" No, I 

 left no interval of 24 hours nor 24 min- 

 utes for the bees to use up the diseased 

 honey in their sacs. What need? They 

 Avould have all winter to use it up, for 

 remember tliis is done after feeding of 

 brood is all over. If a beginner should 

 have American foul brood in a colony in 

 the fall, when there was no longer feeding 

 of brood, I should count it much saf .r to 



1 



T=J 



swap combs of 

 clean honey for 

 their diseas^ed 

 ones than to 

 wait till brood 

 was being fed 

 the next season 

 and then shake. 

 Seems to m? 

 there's less chance for failure with the 

 fall treatment either with a beginner or 

 expert. [It may be safe for you to give 

 sealed combs of honey, known to be all free 

 from disease, immediately to a colony treat- 

 ed for American foul brood ; but until the 

 thing has been tested' out more generally, 

 we feel inclined to say, " Don't do it." 

 especially to beginners. Let the veterans 

 try it out in a small way first. At all 

 events, we s'hould like to have 'feportp 

 from those who have tried it. — Ed.] 



Herbert C. Hoover, the man who tells 

 us how much Ave're allowed to eat, seems ' 

 to be a friend to beekeepers. Here's an 

 item from the Chicago Daily Herald : 

 " Hoover uses honey in his tea. For those 

 who can afford it, this offers a possible 

 means of conserving the sugar supply." 

 [The editor is doing the same in his family, 

 and so also is all Rootville. It takes really 

 less honey to sweeten coffee or tea than 

 sugar — not because honey is relatively 

 sweeter, but because it has more flavor. 

 Moreover, honey dissolves instantly in cof- 

 fee, whereas granulated sugar very often 

 and generally does not all dissolve. Ex- 

 perience shows that in restaurants and in 

 private homes coffee-cups (after the coffee 

 has been drank) will have a residue of sugar 

 equal to nearly half of what is put in. 

 For years and years the American nation, 

 and Ave may say the nations of the world 

 as well, have been wasting sugar in this 

 way. As honey dissolves instantly it will 

 take only about half as much by weight 

 to produce the same sweetening effect in 

 the coffee, that is drank, and there will be 

 no residue in the bottom of the cud. 

 Beekeepers should everywhere spread the 

 slogan " Use honey." If honey ever once 

 gets into coffee-oups — and now is our golden 

 opportunity to get it so introduced — it Avill 

 be a permanent coffee-sweetener after the 

 war is over. This will put honey on a basis 

 where there will be a constant demand that 

 up till now we have not liad. — Ed.] 



Lesije BurR; what you say about smok- 

 ing bees out of supers, p. 841, is exceeding- 

 ly interesting, and I wish you had given 

 fuller particulars. I've never succeeded to 

 my satisfaction in smoking bees out of 

 supers. I've piled them up with part of 



