570 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



September, 1921 



FROM NORTH, EAST, WEST AND SOUTH 



In Southern California, 



A'i tlio sca- 

 s (1 11 fi d- 

 vaiu-c's, the soutliern California beekeepers 

 begin to realize fully just how short the 

 honey crop actually is- Only in very rare 

 instances has a satisfactory amount of hon- 

 ey been gathered. 



Occasionally a beekeeper is found who re- 

 ports as much as 60 pounds per colony. This 

 is where apiaries were left last fall with a 

 good supply of stores and plenty of young 

 liees, and were in very favored locations in 

 the spring. Many colonies have not only 

 gathered no surplus honey, but also have 

 not suificient stores for winter. Disease is 

 hard to control under these conditions- and 

 some loss occurs from this cause. Most bee- 

 keepers have reduced their employed help 

 to the minimum and are curtailing expenses 

 all they can. With all of this, the balance 

 will be on the wrong side of the ledger for 

 1921. 



This is discouraging, but one has only to 

 look around at other lines of production to 

 see in many cases a much worse condition. 

 Many who secured but little for their decidu- 

 ous fruit last year, see. little to encourage 

 them this year. Following the war, there 

 will be a few years of readjustment of con- 

 ditions thru winch all of us will have to go. 

 Of course, a failure or short crop, such as 

 we have this year, combined with the low 

 [)rices, adds to our problems- But one or 

 two good seasons later on will accomplish 

 wonders for us. 



Very little honey is being moved and 

 liuyers are "as scarce as hen's teeth," as 

 the saying goes. We have heard of one or 

 two feelers to know if the producers would 

 take eight cents for white honey, but the 

 beekeepers think that it is wortli more than 

 that. But taking it all in all, the price 

 never worries us half as much as the failure 

 of a crop. A good crop, even if it is neces- 

 sary to sell it at a low price, leaves the pro- 

 ducer in splendid condition to go at it again 

 the next year; while the short crop leaves 

 him discouraged, and his bees are in poor 

 condition for the following year. 



Comb honey is almost an unknown quan- 

 tity among the beekeepers in this part of 

 the country. As to price, 25 to 3.5 cents is 

 being asked by the retailer. This is mostly 

 for honey produced in the east-central part 

 of California, Utah, and Nevada- Anyone 

 having the equipment would do well to look 

 into this branch of the business for next 

 year. 



As we travel over the roads between our 

 home town and the out-apiaries, we meet 

 hundreds- yes, we might say thousands, of 

 automobiles with bedding and camp outfit 

 strapped to the sides. Many of these have 

 license plates reading Oregon, Washington, 

 Arizona, and sometimes eastern States, but 



the great majority carry Californians away 

 for their summer outing. It is almost the 

 universal thing to take a trip some time 

 during the year, and the great majority go 

 during the summer months. Some are 

 bound for the mountains, and others are 

 going to the ocean beaches where a dip in 

 the ocean, fishing, or rolling in the sand 

 furnishes a change and recreation. A trip 

 adds little or nothing to one's expenses, 

 compared with the home living expenses, 

 for most of them go equipped to camp wher- 

 ever night overtakes them. One always 

 comes home refreshed and encouraged and 

 much better satisfied to pitch in and make 

 things go in the business in which he may 

 be engaged. L. L. Andrews. 



Corona, Calif. 



» » * 



Tn Tpvas P^o^- ^- ^- Bilsing of the 

 A. & M. College of Texas re- 

 cently published an article in the Ohio Jour- 

 nal of Science, entitled "Quantitative 

 Studies in the Food of Spiders." This may 

 not appear interesting to the beekeeper; 

 but, in the investigation reported. Prof. Bil- 

 sing found that honeybees formed a part of 

 the food of almost every species of spider 

 studied and the bulk of the food of several. 

 In Texas we have two species of spiders, 

 one a large black web-building spider, the 

 other a yellow-green flower spider, that lives 

 almost wholly on honeybees- The beekeepers 

 arc well acquainted with the black spider 

 as it makes its home on, or around, the 

 hives. The yellow one is a greater pest as 

 it exists in greater numbers; yet it is sel- 

 dom seen, as it builds no web but hides in 

 flowers. This spider lies in wait and grabs 

 the bee as it alights on the flower. The rob- 

 ber throws its second pair of legs around 

 the bee 's neck and sucks the body tissues 

 out thru the ntouth parts. 



The article on the time of the development 

 of worker bees in the July Gleanings is in 

 line with observations reported here. Here 

 is one case which I have every reason to be- 

 lieve is authentic- In October and Novem- 

 ber worker bees were still emerging 31 days 

 after the queen had been taken from the 

 hive. In a very exact and prolonged study 

 of the cowpea weevil and of the sweet po- 

 tato weevil, made by H. J. Reinhard, Ento- 

 mologist at College Station, Texas- he found 

 that moist cool weather retarded the devel- 

 opment of the insect and that hot dry 

 weather shortened the periods. Queen- 

 breeders have often told me that the period 

 of the development of queens is 12 hours 

 less in midsuinmer than in early spring. 



The many friends in Texas and elsewhere 

 will be pleased to note that E. G. LeStour- 

 geon, nationally known among beekeepers, 

 lias been elected to the State legislature. 



The weather conditions of tlie past month 



