170 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



March, 1922 



by extensive houey proilueers in New York 

 to fit the Quinby standing frame hive. The 

 frames in the divisible brood-chamber hives 

 were 5% int-lies deep, wliich at once sug- 

 gested the 5-inch section, tlius making the 

 brood-chamber parts and supers alike, ex- 

 cept the inside fixtures. 



HIU.AM AS VIKLDKK (IK NK<TAK. 



Question. — ^How lUiuiy good, strong colonies will 

 an acre of Rood annual .sweet clover (Hubam) sui)- 

 ply, giving them all they can do ? 



California. C. H. L. Sander. 



Answer. — The secretion of nectar varies 

 so much under different weather conditions 

 and different types of soil that it is impos- 

 sible to answer this question definitely. 

 Hubam clover is known to yield nectar free- 

 ly under favorable conditions, probably 

 about the same as the biennial varieties dur- 

 ing the second year. No doubt, it will be 

 found that it yields nectar more freely in 

 some localities than in others. This is true 

 of other plants and is to be expected in the 

 case of Hubam. In order to yield nectar 

 freely, plants must be growing in suitable 

 soil and in a suitable climate. It is well 

 known that each plant h:is its own peculiar 

 requirements as to soil and climatic condi- 

 tions. While sweet clover apparently thrives 

 almost anywhere, it does best in soils which 

 contain considerable lime. Probably an 

 acre of Hubam clover would be sufficient for 

 two or three colonies of bees, enabling them 

 to store considerable surplus honey if con- 

 ditions iire favorable. 



FEEDING FKEMKNTEIJ HONEY. 



Question. — I have 100 pounds of partly ferment- 

 ed honey. Can I use this in any way to feed the 

 bees in the fall or .spring? P. A. Sehaeffer. 



Pennsylvania. 



Answer. — Yes; honey that is slightly fer- 

 mented can be fed in the spring after the 

 weather is warm enough for the bees to fly 

 freely nearly every dav. Such honey should 

 not be fed in the fall in your locality or 

 in any locality where the bees are confined 

 to their hives for long periods during the 

 winter. Fermented honey can be greatly 

 improved by heating it to drive off the al- 

 cohol. If American foul brood is in the 

 apiary in which this sour lioney was pro- 

 duced, it would not be safe to feed this 

 honey without first boiling it in a closed ves- 

 sel for about 30 minutes, first diluting the 

 honey by adding about an equal volume of 

 water. 



COMB HONEV OR KXTKACTKl) HONEY. 



Question. — I expect to engage in beekeeping, but 

 am undecided as to whether to produce comb honey 

 or extracted honey. Which do you advise ? 



Connecticut. • Lawrence W. Smith. 



Answer. — Much depends upon the charac- 

 ter of tlic honey How and the quality of the 

 honey of your locality as well as upon your 

 market. If you sell your honey locally and 

 can sell extracted honey readily at nearly 

 the same price as comb honey, it will cer- 

 tainly be more profitable to produce ex- 

 tracted honey; but, if you can get twice as 



mucli or more for comb honey, it may be 

 more profitable to produce comb honey. But 

 so nuicli more skill is required to secure good 

 yields of comb lioney than of extracted hon- 

 ey that, even at double the price, comb 

 honey may not be as profitable as e.xtracl ed 

 honey, on account of the smaller yield. How- 

 ever, if conditions are just right for comb- 

 honey production, about three-fourths as 

 much comb honey per colony can be secured 

 as extracted honey. There will be more 

 trouble from swarming when producing 

 comb honey. In fact, many beginners not 

 only fail to secure a crop of comb honey 

 because of swarming but also find their colo- 

 nies weakened an<l short of stores at the 

 close of the season. This is especially liable 

 to occur when the honey ilow is short and 

 comes early in the season. Of course, where 

 the swarming jtroblem is properly handled 

 such loss does not occur. In those locations 

 wliere the honey is wliite and does not gran- 

 ulate readily in the sections and where the 

 lioney flow is rapid, comb honey will give a 

 larger return per colony at present whole- 

 sale prices, provided, of course, the bees are 

 l)roporly managed. In your particular loca- 

 tion no doubt extracted honey will yield 

 better returns, especiallv if vou sell it lo- 

 cally. 



SHALLO\V EXTRACTING .SUPERS. 



Question. — Which is better for producing extract- 

 ed honey, the shallow extracting supers or the regu- 

 lar depth f Max Wennenweser. 



Texas. 



Answer. — Some prefer the shallow ex- 

 tracting supers, but most of the extensive 

 honey producers prefer regular depth su- 

 pers. Some advantages of the regular supers 

 are: Fewer of them are needed to hold the 

 crop of honey, making the equipment less 

 ex2:iensive; there are not so many combs to 

 handle when extracting; and the combs be- 

 ing tlie same size as those in the brood- 

 chamber, they can be interchanged when 

 this is desirable, thus simplifying the equip- 

 ment. Tlie shallow extracting supers are 

 lighter and easier to handle, and in loca- 

 tions where the honey flow is slow or where 

 the yield is small their smaller size may be 

 advantageous in tiering up. If the two 

 kinds are equally well filled, 1(57 shallow ex- 

 tracting supers having frames with %-ineh 

 top-bars will hold as mucli honey as 100 full 

 depth supers having jiVinch top-bars. When 

 purcliased in the flat tlie l(i7 shallow ex- 

 tracting supers witli frames and full sheets 

 (if foundation (same weight) cost but little 

 more than 100 full depth supers with frames 

 and foundation, but the labor required to 

 put up a shallow super is nearly equal to 

 that of putting up the full deptli supers. In 

 regions where bulk comb honey is produced 

 extensively, as in your state, many bee- 

 keepers prefer the shallow extracting super, 

 because it is well adapted to the production 

 of bulk comb lidiicy as well as extracted 

 honey. 



