1906 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



1503 



the great buckwheat-fields then in full bloom. 

 Off the train we gathered together and cross- 

 ed to the nearest tavern, where we had some- 

 thing in the nature of a late breakfast. There 

 were some twenty-five of us in the party, in- 

 cluding several ladies. Refreshed we took 

 our way down the dusty road by twos and 

 threes, and the all a-hum with things pei*- 

 taining to bees, bee-keeping, and honey- 

 plants. 



After about an hour's walk we reached 

 the edge of the great white fields of Ijuck- 

 wheat stretching across the fiat plains of the 

 Danube as far as the eye coixld see — the acre- 

 age numbering up into the thousands. The 

 members of the party began to pull out 

 their veils and don them, and secure them- 

 selves in various ways by turning up collars 

 and drawing on gloves. The writer had no 

 veil with him, not being accustomed to wear- 

 ing one, and so he moved on with somewhat 

 of a dul)ious feeling, it is true. When near- 

 ing the bees one of the party came hurrying 

 up with some extra veils, aud we crawled 

 into one in a hjirry — dodging the pelting 

 bees all the while. The colonies, numltering 

 fully two to three thousand, sti'etched away 

 near the center of the fields in a long row, 

 some of them in rough sheds and others 

 standing singly. The hives were of various 

 types. There were the fiat Carniolan hives; 

 there were Dadant and Berlepsch hives. It 

 was with pleasure that we caught sight of 

 long rows of German straw hives ranged 

 along on boards, rearing their little domes 

 up through the waving heads of buckwheat. 

 These straw hives stood about eighteen or 

 twenty inches 

 high, and were 

 perhaps some 

 fifteen inches 

 i n diameter. 

 We turned 

 some of them 

 up and saw 

 how the bees 

 had their combs 

 fastened on two 

 cross - sticks, 

 much as our 

 common box 

 hives, pattern- 

 ed after them 

 in principle. 

 are arranged. 



And all 

 through the 

 tour of inspec- 

 tion of this host 

 of migratory 

 colonies w e 

 were continu- 

 ously pelted 

 with a swarm 



of the most enraged and vicious bees the 

 writer ever saw. The proximity of so many 

 colonies, and the strong sickening odor of 

 the iKiekwheat-bloom, seemed to combme 

 to infuriate the bees. C'arniolans as well 

 as blacks aud Itulians seemed to be pos- 

 sessed with a mania lor stinging, and we 



gathered on our coats and hats a large har- 

 vest of stingers. Doubtless the crossness of 

 the bees was increased on account of hav- 

 ing been recently moved. The colonies 

 here collected had been shipped in fi-om 

 some distances by surrounding bee-keepei's, 

 and here assembled for the buckwheat flow. 

 With each large apiary there was a tender 

 who busied himself now in showing us 

 through his section and opening colonies for 

 our inspection. 



The gauntlet ran, we turned off for the 

 road; and. when out of the reach of our pur- 

 suers, removed our veils and breathed some- 

 what freer. We wound our way back to the 

 tavern, and the accompanying picture shows 

 the party assembled while waiting for the 

 train. In the center, with a hat at his feet, 

 is seated Herr Prosser, the managing editcn- 

 of Bienen-Vatcr, to whom we owe our trip 

 together. The writer is seated at the left of 

 him in the front row, 



At Vienna there is quite an extensive api- 

 cultural school in which all branches of bee- 

 keeping are taught. Among the equipment 

 are some rare old appliances used by Gra- 

 venhorst and Dzierzon. It is well these old 

 relics can be assembled and cared for, so 

 that they can Ije held for future generations 

 of bee-keepers. 



[A buckwheat-field of thousands of acres, 

 and colonies of bees around it by the thou- 

 sand — perhaps we do not equal that any- 

 where in this country, where we are sup- 

 posed to practice bee-keeping in a big way. 

 It is true we do have immense acres of buck- 

 wheat in the State of New York; but they 



A ElKOPEAX BEE-KEEPEKS' FIELD MEETING. 



are divided up into fields, making a sort of 

 checker-boai'd effect when the bloom is on. 



Speaking ab;)ut that field meeting reminds 

 me that we here in America have only just 

 begun this sort of thing, while they of Eu- 

 rope have long l)een having outdoor meet- 

 ings of this kind. — Ed.] 



