THE AMERICAS APICULTURIST. 



69 



possessed this particular advantage 

 over other hives in use. 



QUESTION BY W. M. MATTA. 



Will bees smother if the entrance to 

 the hive is blocked with snow? 

 Dedham, Mass. 



ANSWER. 



Bees would certainly smother or die, 

 unless fresh air is admitted to the hive. 

 The snow would have to he packed ver}' 

 liard about the hive to exclude all the air. 

 Bees require but little air in winter, 

 but if all ventilation is shut out the 

 combs would mould badly. Not only 

 should the entrance to the hive be 

 kept clear, but no snow should be 

 packed ajiainst the hives at all. espec- 

 ially against single walled-hives, as 

 during zero weather the frost would 

 penetrate nearly to the centre of the 

 brood-nest and destroy the bees. This 

 fact we learned from experience a 

 good many years ago. 



qukstions by adam bakkr. 

 Mr. Editor: 



I want to ask through the "Api- 

 culturisl" what the bees do witli the 

 polleil they carry with them when they 

 swarm? 



Bee men say that hives should be set 

 rear the ground. If this is true, why 

 do bees go high up in trees ? I helped 

 to cut three last fall, the lowest about 

 60 feet, the highest 150 feet. Why did 

 they not go in near the ground? there 

 are more hollow trees near the ground 

 than high up. I want bee men to answer 

 this question as some may doubt about 

 the height of the trees. We live in 

 Washington Territory where trees 

 grow high. 



Old Tacoma, W. T. 



ANSWERS. 



1. The pollen which the bees have on 

 their legs at the time of swarming is 

 used for no particular purpose, and is 

 lost unless the bees are put in a hive 

 having some empty combs. When 

 a colony swarms, there are new bees in 

 the parent hive that have just returned 

 from the field, and befoi'e they have 

 a chance to unload the pollen they are 

 forced to join the new swarm. Then 

 again the bees returning from the field 

 join the new swarm and take their 

 loads of honey and pollen with tliem. 

 The old-fashion beekeeper used to say 

 " the bees are making comb, I saw 



them carrying in wax on their legs." 

 They were people who did not read 

 bee books or a good bee journal. 



2. Hives should not be set so near 

 the ground that the "long back fellow" 

 will liurt his spine in handling the bees. 

 Eighteen or twenty inches is suffi- 

 ciently high above the ground to set 

 the hives as a rule. 



Bees are pretty apt to be high- 

 minded when in search of a new 

 home; we have found them located 

 very near the ground and others very 

 high up. A " runaway" swarm is not 

 particular about the height; it will 

 generjilly select a clean, dry place for 

 the new location. 



QUKSTIONS BY SERENO EDWARDS TODD. 



I have seen it stated, several 

 times recently, that honey bees, on 

 Long Island, gather poisonous honey 

 from a plant called " kill calf," and 

 store it up with honey that is not 

 poisonous. It was stated also, that 

 the honey industry, on Long Island, 

 has been nearly ruined by the poison- 

 ous honey thus gathered and stored. 

 Since seeing the above statements, 

 I have conferred with several of my 

 friends who keep bees, some of whom 

 do not think that bees ever gather 

 poisonous honey, while otliers have 

 an " opinion " that they di>. My 

 own opinion is that the honey found 

 by bees in poisonous plants, is not 

 poisonous ; and consequently, could 

 not poison good honey. Now, I 

 desire to present a few inquiries to 

 be answered by any one who can 

 reply from positive knowledge. We 

 all have a superabundance of knowl- 

 edge predicated simply on opinions. 

 We want un-get-roundable facts. 



1. Do honey-bees ever store up 

 poisonous honey? 



Ans. We do not believe the bees 

 gather poisonous honey. To many 

 people the best and purest honey is 

 a rank poison. 



2. What plants furnish poisonous 

 honey ? 



3. How may a novice determine 

 for a certainty, that honey bees do 



