THE AMERICAN APICULTURIST. 



199 



THE HONET SEASON IN TEXAS. 



I am sorry to have to report that 

 bees have yielded no surplus honey 

 in this part of Texas up to date — 

 July 26, 1886. There are sevei-al 

 reasons for this. In the first place 

 last fall and winter were so dry 

 that the seeds of various honey- 

 pi'oducing plants failed to come 

 up. Prominent among these are 

 horse-mint and broom-weed, both 

 of which are a complete failure, 

 together with many others of less 

 importance. It is a subject of re- 

 mark that there are fewer flowers 

 than was ever known before. Last 

 winter was unusually severe, in 

 consequence of which a great 

 many native or black bees in box 

 and log-hives died. My bees are 

 all Italian and hybrid, and win- 

 tered safely with the loss of two 

 queens onl3^ 



When spring opened and fruit 

 bloomed, bees that survived the 

 winter built up rapidly ; and had 

 there been flowers sufficient and 

 weather suitable for the secretion 

 of honey. I should have had a num- 

 ber of swarms in March. As it 

 was, the weather turned out unfav- 

 orable. The bees had consumed 

 most of their stores in rearing 

 brood, which in some instances 

 they tore down and dragged out 

 of their hives ; killed all their 

 drones and gave up swarming. I 

 had to watch them closely and take 

 from the stronger and give to the 

 weaker ; thus by constant care and 

 watching, I have kept them all 

 alive. 



A gentleman from the north- 

 western portion of this county was 

 here to-day. He told me that fully 

 one-third of his bees were dead. 

 He had about forty box-hives of 

 native bees. They have died of 

 starvation this spring and summer. 



/Salado, Bell Co., Texas. 



For the American Apiculturist. 



WHAT SHALL THE HAR- 

 VEST BE IN DOLLARS 



AND CENTS? 



G. H. Martin, 



Now that the harvest of honey 

 is practically ended, beekeepers 

 are looking for another harvest in 

 the shape of dollars and cents. 



It seems probable that the yield 

 will be above the average, but not 

 so bountiful as many predicted in 

 June. 



Certain localities in the west 

 have given large yields, while New 

 York and the eastern states will 

 have less than an average yield. 

 Basswood is an entire failure east 

 and I tliink generally. 



Now let us see what beekeepers 

 have been doing to keep the tone 

 of the honey market souud. In 

 this county, and in many other 

 portions of the country, certain 

 producers have seemed to take 

 alarm from early reports in the 

 journals of great yields, and a sud- 

 den desire to get rid of their honey 

 has taken possession of them. To 

 be the first in the market, cases 

 of honey have been snatched from 

 the hives before the astonished 

 bees have had time to cap it prop- 

 erly. In June, parties were mar- 

 keting hone}' around a neighboring 

 town for ten and twelve cents per 

 pound, telling every person they 

 met what a wonderful yield of 

 honey there was all over the coun- 

 try, thus educating the public to the 

 idea that honey was soon going 

 begging for a purchaser. 



While prices will probably be 

 low and sales dull there is no 

 earthly cause for such a "panicky" 

 feeling if each producer would 

 use a little common sense. 



Even in this year of so-called 

 bounteous yield there will be 

 thousands of localities where honey 

 will be sold for twenty-five and 

 thirty cents per pound. 



