214 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



July 6, 



Read before the S. W. Wis. Convention. 



The Location of an Apiary. 



EDWIN FltANCE. 



Of course, keep the bees at home if 

 possible, as it will save a great deal of 

 extra work and travel to take care of 

 them ; but we are not all situated in a 

 good location to keep bees, as it is a 

 positive fact that some locations are 

 better than others for bee-keeping. 

 Because a man does not happen to live 

 in a good location is no proof that he 

 cannot be a successful bee-keeper. 

 There are some bee-keepers who have 

 so many bees that it is more profitable 

 to keep them in several places. I 

 have been in the bee business quite a 

 long time, and have had occasion to 

 locate my apiaries in several places, 

 and I find a great difference in places. 

 There are more things to be thought 

 of than one would at first suppose, 

 and there is a great difference be- 

 tween a farmer keeping a few bees for 

 Ills own use, and making a regular 

 business of it, where a man wants to 

 keep all his location will support. 



The first thing to look after is the 

 pasturage for the bees, something that 

 will produce good honey and plenty of 

 it. Our best and most salable honey 

 comes from the white clover ; next 

 basswood ; then buckwheat. For 

 early spring work we want willows 

 and fruit blossoms, with a good range 

 of fall flowers for late work. The 

 more we have of all these good things 

 together, the better, as far as honey is 

 concerned. But there are other things 

 to be considered ; we must have some 

 natural protection for the bees, some- 

 thing to break off the wind — espec- 

 ially the north and west. Certainly, 

 if we intend to winter on the summer 

 stands, it is of more importance to 

 break off the winds than to keep off 

 the snow. Do not locate on a piece of 

 ground facing the north, and if there 

 are shade trees, so much the worse. 

 There is another point : Do not put 

 the bees close to a public road, where 

 there is much travel — it will not do. 

 The bees will make trouble, people will 

 get stung, horses will get stung and 

 be very likely to run away and per- 

 haps kill some one and smash up 

 things. I had 50 or 60 colonies of bees 

 one year close to a road that was trav- 

 eled very much. There was a great 

 deal of growling and threatening, and 

 some stinging and hard feeling, etc. I 

 went through the season without pay- 

 ing any damages and then moved them 

 to another place further from the 

 road. Again, if we keep our bees so 

 close to other people's land that they 

 will be troubled by them while at home 

 or at work on their own land, they 

 will not like it and it will make trou- 

 ble. We should always keep on good 

 terms with our neighbors. 



I see by our bee-papers that one bee- 

 keeper has become involved in trou- 

 ble about his bees making free with 

 his neighbor's grapes. The bees 

 worked on the grapes, the grape man 

 became angry and destroyed some 60 

 colonies of bees with poison, and they 

 are now in law about it. So I would 

 not locate an apiary near a vineyard of 

 any extent. If the same man owned 

 the grapes and the bees, there would 

 be no trouble. I raise grapes and bees 

 on the same ground, and sold 2,000 

 I lis. of grapes last year. I picked the 

 most of the grapes myself. There 

 were a good many bees at work on the 

 cracked grapes, sucking the juice ; 

 but they never offered to sting. They 

 would always fly away when I jarred 

 the vines. After I had picked my 

 basket full, I set it in the shade and 

 put a cloth over it to keep the bees 

 away from the grapes while I picked 

 more. Bees never open a grape them- 

 selves, but they will suck the juice 

 from those that are opened from any 

 other cause, and it is easy to see bow 

 they would annoy a man that had no 

 interest in the bees, especially if he 



was afraid of them, which is the case 

 sometimes. It seems strange to us 

 who are used to handling bees, to see 

 a man squirm and dodge around, and 

 get so nervous about a little bee ; but 

 there is a great deal in getting used to 

 anything. 



When we locate away from home we 

 must take into consideration the time 

 it will take to go and come, the roads 

 over which we must travel, and if 

 there is water handy for the bees to 

 drink— some natural stream or springy 

 ground ; if there is not, you must sup- 

 ply them with water in some way. If 

 this is not done, the bees will be sure 

 to trouble the family ;.t the house* 

 about the pump or well bucket, for 

 water they must have, and they will 

 get it where they can the easiest. I 

 find it is hard to find the right kind of 

 location for the bees, and find the 

 right kind of a family living on it ; we 

 must leave them under the watchful 

 care of some one, and it will not do to 

 leave them with anybody and every- 

 body. It must be a good, honest fam- 

 ily ; they must not be tinkering witli 

 the bees themselves, and as far as they 

 can prevent it, not allow anyone else 

 to meddle with them. I want to do 

 or oversee all the work with my bees 

 myself, and it is not necessary to see 

 them oftener than once a week or 10 

 days, in the busiest part of the year, 

 and when they are fixed up in the 

 fall there is no more to do with them 

 until spring. 



There are some neighborhoods that 

 would be very risky to locate in on ac- 

 count of thieves ; but on this score I 

 have had but very little trouble so far. 

 One year I had 2 hives opened, and 

 one of them was entirely destroyed. 

 There were some combs of honey 

 taken out, the hives left open, and 

 the other bees took out the rest of the 

 honey. But this trouble happened in 

 the yard thai 1 had so close to the 

 road. Some of the boys thought they 

 would get even with me for the trou- 

 ble they had in passing along the road. 

 As to over-stocking any location there 

 seems to be a great difference of opin- 

 ion. I have always kept more bees in 

 my home yard than I have in any other 

 yards, but have never kept much over 

 100 there. When there are 100 at 

 home and forty or fifty in some other 

 yards. I could not see that there was 

 any difference in favor of the few ; 

 but I do think that any place can be 

 over-stocked with bees. I do not 

 think it would be best to locate an 

 apiary in a neighborhood where there 

 were 100 or 150 colonies located al- 

 ready — that is to make a specialty of 

 keeping bees. If I was living near 

 150 or 200 colonies of bees, with some 

 other business, and wanted to keep a 

 few bees, I would not hesitate about 

 it at all. Mine would have as good a 

 chance as the rest. I think 100, or at 

 most 200, in a range of 3 or 4 miles is 

 a plenty ; but of course it depends al- 

 together on the amount of bee pastur- 

 age that a location contains. Some 

 places would keep 500 well, when 100 

 would starve on some other location 

 equally as large. 



Union (Ky.) Convention. 



The Union Bee-Keepers' Associa- 

 tion convened at the apiary of Capt. 

 S. T. Diane, Shelby county, Ky., on 

 Tuesday, June 21, President Dr. 

 Brown in the chair. After the trans- 

 action of some business, including 

 the receiving of two valubale mem- 

 bers, viz: Esquire J. <;. Byars and 

 Mr. Bird Smith, of Simpsonville, the 

 Rev. Mr. Crutcher, of Eminence, was 

 invited to preside over the delibera- 

 tions of the meeting. 



A letter from Dr. N. P. Allen, of 

 Smith's Grove, Ky., President of the 

 National Association, and also of the 

 Kentucky State Association, was read 

 by the Secretary. A vote of thanks 

 was tendered Dr. Allen for his kindly 

 greeting and words of good cheer. 



Mr. G. W. Demaree, of Christians- 

 burg, Ky., spoke in response to Dr. 

 Allen's letter. The speaker said that 

 he had the honor of being personally 

 acquainted with Dr. Allen ; that he 

 was a gentleman of culture in every 



sense of the word; that it was not 

 necessary that he should look to the 

 honey bee for his daily bread ; that he 

 owned broad acres over which line cat- 

 tle roamed, yet he takes a deep and 

 enthusiastic interest in the culture of 

 the honey bee, and to this end he has 

 traveled thousands of miles for no 

 other purpose than to dispense useful 

 knowledge concerning scientific bee- 

 keeping. The speaker said that when 

 he saw such men as Dr. Allen, men of 

 high standing, socially and intellec- 

 tually, earnestly grappling with the 

 knotty science of bee-culture, he felt 

 sure that the dark mist of the past 

 would soon be dispelled, and hun- 

 dreds of men, and women, too, will 

 be able to make an honest and easy 

 living from the products of the " busy 

 bee." 



Dr. Brown, of Eminence, Vice- 

 President of the Kentucky State As- 

 sociation, and President of the Union 

 Association, spoke in behalf of more 

 thorough organization for the purpose 

 of acquiring knowledge of the sci- 

 ence of bee-keeping, urging better at- 

 tendance upon the sessions of the 

 several societies in the State. His re- 

 marks were well received. 



An interesting discussion concern- 

 ing bees and their product followed, 

 participated in by a number of gen- 

 tlemen present. 



A wise feature in the programme 

 was the practical lessons taught by 

 the actual manipulation of bees and 

 bee-fixtures. Honey was taken from 

 the hives in frames and " uncapped " 

 with the uncapping knife, placed in 

 the honey extractor and the honey was 

 extracted. Comb honey was removed 

 from the surplus apartment of hives, 

 queens were bunted up and exhibited. 

 All in the sight and presence of ladies 

 and gentlemen, without any of them 

 being disturbed by the bees, though 

 no protection was resorted to except a 

 bellows bee smoker which was used to 

 subdue the bees. 



A grand feature of the occasion was 

 the spreading of a sumptuous repast, 

 consisting of roast beef, ham, bread, 

 pickles, butter and milk, and honey 

 white as the drifting snow, and the 

 hot cup of coffee. The presiding 

 genii were the two Mrs. Diane and 

 other ladies whose names we did not 

 learn. Suffice it to say, that under 

 those tall thickly set trees, around 

 which the woodbine twineth in real 

 and artistic beauty, the "picnicers" 

 did ample justice to the occasion. 



A vote of thanks was tendered Capt. 

 Diane for the princely manner in 

 which he entertained the Association 

 and others. The meeting then ad- 

 journed to meet at Shelbyville, on the 

 first Tuesday in October next. 



G. W. Demaree, Sec. 



Christiansburg, Ky. 



Local Convention Directory. 



I«81. 



Sept.- 

 Oct, t; 



Time and Place of Meeting. 

 — National. atLexintfton, Ky. 

 Kentucky State, at Louisville, Ky. 

 -Union 1 Kentucky, at Shelbyviile. Ky. 

 G. W. Demtiree. Sec, ChristianshurK. Ky. 

 1, 12— Northern Michigan, at Maple Rapids. 

 O. K. Goodno, Sec, Carson City, Mich. 

 1, 12— Northeastern Wis., at Berlin, Wis. 

 J -Central Ky., in Exp. B'd'tr, Louisville, Ky. 



W. Williamson. Sec, Lexington, Ky. 

 !.">, 2t; Northwestern District, at Chicago, 111. 



C. C Coflinherry. Sec. Chicago, 111. 

 :7— Central Michigan, at Lansing. Mich. 



George L. Perry, Sec. 

 !7— Western Mich., at Berlin, Mich. 

 Svm. M. S. Dodge, Sec, Coopersville, Mich. 



:;>— Northeastern, at Utica. N. V. 



Geo. W. House. Sec, Fayettoville, N, V. 

 II — Eastern Michtg;tn, lit Detroit, Mirh, 



A B. Weed. Sec. Detroit. Mich. 

 17— Texas State, at McKinnoy, Texas. 



Win. R. Howard, Sec. 

 — Chauiplain Valley, at Bristol. Vt. 



T. Brookins, Sec. 



tW In order to have this table complete. Secre- 

 taries are requested to forward full particulars of 

 time and place of future meetings.— En. 



1882. 

 Jan. 



April 



May 



(§?" The Northwestern Illinois and 

 Southwestern Wisconsin Bee-Keepers' 

 Association will hold its next meeting 

 Aug. 30, at Rock City, Stephenson Co., 

 111. Jonathan Stewart, Sec. 



^" The Northern Michigan Bee- 

 Keepers' Association will hold its 

 fourth Annual Convention at Maple 

 Rapids, Clinton Co., Mich., Oct. 11 

 and 12, 1881. O.R. GooDNO,iSec. 



SPECIAL NOTICES. 



6"? Single copies of the Journal 

 sent postage paid for 5 cents each. 



gjj" Those who may wisli to change 

 from other editions to the Weekly, can 

 do so by paying the difference. 



^T When changing a postoffice ad- 

 dress, mention the old as well as the 

 new address. 



Ribbon Badges, for bee-keepers, on 

 which are printed a large bee in gold, 

 we send for 10 cts. each, or $8 per 100. 



Advertisements intended for the Bee 

 Journal must reach this office by 

 Saturday of the previous week. 



Photographs of prominent Apiarists 

 — Langstroth, Dzierzon, and the baron 

 of Berlepsch. — Price 25 cents each. 



lg"g" Constitutions and By-Laws for 

 local Associations $2.00 per 100. The 

 name of the Association printed in the 

 blanks for 50 cents extra. 



Ladies who Appreciate Elegance and 

 purity are using Parker's Hair Bal- 

 sam. It is the best article sold for re- 

 storing gray hair to its original color 

 and beauty. 27w4t 

 •-•-•-«-« 



A Sample Copy of the Weekly Bee 

 Journal will be sent free to any per- 

 son. Any one intending to get up a 

 club can tiave sample copies sent to 

 the persons they desire to interview, 

 by sending the names to this office. 



Examine the Date following your 

 name on the wrapper label of this 

 paper; it indicates the time to which 

 you have paid. Always send money 

 by postal order, registered letter, or 

 by draft on Chicago or New York. 

 Drafts on other cities, or local checks, 

 are not taken by the banks in this city 

 except at a discount of 25 cents, to pay 

 expense of collecting them. 



Premiums. — For a club of 2, meekly 

 we give a copy of "Bees and Honey ;" 

 for a club of 5, weekly, we will give a 

 copy of "Cook's Manual of the Apiry," 

 bound in cloth ; for a club of 6, we give 

 a copy of the Journal for a year free. 

 It will pay to devote a few hours to 

 the Bee Journal. 



Hundreds of Men, Women and Chil- 

 dren Rescued from beds of pain, sick- 

 ness, and almost death, and made 

 strong and hearty by Parker's Ginger 

 Tonic are the best evidences in the 

 world of its sterling worth. Von can 

 find these in every community. Post. 

 See advertisement. " 27w4t 



IJST It would save us much trouble, 

 if all would be particular to give their 

 post office address and name, when 

 writing to this office. We have letters 

 (some inclosing money) that have no 

 name, post-office, County or State.— 

 Also,if you li"e near one postoffice and 

 get your mail at another, be sure to 

 give the address we have on our list. 



CLUBBLNU list. 



We supply the Weekly American Bee Jour- 

 nal and any of the following periodicals, for 1881, 

 at the prices quoted in the last column of figures. 

 The first column gives the regular price of both : 



Publishers' Price. Club. 



The Weekly BeeJournal (T.G.Newman) . .$2 00 



and Gleanings inBee-Culturei A. I. Root) 3 00.. 2 75 



Bee-Keepers' Magazine (A.J.Kingj. 3 00 2 t>0 



Bee-Keepers' Kxehange (J. H.Nellls) 2 75.. 2 50 



The 4 above-named papers 4 75. . 3 75 



Bee-Keepers'lnstructort W.Thomas) 2 50.. 2 35 



Bee-Keepers' (Juirie (A.G.Hill) 2 50. . 2 35 



Kansas Bee-Keeper 2 30.. 2 15 



The 7 above-named papers 05.. 5 00 



Prof. Cook's ManuaHbound in cloth) 3 25.. 3 00 



Bee-Culture (T,G. Newman) 2 40.. 2 25 



Binder for Weekly, 1SS1 2 85. . 2 75 



For Semi-monthly Bee Journal, $1.00 less. 

 For Monthly Bee Journal, 11.50 less. 



