1881. 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



339 



can be no doubt about newcombspro- 

 ducing larger workers than old ones. 

 and for tins reason it is not well to 

 use combs thai are 3 or 4 years old. In- 

 deed, we would have larger bees if the 

 brood comb was renewed every year. 



yet l do not know that it would be 

 profitable to do so. 



There are many queens that will 

 stand the test of purity, if yon only 



examine their worker and drone pro- 

 geny, but when yon test them to see if 

 thev will produce young queens like 

 their mother, they are found wanting. 

 When the workers are uniformly well 

 marked, it would seem that this queen 

 progeny should likewise be perfect, 

 but I do not always find this the case. 



This is to me a most fascinating 

 subject, and pleasure, rather than 

 profit, has prompted me to give the 

 " improvement of the race of bees" 

 my careful and patient attention. 



Burlington, Iowa. 



For the American Bee Journal. 



Are Cyprian Bees of Value to us? 



J. V. CALDWELL. 



There can be no doubt but that we 

 need all the evidence and facts in the 

 matter to arrive at the truth, and to 

 satisfy ourselves as to which is really 

 the best race of bees. All things con- 

 sidered is what should be the constant 

 aim of all unbiased and intelligent 

 apiarists, and one of the best ways is to 

 compare our experiences, and then 

 take the bulk of the testimony. 



About the 1st of July last I re- 

 ceived from Mr. D. A. Jones an im- 

 ported Cyprian queen, for which I 

 paid him S10.00, thereby hoping to get 

 one of his best queens, and have no 

 doubt he sent me such. I introduced 

 her at once to a queenless colony, and 

 in due time she began to lay, and I at 

 once reared queens from her brood for 

 such of my customers as had ordered 

 them. The queens were very good, 

 so far as looks were concerned, but 

 acted like wasps on the comb, nervous 

 and fretful. The worker progeny of 

 the old queen was always on the look- 

 out for an opportunity to sting, ut- 

 terly refusing to fill themselves with 

 honey, but constantly roaming over 

 the combs and from one end of the 

 hive to the other, and, by merely 

 pointing our linger at them, they are 

 ready to fly at it and leave a sting, 

 and, as we all know one sting is apt to 

 be followed by another, this is a seri- 

 ous fault. 



As to the qualities of the hybrids I 

 know nothing, having shipped the 

 young queens as soon as fertile, and 

 having no desire toexperimentfarther 

 with them and get the blood mixed 

 with my princely Italians. I have 

 raised no Cyprian drones, having re- 

 ceived my queen too late, consequently 

 my Italians are free from the taint of 

 Cyprian blood. As to my Cyprian col- 

 ony, I have decided to kill them and 

 take their honey as soon as the honey 

 season closes entirely. If they were 

 extra good honey gatherers, it would, in 

 a measure, compensate for their fero- 

 cious natures, but in this they did not 

 equal any of my Italians, though in a 

 good colony, and having had but too 

 or three combs removed to breed 

 from. This is the result of my exper- 

 iment with the noble Cyprian. 



Cambridge, 111. 



For the American Bee Journal. 



Bees in Australia. 



S. MAC'DONNELL. 



Since I last reported the condition 

 of the two colonies of Italian bees re- 

 ceived by us from Mr. A. H. New- 

 man, of Chicago, I have separated 

 the attached combs in one of the 

 hives. I found the number of bees to 

 be very weak, as there were not more 

 than sufficient to cover two combs. I 

 searched carefully for the queen but 

 without success, and my fears of the 

 hive being without a queen were 

 raised, until I was reassured by seeing 

 a small patch of sealed brood in the 



center of the center comb, which 

 patch of brood a week or mure later I 

 found had increased from about one 

 inch to about live inches in diameter. 

 The numerical weakness of the bees 

 suggested the advisabilty of uniting 

 a quantity of black bees wild them, 

 and here I felt the want of thai ad- 

 vice from experienced and practical 

 bee-keepers which appears to be so 

 readilv given both personally and by 

 print to all who ask with you in 

 America. As the Pacific Ocean sepa- 

 rates us from the source of advice. I 

 found myself without a better guide 

 in my emergency than my handbooks 

 and bee-papers. As the colony, not- 

 withstanding its weak condition 

 showed sufficient vitality to increase 

 its brood patch in the manner des- 

 cribed, and bearing in mind that 1 

 had had no experience in uniting, and 

 that my Italian bees were too valuable 

 for an apprentice band to practice 

 uniting with, I deemed it advisable to 

 choose the lesser of two evils, by leav- 

 ing them alone. 



I have not yet had an opportunity of 

 separating the attached frames of the 

 second hive of Italians, but have sev- 

 eral times opened it and found it 

 somewhat better populated than its 

 neighbor, although by no means 

 strong. I therefore have hopes of 

 seeing both colonies in a position to 

 work well when summer approaches. 



So far I have been careful to avoid 

 errors of commission in endeavoring 

 to establish the Italian bee in these, 

 parts. I much dreaded offering any 

 opportunity for robbing, when open- 

 ing the two Italian hives, and have, 

 therefore, made use of a bee-proof 

 chamber for that operation. This, 

 however, necessitates carrying the 

 hive to the chamber, a proceeding not 

 free from disadvantage. 



Sydney, Australia, Sept. 6, 1881. 



For tlie American Bee Journal. 



Red Clover Bees. 



For the American Bee Journal. 



The Golden Honey Plant Again. 



G. L. TINKER, M. D. 



In answer to some inquiries and as a 

 matter of general interest, I will say 

 that the golden honey plant is one of 

 the largest of our indigenous plants. 

 Upon measuring the height of the 

 tallest plants I was surprised to find 

 many 10J£ feet high, and the average 

 height on rich, moist soils will not fall 

 below 8 feet. On uplands where it 

 produces the finest and most numerous 

 heads of flowers, the height will ave- 

 rage about 7 feet. In many cases 30 

 stalks were counted from one root, on 

 each stalk an average of 100 heads, 

 each containing an average of 30 

 florets, or a sum total of 90,000 honey 

 receptacles or florets on a single plant. 

 The heads on each stalk run from 50 

 to 275, and the florets on each head 

 from 15 to 53. These facts were cal- 

 culated from the number of seeds in 

 each head, each seed having been 

 crowned with one floret. 



The plant is a perennial, but will 

 grow up from the seed and bloom the 

 first year, sending up only one stalk. 

 The second year two or more stalks 

 sprout up and on some old plants as 

 many as 32 stalks, all growing very 

 high, were counted. 



The roots are large and the rootlets 

 go down deep into the soil on uplands, 

 and spread out two or three feet on 

 lowlands. The foliage is dense, and 

 where the plants are thickly, com- 

 pletely shades the ground so that 

 nothing else will grow. No animal 

 will feed upon the plant and it would 

 seem to be of no use except to furnish 

 the richest nectar to the honey bee. 



The seed may be sown broadcast 

 in the fall or any time during the win- 

 ter, on prepared soil, or it may be 

 sown in rows three or four feet apart. 

 Many seeds, however, will come up 

 and the plants take care of themselves 

 if sown anywhere. After ripening, 

 the seed becomes dry and mostly falls 

 to the ground before winter. Many 

 seeds have been on the ground some- 

 time, but whether they will sprout or 

 not without being subject to damp- 

 ness and frost I am unable to sav- 



New Philadelphia, Q.,Oct, 7, 1881. 



It. SIIEItFY. 



The past winter here was alike de- 

 structive to the bees. There were but 

 few fruit blossoms in the spring to 

 supply them for early breeding. Lo- 

 cust and poplar did well ; white clover 



contained but a small amount of nec- 

 tar; had too much rain during the 



while clover season, keeping the 1 s 



only in a fair condition for breeding. 

 About a week after the white clover 

 ceased to bloom, the second crop of 

 red clover began to yield a splendid 

 Mow of nectar, which lasted about .'! 

 weeks, the time being lengthened by 

 several fields having been mown at 

 different times. 



Out of 40 colonies under my control, 

 30 worked diligently upon the red clo- 

 ver. I have been breeding from my 

 best colonies, and importing new blood 

 when deemed necessary, with the view 

 of obtaining a superior bee, and at last 

 have had the exquisite pleasure of 

 realizing my desires. 



I devoted but few of my colonies to 

 surplus — nearly all to building up. 

 One colony gave me about 25 lbs. of 

 red clover surplus, besides filling up 

 of the main body of the hive. 



At the time that the red clover was 

 in bloom, the air appeared to have the 

 proper humidity for the secretion of 

 nectar. The bees (Italians and well 

 marked hybrids) worked as freely and 

 as diligently upon the red clover as I 

 have ever seen them work upon the 

 white clover. I am not certain that 

 my Italians possess a longer ligula 

 than those of other apiarists, or that 

 the corollas of the red clover in this 

 section are shorter than those in other 

 sections, but there is one thing that I 

 am certain of, that is, we must have a 

 strong bee if we wish to secure honey 

 from red clover. The bee must have 

 the power to force its head a certain 

 distance into the corollas of the clover. 

 I have noticed that many bees force 

 their heads into the corollas and sip 

 their contents, and with difficulty, ex- 

 tricate themselves. We must com- 

 bine " strength with length of tongue" 

 in order to secure Apis Americana. 



Gettysburg, Pa., Oct. 4, 1881. 



For the American Bee Journal. 



Effect of Pollen on Bees in Winter. 



A. R. KOHNKE. 



Reading the very interesting dis- 

 cussions of the North American Bee 

 Keepers' Society in Lexington, Ky., I 

 have particularly noticed the different 

 opinions in regard to pollen, especially 

 those entertained by Prof. Cook and 

 Mr. C. F. Mirth, as being of opposite 

 characters. Now, as both gentlemen 

 are experienced bee-keepers, whence 

 this diversity of opinion on a question 

 as important as this one is ? 



To arrive at a more certain conclu- 

 sion, I will raise the following ques- 

 tion : Will the presence of pollen in 

 any large amount prove injurious to 

 bees, provided they are all right in 

 other respects Y It can hardly be sup- 

 posed that the presence of a natural 

 necessity in large amounts should in- 

 duce bees to gluttony and cause sick- 

 ness. How Prof. Cook could arrive at 

 such a conclusion as he did without 

 limiting his statement, I cannot per- 

 ceive. Mr. D. A. Jones is most likely 

 correct in presuming other causes 

 which work the injury. Prof. Cook, 

 in his prize essay on wintering bees, 

 mentions 4 points to be observed : 1. 

 A uniform temperature. 2. Plenty 

 of wholesome food (to which not only 

 honey, but pollen belongs). 3. Good 

 queens. 4. Absorbents. 



Rev. E. L. Briggs, in his essay read 

 at the Convention in Philadelphia, 

 1876, enumerates also 4 causes of loss : 

 1. Starvation. 2. Intense and pro- 

 tracted cold. 3. Damp, moldy combs. 

 4. Unwholesome food. 



Dr. Rush, in his essay, also read at 

 that Convention, mentions 5 points to 

 be observed: 1. Good, tight and dry 



hives. 2. No drafts of air. :;. Agood 



qi n. I. Young bees. 5. Sealed 



honey. 



It is rather singular to note the 

 omission of one point, which is asnec- 

 essarj to observe as any, or all of them 

 I'm- gooil wintering. That one point 

 above all others is " quietness." This 

 docs not only mean nol to disturb the 

 bees by taking the hive apart, or mov- 

 ing from one place to another, but 

 I here are many causes which may dis- 

 turb them. It will have been noticed 

 by all observing bee-keepers that bees 

 are more sensitive to jars than noise. 

 Anything that will impart a jar to the 

 hives will arouse the bees, elevate the 

 temperature in the hive, and the bees 

 filling themselves with honey, dis- 

 tending their bodies and causing an 

 undue accumulation of waste matter 

 (feces) in them of which they cannot 

 rid themselves in cold weather. The 

 consequences can easily be foretold. 

 Jarring of the hives may be imparted 

 directly, or indirectly. Directly by 

 mice, rats, cats, dogs, birds or other 

 animals which gnaw, or peck or jump 

 on the hives, or even by the bee-keeper 

 himself, who raps on the hives to see 

 if the bees are still alive. Indirectly 

 by jarring the ground where the hives 

 stand, which may be done by passing 

 trains, fast driving of teams over the 

 hard, frozen ground, as also by the 

 running of larger animals as cows and 

 horses ; by cutting and splitting wood, 

 felling trees, etc. Such jars are con- 

 veyed quite a distance through frozen 

 ground, and it is absolutely necessary 

 to protect the bees from them if we 

 wish to be successful in wintering. 



To sum up, dysentery may be caused 

 by, 1, poor food, 2, want of plenty of 

 young bees (caused by want of food in 

 early fall, or poor queen). 3, disturb- 

 ing the bees when they should enjoy 

 perfect quietness. The first two points 

 have been discussed repeatedly, but 

 the third has never so much as ever 

 received a passing notice. 



For this last reason I consider out- 

 door winter preferable to moving 

 them late in the fall into house or cel- 

 lar, as that is evidently a disturbance 

 which should be guarded against. For 

 this reason, also, I am of the opinion 

 that a large per cent, of bee-keepers 

 wintering out-doors go to work too 

 late in the fall to protect their bees 

 from severe weather, disturbing them 

 that way.- Other causes may be dis- 

 covered in course of time, but the 

 presence of pollen, I think, will not be 

 one of them. 



Youngstown, O., Oct. 16, 1881. 



For the American Bee Journal. 



The Season in Quebec, Canada. 



THOS. VALIQUET. 



The apicultural display at our Pro- 

 vincial Exhibition, held in Montreal, 

 in September, amounted to but little. 



There were a few colonies of Italian 

 bees exhibited, but there had been no 

 preparation made for bees, they conse- 

 quently had to be placed at the side 

 of a building on the ground. There 

 was some honey in sections, also some 

 extracted honey in pots, but it at- 

 tracted very little attention on account 

 of being placed among many other 

 articles such as beets, potatoes, etc. 



Some of the bee-keepers present 

 desired to form a Bee-Keepers' Asso- 

 ciation, and I hope they may succeed. 



The honey crop in this Province is 

 a little above an average ; but white 

 and alsike clovers failed ; basswood 

 yielded well, but was later than usual 

 in blooming. Swarming has been 

 plentiful. On the whole bee-keepers 

 have had a very fair year in the Pro- 

 vince of Quebec. The hives are well 

 stocked with bees and honey. 



St. Hilaire, Quebec, Sept. 23, 1881. 



lE^" It will pay to devote a few hours 

 in getting up aclubforthe Bee Jour- 

 nal. Read the list of premiums on 

 another page, and take advantage of 

 the fall gatherings to get up clubs. 



