208 



THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER. 



October, 



ing to me about the swarm, regretted down through the bees. This seema 

 that he was unable to take the photo rather severe treatment, but it is a 

 before the swarm issued, but I think sure cure, and will ett'ectually dampea 

 the swarm is more interesting as it is, their ardor for the time being and they 

 showing that they can thrive in the will forget all about swarming for that 

 open. A close examination of the pic- day. 

 ture will show that it is still occupied The use of water, as above, has 

 by the number of bees to be seen on saved me from many a mix-up when 

 the comb. — Australasian Bee-kee^ier. swarms were issuing one right after 

 the other. 



NOTES IN GENERAL. 



By O. C. Fuller. 



Bee-keepers " Too Previous," 



Wonder what has become of those 



formaldehyde^ — foul brood — cure shout 



et's? Have they crawled into a hole 



and pulled the hole in after them? Ah 



The Season, Etc 

 •DITOR BEE KEEPER: Sometime yes I see they have be^n in the hole 



EI 



ago my son subscribed for The but have come out again and hav€ 



American Bee-Keeper and of downed the new cure, at least the Ohio I 



course I read it too, and like it vei'y Bee-Keepers Association has done so. 



much. Aren't we bee keepers "a little toci 



The past winter was the most dis- previous" in shouting before we have 



asti'ous on bees I have ever known in given a thing a thorough ti'ial? 



my eighteen years of beekeeping, hav- We are too apt to begin shouting and 



ing lost over half of m3' colonies by the to rush into print — when we see an 



time settled warm weather came in the apparent result without waiting long 



spring. enough to fully test it. And when onei 



We have had an excellent honey flow begins to shout many will at once jump; 



so far this season and I have about fill- up and follow in his wake, only to end! 



ed up the vacant places (made by the in failure and disappointment. So i1 



past winter in my yard) with swarms; has been with the formaldehyde fouli 



and swarming still continues. In fact, brood cure. I have been through the; 



we have almost a continuous honey mill and know what I am talking, 



flow from April till firost, and of course about. Someone says the cause ol 



have the attendant swarming. Last your failure was that you did not have 



year I had swarms come off up to Sept. your tank tight enough. 



Buckwheat, 

 Large quantities of buckwheat are 



Well I had my tank so tight, that 

 placing my mouth over the hole in thi| 

 lid and blowing into it the air wouW 



that it will unite with the gas and fori 

 formic acid." Then I tried it that waj 

 and occassionally raised the lid, and 

 with my big straw hat fanned air intfi 

 it with a vengeance but the result was 

 the same — failure! Every colony thai 



grown in this section, and I have never force back on removing the lips fro 

 known it to entirely fail to vield honey; the hole like it would from the bung 

 and as sowings are made any time ^ barrel. Then some other fellow go 

 from the first of June to the last of to the other extreme and says "Yo 

 July, the honey flow from it is conse- iV"!^.i^i .'?l^"*?l ^^^'i?" iV**'7°"^' *^"^ 

 quently extended over several weeks, ^' " "^ ' ' ^ 

 hence the bees swarm sometimes more 

 than they do during cloven- bloom. 

 Buckwheat swarms are always cross 

 and hard to handle and while not de- 

 sirable, often gather enough stores for 

 winter, and bv the aid of full sheets of I treated with the gas was apparentlj 

 foundation, can be made into good colo- cured, as the first batch of brood would 

 nies for winter, and the voung queens l^e evenly sealed and seemed to be 

 raised in the parent colonies make the liealthy. But, when the queen wouW 

 very best for next season's work. lay in the cells vacated by the first 



batch of young bees, the disease woulc 

 Handling Swarms. again appear with all its virulence. 



In casting al^out for something to In talking with foul brood inspectoi 

 hold biick a swarm that has stiirted to Stewart of New York State, he inti-j 

 issue when ;i swarm is nlready in the mated that the gas treatment might be 

 jiir, I discovered that tlie only thing all eight with scientific and experienc-1 

 that would stop them from coming out ed bee-keepers but that it would be a[ 

 was to dash a pail of water over the failure in the hands of the commonj 

 frames, so that the water will I'un run, so I have settled down to the con- 



II 



