54 



THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER. 



Marcl 



at a few feet distant. It was not be- 

 cause I jarred the hive or disturbed 

 them in any way, as I tried it several 

 times, and wa« very careful that the 

 loose and soft snow should not be heard 

 Inside of the hive, and afterwards the 

 snow would melt an inch from the hive 

 in zero weather. Hives with no bees 

 in would be the same as when the 

 snow was put there. 



Is this -snow injiirious to bees? "We 

 have hard winds in winter. 



K. M. Waldron. 



There is no doubt a« to the disturb- 

 ance of the bees being a result of 

 your work near the hive, notwith- 

 standinc; the great care with Avhich 

 you performed the operation. Bees are 

 extremely sensitive in such instances; 

 and it would be an impo'SSibility to 

 bank them up, as stated, without im- 

 parting to them a knowledge of the 

 fact that something unusual was go- 

 ing on outside. The banking of snow 

 about the hive is not injurious to bees. 

 On the contrary, it is conceded to be 

 a protection that is beneficial. The 

 heat generated by a healthy colony 

 Avould doubtless cause the -snow to 

 melt av»'ay from immediate contact 

 with the iiive, as stated. In such a 

 position, liowever. a colony would be 

 cozily protected from chilling winds 

 Avhile the snowbank remained. — Edi- 

 tor. 



ALFALFA GROWING. 



In the past several years there has 

 been a marked tendency on the part of 

 local sugar planters to a more general 

 growing of alfalfa, they feeding the 

 hay to their work stock perhaps some 

 six or seven months in the year, de- 

 pendent on the number of cuttings se- 

 sured, and the Sugar Planters' Jour- 

 nal has all along lent encouragement 

 to new ventures in alfalfa sowings, 

 feeling assured that where alfalfa is 

 successfully grown it will thereafter 

 be a regular provider for the stable, 

 for there is no hay better adapted to 

 work stock generally. A prejudice ex- 

 isted several years ago against the 

 feeding of alfalfa to horses but ex- 

 periments made at the Utah experi- 

 ment station showed the prejudice to 

 be without foundation, for the inves- 

 tigation, covering months, during 

 which the teams did the same work, 

 resulted in an unqualified victory for 

 alfalfa against timothy hay. 



In all the sugar parishes of Louisi- 

 ana, alfalfa is annually planted, though 



Ik 



Loose snow over the hives wint« 

 ing out of doors aflfords protectic 

 but it should not be allowed to "cruJ 

 near the entrances, or suflfocation m 

 result. 



"Bees do not consume most hon 

 during extreme cold weather, but dt 

 ing intervals of milder temperatun 

 An old statement which is a trifle m; 

 leading. 



not on every large plantation by an 

 means. Some planters have given it 

 trial on land unsuited to its growtl 

 or on good land imperfectly preparet 

 and because success was not attaine 

 the first time, have not tried it agai: 

 On the other hand, there are sug; 

 planters who have been planting alfs 

 fa for years, and who expect to kei 

 up the practice indefinitely^ ev 

 though, as they say, it' requires the 

 best land. It may be stated that, asK 

 average, alfalfa in the sugar distrfcH 

 requires re-planting each year, oWi» 

 to other grasses crowding it out, jbv 

 the fact remains that with three td si 

 cuttings annually it pays to sow eac 

 year. 



One of our upper coast readers hs 

 a patch of alfalfa that is four year 

 old, and we consider the reason 1 

 has bee nable to keep it so long is h 

 careful manner of seedbed preparatio 

 He gets the best results when plan 

 ing in black or buck-shot soil whii 

 has a sandy subsoil and good drai 

 age, finding that better for alfalfa thi' 

 either mixed or sand lands. He so\ 

 in October, a half bushel of seed 

 the acre, in land covered during fi, 

 summer with a thick growth of pi 

 vines. With soil of this charact, 

 only, it is his custom, after taking « 

 the pea vines, to plow, harrow, pic 

 again, roll, and finally re-harrow, 

 then being in fine condition to recei 

 the alfalfa seed. The seed are sow> 

 broadcast, and swept in the soil by* 

 dragging tree branch, he finding tl 

 preferable to harrowing, for the latl 

 course is liable to put the seed t 

 deep for quick gesrmination. 

 bein gthat pursued by one of our mp 

 The above outline of alfalfa planti) 

 successful planters, it may with pro 

 be followed by those who have n 

 yet gone into its raising or who ha 

 Heen unsuccessful in past attempts.' 

 Sugar Planters' Journal. 



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