212 



i'HE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



REPLIES by Prominent Apiarists. 



TrausMiig Bees, 



Query, No. 231.— I bave a number of 

 colonies of bees to transfer to Langstroth 

 hives, and would lllie to know the best 

 method of doing it, and when it should be 

 done. I desire replies by prominent api- 

 arists.— Va. 



1 think that 1 should use the phiii 

 which James Heddon employs. It 

 has been given in the Bee Journal. 

 — C. C. Miller. 



The method recommended by James 

 Heddon is good. Transferring can 

 be done at any time, but I prefer to 

 do it when the apple trees are in 

 bloom.— H. D. Cutting. 



Drum out the bees from the old 

 hive, and hive them in the usual way, 

 by shaking them in front of a hive 

 containing combs or foundation on 

 the old stand. The best time to do 

 this is when the honey is coming in 

 moderately at the beginning of the 

 (white clover) honey season.— H. R. 



Eo A RDM AN. 



Transferring should be done in the 

 spring, and when fruit trees are in 

 bloom is the best time to do it. For 

 detail of a method consult any work 

 on bee-keeping.— J. E. Pond, Jr. 



I transfer bees during apple bloom 

 with the least possible trouble. The 

 combs at that time contain less honey 

 than at any other time, and are tough 

 without being soft or brittle. If the 

 combs are not too old and crooked, it 

 has always paid me to transfer all the 

 worker combs. If any of them turn 

 out to be unsatisfactory they can be 

 removed afterwards at little cost. It 

 will pay dealers in bees and supplies 

 to use foundation in place of the 

 combs, but it does not pay the be- 

 ginner to go too fast. Any of the 

 text books give the modris operandi.— 

 G. W. Demaree. 



Sowing Melilot anil Alsike Clover. 



Query, No. 232.— Will it pay to sow 

 melilot clover with Alsilse clover in March 

 on fall wheat, letting them stand two years? 

 White clover blooms in this locality from 

 May 'JO until July 1. Can I prevent the 

 Alsibe from blooming until after this time, 

 by pasturing until the middle of May ? Will 

 it then bloom in time for me to secure the 

 seed ?— Ind. 



Alsike can be kept from blooming 

 in the wav mentioned, and a crop of 

 seed secured.— VV. Z. Hutchinson. 



I think it will pay to sow the 

 Alsike; hut I should prefer to sow 

 this unmixed. By feeding this off, its 

 time of bloom can be deferred. My 



brother has tried Alsike with great 

 success. — A. J. Cook. 



We do not think it will pay, as the 

 melilot grows too coarse, and will 

 spoil the other for hay. It is far 

 better to sow them separately. Meli- 

 lot is good for land which has been 

 ruined by bad cultivation. Its roots 

 are very large, and it promptly en- 

 riches the soil.— Dadant & Son. 



Spce Betf een Brood-Comlis, 



Qnery, No. 233.— Where box-hives are 

 used with immovable bars to support the 

 combs, ■'i of an inch thick, would not % of an 

 inch space between the combs be as good or 

 better than 'J of an inch, giving less lurking 

 place for the hees in the hive, and sending 

 more bees to the surplus boxes ? If not, 

 what are the objections ?— F. 



Yes, % of an inch is enough.— H. 



R. BOARDMAN. 



I think vour plan might be good if 

 the bees would follow, but I have 

 tried it a little with movable frames, 

 and the bees changed the space as 

 they built down. But surely— surely 

 —do you take a bee-paper, and are 

 you going to make box-hives V — C. C. 

 Miller. 



Yes, undoubtedly. In fact I find it 

 to be the case with frames. I find 

 also that when a bee-space only is 

 left between the frames, brood is 

 deposited close to the top; when, if 

 they were wider apart, the comb 

 would be used for the storage of 

 honey. I prefer thus spacing the 

 frames to reversing, as it can be more 

 easily and cheaply accomplished.— J. 

 E. Pond, Jr. 



I have worked the combs from 1)4 

 to IJ^ inches apart, from center to 

 center of the combs, with success. 

 For stationary combs, 1% is exactly 

 right. If the bars are % of an inch 

 wide they will be ^ of an inch apart. 

 When constructing hives with fixed 

 combs, you must remember that one 

 advantage may be offset by some dis- 

 advantage. Thus, if close combs 

 force the bees into the surplus de- 

 partment, the narrow spaces will 

 spread the bees too thinly when in 

 winter quarters.— G. W.Demarke. 



Swarming anil DiTidinE, 



Query, No. 234.— Are bees liable to 

 swarm after they have been divided, If 

 plenty of surplus room is given them? 

 What is the best method of dividing ?— Wis. 



Yes. There are too many "ifs," 



'' buts " and '' ands '' to give the best 

 method in this department.— W. Z. 

 Hutchinson. 



1. They are iu this locality. 2. By 

 allowing natural swarming and doing 

 away with after-swarms.— G. M.Doo- 



LITTLE. 



Not as a rule. The best plan of 

 dividing is to take 2 or 3 combs of 

 brood with adhering bees from 2 or 3 



colonies and unite them, giving them 

 a queen.— H. R. Boardman. 



They will often swarm after being 

 divided, though if given plenty of 

 room they are not apt to do so. Witti 

 reversible hives I think that the 

 swarming can be easily prevented. 

 For increase, unless we permit swarm- 

 ing, I prefer to buildup nuclei. — A. J. 

 Cook. 



Bees are as liable to swarm if 

 divided after they get the swarming 

 fever, as if they were left aione. If 

 divided before they get the swarming 

 impulse, the dividing may prevent 

 swarming. It would take 3 pages for 

 the methods of dividing.— Dadant & 

 Son. 



This is a question that requires 

 more space to answer than this de- 

 partment can afford. I have given 

 my experience regarding it in my 

 book, ''Success."— James Heddon. 



Convention Notices. 



t^~ The bee-keepers of Stark and adjoining 

 cnunliea are *'arnestly requested to meet at GraDRe 

 Hall (over Farmer's Bank). Canton, O.. on Tues- 

 day, Apr. 13, 18H6, for the purpose of effectinK a 

 permanent organization. Make Thomson, Sec. 



ly The Southern Illinois Bee-Keepers' Associ- 

 ation will hold Its 3d annual convention in Teague 

 & Harris's Hall at Duquoin, Ills., on Thursday, 

 Apr. 8, 1886, at 10 a.m. A general Invitation Is 

 extended. F. H. Kennedy, See. 



t^~ The Union Bee-Keepers' Association of 

 Western Iowa will meet in Dexter, Iowa, oh April 

 10, 1886. at 10 a.m. M. E. Darby, See. 



jy A cordial invitation is extended to all to 

 attend the 8th annual meeting of the Texas State 

 Bee-Keepers' Association, to be held at Judge W. 

 H. Andrews' bee-farm, at McKtnney, Tex., on May 

 5 and H, 1HH6. Indications for a grand meeting 

 grow brighter every day. and every effort will be 

 made to render this meeting the best and largest 

 ever held in the State. No hotel biilB to pay. 



B. F. Carroll. Sec. 



ly The next annual meeting of the Western 

 N. Y. and Northern Pa. Bee-Keepers' Association 

 will be held at Randolph, N. Y , on May 4, 18-^6. 

 A. D. Jacobs. See. 



t^T The Progressive Bee-Keepers' Association 

 will meet in Macomb, Ills., on Friday, Apr. 9, 1886, 

 afternoon and evening. Essays will be read and 

 an address will be given by Rev. E. L. Briggs. of 

 Wilton Junction. lown. Other speakers of note 

 will be presen>. It is desired that all interested in 

 bee-keeping should be present. 



J. G. Norton. Sec. 



t^ The DesMoines Co. Bee-Keepers' Associa- 

 tion will meet at the Court House in Burlington, 

 Iowa, on Tuesday, Apr. '27, iHrtc. at lo a.m. Any 

 articles sent tQ the President, Mr.Geo. Bischoff. at 

 Burlington, for exhibition, will be well cared for 

 and returned or sold as the sender may direct. A 

 cordial invitation is extended to all interested in 

 bee-keeping. John Nau, Sec. 



13^ The semi-annual meeting of the Western 

 Bee-Keepers' Association will be held in Pythian 

 Hall. N. W Corner of Mnin and lith Sts.. (entrance 

 on nth St.). at Kansas City. Mo., on Apr. 2;i and 

 30, i88n. '1 he Cable Line can be taken from the 

 (^nion Depot for 9th and Main Sts. The following 

 essays will be read: "The Honey Market," by 

 demons, Cloon & Co.; " Bee-Keeping in Iowa," by 

 E, Kretehmer ; "Best method of handling bees 

 for comb honey," by A. A. Baldwin; "Missouri 

 Bee Keeping," by J. D IN^iirce ; "Does bee-keep- 

 ing pay as a pursuit?" by Jos. Nysewander ; and 

 " Invertible Frames and Hives," by J. M- Shuck. 

 P. Baldwin, Sec. 



10^ The Illinois Central Bee-Keepers' 

 Association will hold its next meeting at 

 Mt. Sterling, Ills., on Tuesday and Wednes- 

 day, Oct. 19 and 20, 1886. 



J. M. Hambaugh, Sm. 



To any One sending us one new sub- 

 scriber with their cwn renewal (with $2.00i, 

 we will present a copy of the new "Con- 

 vention History of America." 



