568 



THE AMERICAJS BEE JUUlli^JAU 



men any the less true. It seems to 

 me if this fact were properly con- 

 sidered, a great deal that has been 

 written would have remained un- 

 written. 

 Mechanicsburg,© Ills. 



Ceflar Valley Bee-KeeDers' Conyention. 



The Cedar Valley Bee-Keepers' As- 

 sociation met at the office of J, 

 Mosber, of Waterloo, Iowa, Aug. 18, 

 1886. The meeting was called to 

 order by President C. P. Hunt, at 1:30 

 p.m. The Secretary then read the 

 report of the last meeting, which was 

 accepted, after which was the election 

 of officers for the following year : Mr. 

 C. P. Hunt, of Waterloo, re-elected 

 President ; J. Mosher, Vice-President; 

 H. E. Hubbai'd, of La Porte City, was 

 chosen Secretary, and A. J. Norris, 

 of Cedar Falls, Treasurer. 



The President then proceeded to 

 draw questions from the question-box 

 as follows : 



Question : If any one having 50 or 

 more colonies has them in hives that 

 he likes, all things considered, is it 

 better for him to change the size in 

 order to get his supplies cheaper ? 

 Answer : No. 



What is the best ventilation for 

 hives in winter V Some use burlap 

 and others a tight honey-board. Mr. 

 A. J. Norris thinks it the most per- 

 fect ventilation to have a tight honey- 

 board and then raise the hive from 

 the bottom-board. 



What is the best size for the en- 

 trance of a hive for a large colony of 

 bees in hot weather ? Three-eighths 

 of an inch high and the whole width 

 of the hive. 



How long after comb honey is 

 capped over should it be taken off V 

 The sooner the better. 



Will bees commence to work in 

 sections as soon when there is a whole 

 case, or is it better to put on a few 

 sections at a time ':* Part were in 

 favor of a whole case while others 

 only a few at a time. 



What is the best shade for bee- 

 hives y Mr. A. J. Norris said that an 

 apple orchard was the best shade ; 

 Mr. J. Owens thought it best to let 

 the hives set in the sun with shade- 

 boards on top of them. 



Can bees eat sound grapes when 

 their .skins have not been broken 'i 

 President C. P. Hunt says that he has 

 had his bees for the last 25 years close 

 to his grapes, and has never seen 

 them touch good sound grapes. Sev- 

 eral other members have had the 

 same experience. 



Do bees injure small fruit while in 

 bloom V No. 



What is the best method to keep 

 bees from swarming V Put on the 

 honey receptacles early in the season 

 and give plenty of room. 



What is the proper distance to put 

 frames from centre to centre in the 

 brood-chamber of the hive '( One and 

 one-half inches. 



Is it advisable to use whole sheets 

 of foundation in the brood-chamber V 

 Some thought that it paid while 

 others thought it did not. 



Where is the best place to keep sur- 

 plus combs ? Some keep them in a 

 cellar. Mr. Robt. Quinn keeps his in 

 a tight room, and then fumigates 

 them with sulphur. 



Is it advisable to clip the queens' 

 wing 'i No. 



What is the best way to get bees 

 out of sections V Drive them down 

 with smoke and then carry the case 

 to the honey house and let the bees 

 out at the window. There were sev- 

 eral other methods given. 



What is the best way to feed in the 

 spring to simulate weak colonies V 

 Feed on top of the hive in a feeder. 



EVENING SESSION. 



At 7 p.m. the convention re-assem- 

 bled, and continued the questions as 

 follows : 



Which is best for comb honey, a 

 deep or shallow frame V A shallow 

 one, except with chaff hives, with 

 surplus room. 



Will it pay to raise any crop for 

 honey alone V If so, what ? Yes, if 

 one has cheap land. Alsike, buck- 

 wheat and rape are good, as these are 

 also valuable seed crops ; and sweet 

 clover in places where it succeeds 

 well. 



Shall we use more than a starter of 

 foundation in sections V Starters only. 



What is the best method of ex- 

 tracting and clarifying wax V Using 

 the solar wax-extractor, as it extracts 

 cleanly and partially bleaches the 

 wax. 



Adjourned until 9:30 a.m. on Aug. 

 19. 



FORENOON SESSION. 



Questions were continued as fol- 

 lows : 



Which is the most profitable, to 

 produce comb honey at 10 cents per 

 tjouud, or extracted at 53>^ cents '? Mr. 

 Robt. Quinn said that he would rather 

 produce extracted honey at 5 cents 

 than comb honey at io cents per 

 pound. 



Is there any such a thing as bees 

 becoming honey-bound in the brood- 

 chamber V Yes. 



How near the bottom-board should 

 the brood-frames come ? C. P. Hunt 

 said '^i of an inch, while others 

 thought 3>^-inch enough. 



Which is the best, loose or tight 

 bottom-boards V Loose boards. 



What should be done with partly 

 filled sections when bees swarm and 

 leave them V Some let them be on the 

 old hive, while others take them and 

 put them on the hive of the new 

 colony. 



AFTERNOON SESSION. 



Is it profitable to extract from the 

 brood-chambers V Not as a rule. 



Will not hives filled with combs 

 built from comb foundation stand 

 more heat than natural combs y It 

 was generally thought they would. 



Are bees taxable property V No. 



Which is the best race of bees, all 

 things considered V Italians. 



How close to the cellar bottom 

 should hives rest in winter y From 2 

 inches to 1 foot. 



Fifteen members reported 1,1.50 col- 

 onies, fall count, 875 spring count, 

 and 1,308 colonies as their present 

 number. The amount of comb honey 

 reported as being produced by these 

 colonies was 55,-500 pounds, and 16,700 

 pounds of extracted honey. It was 

 stated that nearly the entire crop has 

 already been disposed of at reasonable 

 prices. 



It was decided that the next meet- 

 ing be held at Vinton, Benton county, 

 Iowa, on Dec. 7, 1886. 



The following resolutions were 

 adopted, after which the convention 

 adjourned : 



Resolved, That we, the members of 

 this association, tender a vote of 

 thanks to Mr. Jerry Mosher, for his 

 kindness and the use of his office ; 

 and 



Hesolved, That the members of this 

 association approve of the " Bee- 

 Keepers' Union," and most respect- 

 fully urge bee-keepers of Iowa to be- 

 come members of it. 



H. E. Hubbard, Sec. 



Farm, stock and Home. 



How to Get a LarEO MM. 



F. A. TICKNOR. 



Now that the season is abort closed, 

 and another years' experience is 

 added to our knowledge of bee-keep- 

 ing, perhaps a few refiections might 

 be in order. If the apiarist has not 

 received 150 pounds of surplus from 

 each colony, spring count, and 100 per 

 cent, increase, he surely does not be- 

 long in the front rank. 



But little rain has come to us the 

 present summer, still those slight 

 refreshing showers from time to time 

 have been sufficient. Our rich dark 

 soil has stood boldly up against all 

 obstacles, and brought forth her in- 

 crease ; again demonstrating to those 

 who love bees that they are blessed 

 by living in the honey-State of the 

 Union. But still much depends upon 

 the apiarist and his observance of 

 natural law. Different locations and 

 forage bring different results and 

 experiences. 



Some may ask how must it be doney 

 The first answer would naturally be, 

 rear worker -bees where, if left to 

 themselves, drones are produced ; to 

 accomplish which, see that all brood 

 frames contain worker combs. No 

 fear need be entertained of lack of 

 drones for all practical purposes. A 

 second answer is, to restrict swarm- 

 ing, and keep at all times during the 

 honey-ttow large colonies of worker 

 bees free from the swarming fever, 

 and but little honey in the brood- 

 frames. To accomplish this there are 

 many ways. I have not yet reached 

 a settled system, and will simply 

 leave it for those to answer who 

 know. It now appears to me a sub- 

 ject for a volume. 



During the preparation of the brood- 

 combs and spring management, I 

 clipped the wings of all the queens 

 two years old. and any others not 

 bearing an extra record ; when they 

 issued with their swarms they were 



