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THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



May 19, 



them, for I have not only read the standard works and most 

 of the current literature on bees, but I have for many years 

 produced comb honey by the ton each season, and last season, 

 altho it was the poorest I have ever known, I lost at least 

 $3U0 by not understanding the business better than I do ; 

 and but a few years ago I lost probably $-400 for the same 

 reason. But this was owing to such a peculiar cause that, 

 briefly explained, It may be of interest to some. 



That year white clover was quite abundant, and blos- 

 somed luxuriantly ou low land, but it yielded very little honey. 

 Basswood blossomed in great profusion, aud yielded well. At 

 that time I was running nearly 400 colonies for comb honey. 

 They were located in three yards, all of them near basswood. 

 Sections by the thousand were being (to borrow another's ex- 

 pression) "filled as if by magic." 



I was keeping close watch of the bloom, and in a short 

 time I noticed the blossoms were beginning to fall off very 

 rapidly, to such an extent, in fact, that myself and assistants 

 considered It best not to put on any more empty supers, in 

 order not to have a large number of unfinlsht sections at the 

 cessation of this basswood flow, which is the end of the white 

 honey harvest here. Therefore, everything possible was done 

 to meet the conditions of a flow which it was believed must 

 very soon cease. 



In a short time the trees were bare of blossoms, but there 

 was not much, if any, let up in the amount of honey coming 

 in. Investigating the matter it was seen that the bees were 

 working on the blossoms which had fallen off and lying on the 

 ground. But I did not believe that these blossoms would, or 

 could, yield more than a day or two, but they continued to 

 yield day after day. Still, I could not believe it was best to 

 put on more supers until they had about ceast to yield. I be- 

 lieve there would have been nearly as much gathered after 

 the blossoms had fallen as while they were on the trees, If 

 room had been given to store it. But how they could yield 

 honey after they had fallen the way they did, has always been 

 a mystery to me. There was no rain while they were yield- 

 ing on the ground, and if I remember rightly, none for some 

 time before they commenced to blossom. From what a few 

 colonies did, on which empty supers had been left, I have no 

 doubt that a number of thousand pounds of honey was lost by 

 crowding the colonies the way they were. 



I believe the peculiarity of the basswood flow was that 

 year general over quite an extent of territory, for a number 

 mentioned the matter at the time in the American Bee Journal. 



I am aware that there are many who consider it unwise 

 to restrict colonies too much as to room in order to get as many 

 sections as possible completed, even if there are poor prospects 

 for the flow to continue, for they regard a large number of 

 sections containing drawn comb as very desirable for use the 

 next season. I have used many thousand sections containing 

 full and partly drawn combs, but I have entirely discontinued 

 their use even for bait sections, for the reason that in this 

 locality at least first-class comb honey cannot be produced in 

 sections containing comb drawn out the previous season. 



When the comb-leveler is used, and the combs partly 

 melted down, the honey in such sections may look fully as 

 well when they are filled and sealed, but the old comb is tough 

 and hard compared with new comb, and, besides, some sea- 

 sons, at least, the honey itself, when put in drawn comb, is 

 not equal to that which is put in fresh-built comb; for the 

 latter is filled more slowly, and on this account better ripened, 

 and has a richer and finer flavor. 



Of course, if the comb-leveler is used, and the side-walls 

 entirely removed, there is no material difference between what 

 is left and so much foundation, but with me bees work the base 

 thus left less readily than they do fresh foundation, and after 

 considering all things in regard to this matter carefully, my 

 practice of late is to render all drawn combs in sections at the 

 end of the season into wax. But it is undoubtedly a fact that 

 with drawn, or partly-drawn combs, a good deal more honey 

 can be secured some seasons, possibly some more any season 

 when any surplus is produced — honey that may look fully as 

 well as that built from fresh foundation, but, as I have said, 

 the quality is inferior, and much more so some seasons than 

 others. 



I will say for the benefit of those who may be intending 

 to use drawn comb for the first time this season, that it is 

 necessary, when combs are fully drawn or built out, to melt or 

 remove in some way at least a small portion of the outside 

 surface in order to have the honey in such combs appear first- 

 class. 



As to the use of bait sections, I believe their value has 

 been over-estimated. I have no trouble about work in supers 

 being commenced soon enough without their use, provided, of 

 course, the yield is such that surplus work can be done. What 

 I consider of great importance in order to have bees work 



freely and willingly in supers, is to have them so the bees can 

 easily get into them. With some sections and surplus ar- 

 rangements sent out it is hard work for loaded bees to get 

 into the sections. Southern Minnesota. 



Streugtheniag Colonies by Exchanging Hives. 



BY G. M. DOOLITTLE. 



The plan of strengthening weak colonies of bees by ex- 

 changing the hive containing such colony with one having a 

 strong colony in it, putting each on the stand formerly occu- 

 pied by the other, is one which is quite generally adopted with 

 good results, and I am askt what time of the day is best to do 

 this exchanging. Some claim that it matters not when the 

 exchange is made, for if made at midnight the bees come out 

 In the morning without realizing any change has been made, 

 aud upon returning from the field go to the old location the 

 same as if nothing had happened ; hence the weak colony will 

 receive as many bees in this way as they would if moved when 

 bees were at full flight. 



Perhaps a little looking into this matter would do no 

 harm. When a colony is in a normal condition the young bees 

 go out to take their first airing at the age of six days, if the 

 weather is favorable; and in doing this they mark their loca- 

 tion to a certain extent, but not to an extent great enough so 

 but that subsequent flights have a greater impression on their 

 memory, for we find them taking these markings anew at 

 every flight till they become field-workers, after which they 

 take no more markings during the working season unless it 

 be In the case of a swarm, or some very rude disturbance of 

 their home. 



If the hive is moved at midnight, on the coming morning 

 all the bees over 16 days old, upon going to the field leave in 

 a straight line, and having the location establisht in their 

 memory, and not taking any markings that morning, come 

 back to the spot where the old entrance used to be ; conse- 

 quently they go into the hive of the weak colony (If such has 

 been placed on the old stand) or are lost, if no such provision 

 has been made. 



But suppose we wait till about 2 o'clock p.m., at which 

 time all of the bees under 16 days old and over six days old 

 will fly if the weather is fine, and we shall find that these 

 young bees head toward the hive the same as they did the last 

 time they were out before, hence notice the change which has 

 been made, and instead of going to strengthen the weak colo- 

 ony which has been placed on the old stand, they return to 

 the spot last markt, hence do nothing toward the desired 

 strengthening. Now, had we waited about this changing till 

 these young bees were in full flight, and moved the hives when 

 the most of these young bees were in the air, we would have 

 caught these also, in addition to all those which were over 16 

 days old. Then 10 of these young bees are worth 30 or iO 

 of the older ones for strenghthening weak colonies, inasmuch 

 as they are just commencing life instead of being near its 

 close, as many of the field-bees must of necessity be. 



Thus it will be seen that if we wish to secure the best re- 

 sults from this exchange of colonies, it should be done when 

 the greatest number of young bees are flying from the hive, 

 for we shall get the old ones in any event. 



Onondaga Co., N. Y. 



The Plain Section and Fence Separator. 



BY G. S. CREGO. 



Reading the contribution of J. S. Scott, of Utah (page 

 224), on the subject of no-bee-way sections, leads me to ask, 

 as a matter of information, in what particular the plain sec- 

 tions are an improvement over the old 1% section, open at 

 top and bottom. 



As I understand it, the cross strips on the fence separator 

 effectually shut up the two sides of the section, leaving only 

 the ordinary bee-way at top and bottom, with perhaps some 

 advantage gained by allowing the bees to go freely through 

 the separator. 



For my own use I have adopted the 1% section open on 

 /oiir sides, which allows the bees to run along the separator 

 from end to end, as well as from top to bottom. 



To give them still further freedom of action in the super 

 I slot all my separators; that is, with a sharp knife and a 

 straight-edge I cut out a strip ^s'-inch wide the full length of 

 the separator with the exception of about IJi inches at each 

 end. This slot, being in the middle of the separator, allows 

 the bees to go from section to section through the separator. 

 As a result, the comb honey put up in such sections last season 



