234 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



ANSWERS BY 



James Heddon, Dowagiac, Mich. 



TJnripe Honey, etc. 



1. Will pure honey ferment below 

 4(P Fahr. V 



2. I had an Italian colony to leave 

 its hive and enter another, leaving 

 about i5 pounds of honey and brood 

 and fresh -laid eggs. What was the 

 cause ? Does water rise to the top of 

 unripe honey before it ferments V 



G. Priest Geinstead. 

 Oakland, Indian Territory. 



Answers.— 1. Not a particle, if it 

 is not too thin, or in a very damp 

 place. Water does not usually rise to 

 the top of honey before it ferments. 



2. There are many cases of spring 

 desertion, that seem to violate all 

 rules ; and which are very difficult to 

 account for. I think internal de- 

 rangement with the individual bees 

 is the cause of such desertion. 



their own course. I would not advise 

 imprisoning the bees. . 



2. I should make the food into 

 syrup, and feed what was needed as 

 rapidly as possible, from the top of 

 the hive, well protected from robbers 

 and low temperature. 



8. Yes. 



5. Yes ; I have seen these little 

 pollen eaters ; and in this locality of 

 excessive pollen, it is a good thing to 

 have it removed sometimes. 



Wired Combs, etc. 



1. What do you think of wired 

 comb foundation Y 



2. What meal is the best to feed 

 bees V 



3. Is common catnip a houey-pro- 

 ducing plant ? C. W. Castle. 



Prairie City, 111. 



Answers.— 1 . We do not believe in 

 wiring comb foundation. We believe 

 in wiring the frame and then pressing 

 the foundation upon the wires. Let 

 us not get these two systems mixed. 



2. Among those most accessible are 

 rye and (Traham flour. 1 do not be- 

 lieve in stimulating brood rearing 

 early ; especially in an early spring 

 like this, if bees get natural pollen in 

 ordinary season. 



3. Yes ; in almost all locations. 



Feeding Bees, etc. 



1 . Last fall I packed my hives on the 

 inside, crowding the bees on four 

 frames ; and the other day I opened 

 the hives and they appeared to be 

 quite strong. As I am not quite sure 

 about the amount of honey they have, 

 do you think it would be advisable to 

 lift out one of the outside frames to 

 be sure, or, as I liave some frames of 

 honey, how would it do to lay a frame 

 on the top of the others, under the 

 quilt? , , 



2. Would it do to put an emameled 

 cloth over the frames, instead of cot- 

 ton and cushions V I could then feed 

 above the bees. 



3. I use a deep hive, and have not 

 much time to spare with my bees. 

 Would you advise me to put a second 

 story on top, to run for extracted 

 honey V As I have a number of 

 empty frames, I think I could get 

 quite a large yield, but would like to 

 get your opinion before I try it. 

 ^ -^ A. B. Keeper. 



ftueens, Dampness, etc. 



1. Will a colony of bees supply their 

 own queens, or will I have to give 

 them queens V IIow long will queens 

 be good y , « ^, 



2. Are there a certain part ot the 

 bees who build comb,andpart seal the 

 honey V 



3. What is the cause of the damp- 

 ness above the frames, and the chaff 

 cushions v A Beginner. 



Answers.— 1. Your bees will su- 

 persede their own queens in proper 

 time, cheaper and better than a be- 

 ginner will be apt to do it. 



2. Probably the same bees that 

 build comb.seal the honey. How bees 

 divide up the work among their num- 

 bers, depends much upon circum- 



3. If your covers do not leak, the 

 dampness comes from the respiration 



of the colony. 



Young Bees venturing out in the cold. 



1. I have one colony of bees, where, 

 on pleasent days, the young bees will 

 crawl out on the ground and get 

 chilled before they get back in the 

 hive, and, of course, stay out all night. 

 I found them crawling around, the 

 next day, when they got warmed up. 

 Can I prevent them from coming out ¥ 

 Would it do to keep them shut in. by 

 putting wire cloth box in front of the 

 hive, so that they can have a flight 

 in it ? . , 



2. In what way would you now feed 

 sugar to bees which have no stores V 

 Should it be made into syrup or candy, 

 and fed fast or slaw, in order to pro- 

 duce the best results and most honey 'i 



3. Will it induce robbing, to feed 

 bees candy at the entrance of the 

 hives that are outside. 



Ainger, O. C. E. Boyer. 



Answers.— L I think all will come 

 out right, if you let the bees take 



Preparing Honey for Market, etc. 



1. The entrances to the Heddon 

 hives are % inch deep. Is it not best 

 to contract to % inch deep for winter, 

 to economize heat of hive, and to pre- 

 vent mice from gnawing the combs V 



2. Do yon advise the use of supers, 

 for extracted honey made to hold 

 frames only % the depth of the Lang- 

 stroth frame V 



3. What sized packages for ex- 

 tracted honey sell best in your home 

 market V 



■ 4. Ill an article in the Bee Journal, 

 on selling honev in the home market, 

 you spoke of furnishing the grocers 

 with stands to hold comb and ex- 

 tracted honey for retailing. Please 

 describe the stands used by you, giving 

 best t\)rm and size, and cost of same ; 

 also, whether or not it pays to use 

 them V 



5. Have you ever seen or heard of a 

 parasite somewhat resembling a louse, 

 that feeds on and consumes the pollen 

 of exposed combs during warm 

 weather ¥ I would like to hear from 

 others in regard to the above. 



DWIGHT FURNESS. 



Furnessville, Ind. 



Answers.— Certainly ; you should 

 know if they have sufficient honey. 

 A frame of honey laid on the frames 

 would feed them, in this locality, 

 after this date. Why not put it into 

 the hive in place of an empty comb ( 



2. Yes ; I should prefer the enam- 

 eled cloth after this date. What I 

 prefer to either is a good board cover. 



3. Yes; a second, and even third 

 storv used on the tiering- up plan 

 would save you much labor, tend to 

 prevent swarming, and give you a 

 surplus crop of nice honey. 



Answers.— 1. A % inch entrance 

 will not exclude mice, by any means. 

 We object to using an entrance so 

 narrow as to be mouse-proof. We 

 think an open, airy entrance is the 

 best for l>oth summer and winter. 



2. No ; I think them too shallow for 

 economy in coiislrnction and mani- 

 pulation ; otherwise they would be 

 good. Nothing less tlian % Lang- 

 stroth depth would please me, and 

 while I am about it. I prefer to go the 

 whole depth, and use the same style 

 of frames above and below. 



3. One and two pounds in glass. 



4. The " stands " I used were reclin- 

 ing shelves for jars of extracted honey, 

 with a glass case on top, and a door to 

 open at the back, for comb honey. 

 They pay if properly managed. 



Rearing ftueens. 



1 I do not know whether I thor- 

 oughly understand what is meant by 

 rearing queens under the swarming 

 impulse— will Mr. Heddon please ex- 

 plain it. . , 



2. Is not the following as good a 

 way as any to build up an apiary : 

 Watch the few colonies one has, and 

 when they begin to build queen-cells, 

 preparatory to swarming, then make 

 as many nuclei as one has queen-cells, 

 and let these build up ? ^ 



Tommy Dodd. 



Answers.— 1. A queen reared un- 

 der the swarming impulse, is one 

 hatched from a cell that was built 

 with the old queen present in the 

 hive, with evident designs of swarm- 



iiiR- . ■ V. 



2. I would not increase in any such 



way, though you could do so success- 

 fully, if you did the work properly. 

 Not one-half of the queen-cells, us- 

 ually built, would please me from 

 which to rear a lirst-class queen. I 

 would not increase my stock any 

 faster than they paid their way m 

 surplus honey. 



^TTlieKentuckyBee-Keepers'Con- 

 vention meets in Louisville, Ky., dur- 

 ing the opening of the Exposition (day 

 not fixed). N. P. Allen, Sec. 



