476 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



Honey Gathering ftualities, etc. 



It will soon be lime for bee-men to 

 begin to brag on big yields, increase, 

 etc. 1 am satisfied witli present suc- 

 cess, though convinced that, witli ex- 

 perience and suitable aparatuses to 

 manage 30 to .50 colonies, I can do 

 better. I have 30 colonies of bees, 

 and only •^ are working industriously. 

 One is" 3 years old, and cast oiie 

 swarm about June 15; the other is a 

 second swarm from a 3-year-old col- 

 ony. Xow. if these 2 colonies can 

 find honey to gather, why do the 

 other 28 colonies take it so easy V 

 They work some, and all except this 

 second swarm have sections over tlie 

 brood-cliamber, and plenty in which 

 to store all tliey could gallier, though 

 ever so energetic. I remove all of the 

 sections as soon as capped, and new 

 ones, with stai'ters of natural combs, 

 put on ; and if there should be a few 

 uncapped sections at the outside of 

 the honey-rack (I use the Laugstroth 

 hive), I return them in the new rack 

 to be filled and finished. I never tier 

 them up, but remove and re-crate 

 them for surplus, using two-pound 

 nailed sections. Some of my colonies, 

 of apparent equal strength, will store 

 double the surplus honey of one set- 

 ting close by its side. I do not un- 

 derstand why. Reasoning from cause 

 to effect, there is a why, and bee-men 

 whom we (beginners) look to as "the 

 wise men of the East," ought to give 

 us a satisfactory explanation. Sirs. 

 Harrison says : " No good bee-keeper 

 of the present day allows his bees to 

 hang out and not work." I have 

 seen a good many such cases this 

 summer, and generally in box hives, 

 though not always. What is to be 

 done to such or with such bees to get 

 them to work V They will not swarm 

 nor work in boxes, l)ut some store 

 honey outside of tlie hive under the 

 bottom-board, or against some build- 

 ing near which the hive is. Would 

 you consider .50 pounds per colony, 

 spring count, a reasonably good aver- 

 age ? For profit, would you run bees 

 for comb or extracted honey, or both ? 

 If both, when do you begin to extract V 

 "Would you extract surplus or section 

 honey, or both y If extracting were 

 done after basswood, and the bees did 

 not fill up the comhs again, what 

 would you winter them on ■? 



T. F. KiNSEL. 



Shiloh, O., July 14, l&S-t. 



Answer. — Your questions are all 

 pertinent to success in our business ; 

 and I will answer them in the best 

 way I can. The great difference in 

 the working of these two colonies, 

 compared with the rest, proves too 

 much to be accounted for by traits of 

 the bees. It seems likely that they 

 have found, by 'accident, some reser- 

 voir of nectar or honey, that the other 

 colonies have not found. We know 

 there is an appreciable difference in 

 the honey-storing powers in different 

 strains and colonies of bees— one 

 great enough that one colony of ap- 

 parently the same strength, condi- 

 tion, and opportunities, will store 

 twice as much surplus as another; 

 and this difference is based upon 

 mental and physical characteristics 



which it is worth while to breed from. 

 But when we see sucli a radical differ- 

 ence as notliing on the one liand, and 

 lively storing on the other, we can 

 hardly account for it entirely upon 

 characteristics. When Mrs. H^arrison 

 says, '• No good bee-keeper of the pres- 

 ent day allows his bees to hang out 

 and not work," she undoubtedly 

 means when there is work to be done. 

 No matter how good the bee-keeper 

 or his bees are, when there comes a 

 sudden cessation of honey fiovv, strong 

 colonies will lay outside the hive in 

 festoons, when the weather is exces- 

 sively warm. This is, no doubt, best. 



They will, however, build no comb 

 outside the hives. Wlien bees do this 

 outside work, you may rest assured 

 that they have not sufficient inside 

 room in proper communication with 

 the brood department. Wliether .50 

 pounds per colony, spring count, is 

 a reasonably good average or not, de- 

 pends upon whether it is comlj or ex- 

 tracted honey, how much capital and 

 labor is expended, how good the sea- 

 son, etc. Whether it is satisfactory 

 to the producer or not, only each in- 

 dividual producer is the proper one 

 to judge. Whether I would run col- 

 onies of bees for comb or extracted 

 honey, would depend entirely whether 

 my apiary was at home or abroad ; 

 whether situated in a climate es- 

 pecially adapted to comb building or 

 not ; w hetlier I wished to keep strictly 

 pure Italian bees or not ; or whether 

 my market was general or local. In 

 Northern Michigan, especially in an 

 apiary away fiom home ("an out 

 apiary). I "would produce extracted 

 honey. In any locality where the 

 honey is mostly dark, I would pro- 

 duce extracted honey. In a location 

 where I was forced to ship my pro- 

 duction great distances, I should for 

 that reason favor the production of 

 extracted honey. I should never pro- 

 duce but one kind in one apiary, un- 

 less the local trade consumed my 

 crop, then I would not if I had more 

 than one apiary. I should begin to 

 extract as soon as the stored honey is 

 thoroughly ripened— say when it is 

 from }o to ^-i capped over : much de- 

 pending on the condition of the at- 

 mosphere and stage of development 

 of the blossoms from which it is gath- 

 ered. I should never extract from 

 sections, but from full-sized Langs- 

 troth frame, from a super above the 

 same size of the brood-chamlier, al- 

 ways using the two-story system. In 

 a siuall apmry where you have plenty 

 of time, and are running for comb 

 honey entirely, you can often advan- 

 tageously extract some honey from 

 the side "brood-combs, near the close 

 of an excessive flow, with which to 

 supply a small local trade. I am al- 

 ways glad to have my bees come out 

 in the fall without sufficient stores to 

 winter on ; but not if caused by a 

 dearth, but by such management as 

 has placed the honey in tlie surplus 

 receptacles, and upon the market; 

 which condition of things allows me 

 to feed sugar syrup without first hav- 

 ing to go through the trying ordeal of 

 extracting their honey after all gath- 

 ering is past, when bees are inclined 

 to rob and be cross. 



Honey and Beeswax Market. 



Office of The amehican Bee Journal, ( 

 Monday, lu a. m., JuJ; :>1, 1884.) 



The following are the latest quota- 

 tions for honey and beeswax received 

 up to this hour : 



CINCINNATI. 



HONEY -The honey harvest is now virtually 

 over, in this part ul the country, and the yield is 

 below the average of former years. The average, 

 per colony, in Ohio and Indiana i&. perhaps, 30 to 

 4n lt)3, : in Kentuciiy it may cjraeup to liMKitllo 

 lbs- per colony. I can only speak Irom observa- 

 tl"ns obtained S't far. and my ligures may not be 

 entirely reliable. Sugar being t-hcaper than it has 

 been, perhaps, for the last '2'i years, we cannot ex- 

 pect honey to be high ; but there was a short crop, 

 and it would be my advice to bee-keepers not to 

 be in too much of a hurry to dispose ot their pro- 

 duct. The demand for extracted honey is fair, 

 and to all appearances, gradually improving. It 

 biings i:.jMc per pound on arrival. There is a 

 small demand ftir comb honey, but we had smalt 

 ofT.-rs only, and a good deal could be sold. It 

 brings 14c per pound on arrival. 



BEESWAX-Olferings plentiful at 30®:vjc on 

 arrival. C. F. Mcth, Freeman & Central Ave. 



NEW VORK. 



HONE V— Present sales of comb honey are slow 

 and will be until the new crop arrives. We quote : 



Fancy white li -lb. sections, glassed, l3(Sil4c: fair 

 to good in 2-Ib. sections, glassed. ll'*l.'lc: dark 

 grades in 2-lb. sectii'Hs. glassed, KX^liJc. No l-Ibs. 

 in this market. Extracted, white, Htaitc; dark and 

 buckwheat. 7(S8c. 



BEBSWAX-Prime yellow, a4<a3oc. 



MCCACL & HlLDRETH, 34 HudBOD St. 



BOSTON. 



HONEY -The sale of honey is almost over, and 



we are obliged to sell 2-lb. combs for 1.5c, iind2!^- 



Ibs. to 21s-lbs. from 10@I20. No l-lba. in the 



market. Extracted. S@loc. 



BEESWAX-30C. 



Blakk & KIPLET. 57 Chatham Slreeu 



CHICAGO. 



HONEY— This week we have had liberal receipt? 

 of comb honey, and the prices are irregular. As a 

 rule, the honey is of first quality, and put up in 

 good shape: a gradual improvement is noted in this 

 respect. Prices range from I4<«li;c for the best; 

 occasionally a case sells ftir more than that, but it 

 is in a retail way. The extracted honey is still 

 sluggish, at nominal prices-HH^C per pound. 



BEESWAX-Fair receipts; prices, 3ii@37c. 



K. A. Burnett. 16i South Water 8t. 



SAN FRANCISCO. 



HONEY— The market is quiet and weak. There 

 is considerable wliite extracted on market, thin 

 and watery, and showing a tendency to candy. 

 Such stock cannot be placed much over our inside 

 quotation. Sales ot thin and water white have 

 been made at s^c. In a retail way choice ex- 

 tracted of heavy body is offering at fi?^c. White 

 to extra white comb, 14(S17c. Dark to good, lO(«;i 

 13c. Extracted, choice to extra white. 5&*>4c. 

 Dark and candied, 4c. 



BEBdWAX-Wholesale, 27^13300. 



STEARNS & Smith. 423 Front Street. . 



KANSAS CITY. 



HONEY— No change to note in prices. As pre- 

 dicted in last report, the temporary activity was 

 only accidental, and last week has been dull. Some 

 littie new honey is now arriving, but it fails as yet 

 to tempt buyers to any extent, I look, however, 

 for a very large demand a little later, and would 

 suggest shipment by Aug. I, of all that is ready in 

 quantities to justify. I have still a few more "Sug- 

 gestions on Packing and Shipping Honey," to mail 

 free on application, I will also furnish shipping 

 stencils free to any one desiring to ship to me. 



BEESWAX— Nominal, at 30i.-c:-(.-,c. 



JEROBIE TwiCHELL, M4 Walnut Street. 



ST. LOUIS. 

 HONEY — Steady; demand and supply both 

 small. Comb. Ii:&l4c per lb., and strained and ex- 

 tracted fi(3fii<.c, 

 BEESWAX— Firm at 32<g.32Xc. for choice. 



W. T. ANDERSON & Co.. 104 N. 3d Street. 



CLEVELAND. 



HONEY— The honey market is fairly active on 

 best white 1 lb. sections at l.^c; 2 lbs. best wh'te 

 not quite so active at 17c: I lb. sectionssellquickly 

 on arrival, and often are sold to arrive. Second 

 qualities continue very dull— are hardly salable at 

 any price. E.xtracted is not wanted. 



BEESWAX- Scarce at 35c. 



A. C. Eendkl. 1 15 Ontario Street. 



S.\N FRANCISCO. 

 HONEY— We quote comb honey in 2 lb. sections- 

 17®i8c: extracted, 7^c. 



GEO. W MKAliF 4 CO.. 213 Market St. 



