1903 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



13 



protein it contains, that material in feed that is abso- 

 lutely necessary for the formation of blood, lean 

 meat, and milk." The higher the protein in alfalfa the 

 more valuatile the ciop I'he chemical department of 

 thisS ation foi.nd the effect of cutting alfalfa at dif- 

 ferent stages as follows: 



Protein. 



One-tenlh in bloom IS 5 per cent. 



One-half 'n bloom 17 2 



In full bloom 14.4 



The Colorado Experiment .Station found the effect 

 of cutting alfalfa as follows: 



Protein. 



Coming in bloom 18.5 per cent. 



Half in bloom 14. ti 



In full bloom 12.9 



The I'tah Experiment Station for five years cut al- 

 falfa at different stages of maturity, and fed the crop in 

 producinu beef. The average production per year per 

 acre was as follows: 



Hay. Beef. 



In fir«t bloom 5.35 tons. 700 lbs. 



In full bloom 4.00 •' 562 " 



Half blooms fallen ...4 55 " 490 " 



These experiments made in three States — Kansas, 

 Colorado, and Utah— prove that alfalfa cut in the first 

 bloom will give the greatest yield and feeding value. 



HOW TO CURE ALFALFA. 



The leaves of alfalfa contain nearly four times as 

 much protein as the stems, a ton of dried alfalfa leaves 

 containing as much protein as 2800 pounds of bran. 

 Every effort, then, should be made to cure the alfalfa 

 in such a way as to save all the leaves possible. The 

 method of curing will vary with the condition of the 

 crop, ground, and weather. When alfalfa has made a 

 slow growth, and at the time of cutting the ground 

 and the weather are dry, there is no difficulty in cur- 

 ing. Often, under these conditions, it is safe to rake 

 within a few hours after mowing, and stack a few 

 hours after the alfalfa has been put in the windrows. 

 When alfalfa has made a rapid growth, and is rank 

 and succulent, and the weather and ground are damp, 

 the problem of curing is a difficult one. It is easy to 

 dry the leaves, but the stems will contain much moist- 

 ure after the leaves are too dry. Alfalfa hay should 

 become so dry before stacking, that, when a handful 

 of stems are twisted together, no water can be squeez- 

 ed out The most practical way to accomplish this, 

 and at the same time save the leaves, is the p'an to 

 adopt, and this will vary with different seasons and 

 places. 



There is usually no difficulty in curing any but the 

 first crop. When the conditions for curing the first 

 crop are unfavorable, we have usually found the most 

 practicable methods to be to cut the alfalfa early in 

 the morning, after the dew is off, allow it to barely 

 wilt in the swath, then rake, and before night put in 

 tall narrow cocks After the dew is off the next morn- 

 ing, and the surface of the ground has become dry, we 

 open these cocks carefully, so as not to shatter off the 

 leaves. If the weather is favorable the hay may be 

 stacked in the afternoon ; if not, we recock carefully, 

 and repeat treatment until the hay is properly cured. 



It was M. A. Gill, I believe, who said 

 we need have no cause for alarm; but when 

 one reads very carefully what is said in 

 this bulletin here quoted he is led to wonder 

 if it is not true after all that the bee busi- 

 ness in the alfalfa re<,''ions will, after a 

 while, become less and less profitable. If 

 the statements contained in this bulletin are 

 true, the rancher will look to his own inter- 

 est rather than that of the bee-keeping 

 neighbors round about him; and if he can 

 get help enough at the right time he will 

 cut his hay just before it will be of any 

 value to the bees. 



cells built at least in part by the bees them- 

 selves. So far, so good; but next appears 

 the following remarkable statement: 



Honey is subject to much adulteration, the adulter- 

 ants (and substitutes) being glucose, cane sugar, and 

 invert sugar, and mixtures of these. " Honey in the 

 comb " is frequently glucose which has acquired more 

 or less honey odor and flavor by being poured into 

 comb from which the genuine article has been 

 drained. 



It is bad enough to have lies circulated 

 about us and our business by the ordinarj' 

 newspaper; but when a supposedly expert 

 man, who is expected to know and under- 

 stand his business, takes hearsay evidence 

 like this and puts it forth as sober scientif- 

 ic fact, the matter is still worse. A marked 

 copy of this will be sent to the State Chem- 

 ist, Prof. B. W. Kilgore, who, we hope, 

 will rectify the statement in the next issue 

 of the bulletin. If he thinks it is possible 

 to pour glucose into comb and then cap it 

 over by machinery or by any process what- 

 soever, so that the stuff will deceive the 

 public or any one else (for that is implied 

 as a result also), we should like to have 

 him prove the fact. Yes, we will pay him 

 one thousand dollars in gold if he can dem- 

 onstrate that it can be done. Glucose is 

 too thick and too mucilaginous a substance 

 to be poured into comb in such a crude 

 manner as that. In fact, it will hardlj^ 

 pour at all, to say nothing of running into 

 the cells, expelling the air, even if it would 

 be possible to cap the combs over afterward 

 by^ny art known to man. We trust that 

 Prof. Kilgore will do us the kindness to 

 look into this matter a little further. 



AN EXPERT DECP:IVED OR MISLED. 



In the Bulletin of the North Carolina 

 State Board of Agriculture at Raleigh, for 

 September, appears a statement to the effect 

 that pure honey maybe defined as a nectar 

 of flowers and other saccharine exudations 

 of plants gathered by bees, and stored in 



ARE BEES NECESSARY FOR THE FRUIT-GROW- 

 ER AND GARDENER? 



We extract the following from the Ameri- 

 can Agriculturist for Nov. 29: 



The cucumber blossomed, but that was about all. 

 Some grew }4 or Ji inch long, and then shriveled up. 

 Mr Bunce thinks this result was owing to the flowers 

 not being fertilized in the natural way through the 

 agency oi bees. When the doors of the tent were open- 

 ed the bees came in freely, and after that some cucum- 

 bers grew large enough tor small pickles. Before the 

 bees entered not a single cucumber set. The melons 

 did not do well, but this might be partly in conse- 

 quence of their having been planted late. 



The presence of bees in a tent is considered by Mr. 

 Bunce indispensable to success. He thinks if the doors 

 of the tent were left open in the middle of the day, 

 bees would come in. When asked if other and unwel- 

 come insects would not also enter, he replied that the 

 moth producing the tobacco-worm flies only at night 

 He savs strawbei > les have been grown under cloth on 

 Long island with brilliant success, the fruit maturing 

 two weeks earlier than in the open. But bees must 

 be allowed free entrance. 



The article is headed "Growing Vege- 

 tables Under Glass," and gives a record of 

 a number of recent experiments. I have 

 clipped only a small part of the article, and 

 mainly to show not only the value of the 

 bees but the absolute necessity of them un- 

 der some circumstances for a successful 

 crop ; and in regard to this matter of cloth 

 protection our readers ma}' remember the 

 report I made from our Ohio Experiment 

 Station. I think there is a new field open, 

 of considerable promise, for growing manj- 

 products under cloth. — A. I. R. 



