1903 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



725 



i used, there is no better material than 

 ine, properly tongued and grooved, to shed 

 'ater. 



A third swarm in a box hive will winter 



'ell enough if stimulated by feeding; but 



;e would advise putting it in the cellar, or, 



. etter still, transfer it to a movable-frame 



bive. Then you can see what condition it 



l» in.— Ed. J 



NKAT LITTMC SHICD APIARY; A. I. ROOT'S 

 HOMK TALKS. 



In my bee-shed, taken June 27, 1903, my- 



;lf and Mr. U rover are sittinsr on a hive. I 

 s't on the floor at the shed. I have a fine 

 1 ace to keep my bees — dry and grassy. It 

 ( ains off in a few minutes when it rains. 

 ( 'ur bees are doing well, and we have had 

 a fine season so far. If the season lasts we 

 shall get a good crop of honey, 

 vhjte clover. Of course, we ha 

 cf hope}'- producing' plants, such as ^ 

 t asswood, locust, sourwood, and poplar. 



I delight in A. I. Root's departments. I 

 should like to hear him give us a little lec- 

 ture on the scriptures. We need more such 

 men as Mr. Root to stand up and talk for 

 the Master; and we should be thankful for 

 Mr. Root's talks along this line. 



Dryden, Va. C. H. Flanary. 



A ROBBER-FLY THAT IS NOT WHOLLY AN 

 ENEMY. 



1 have sent you a specimen of some kind 

 of insect which is a bee-catcher. They do 

 uot seem very numerous. The first one I 

 saw had a drone, and was on a willow-leaf 

 on the branch, making his meal on the 

 drone. To-day I caught this one alive, 

 '^"hey are so wonderfully strong, and espe- 

 ciall}' so in the legs, that thej^ catch a bee 

 } y alighting on its back, clasping it in its 

 grasp, and by its long stout legs it stretch- 

 es the bee's stinging part right out, and 

 tnen pushes its hard bill right down into 



the bee's body, in that hard place between 

 its wings. The worker it had to-day was 

 heavily loaded with bee-bread on its legs. 

 It seems they catch the bees when coming 

 in loaded. F. P. Cook. 



Maud, W. Va., June 5, 1903. 



[Prof. Benton, to whom these specimens 

 were sent, replies:] 



Mr. Root: — I return herewith a letter re- 

 ceived from you some days ago, which 

 awaited the arrival of specimens and their 

 determination. The robber- flies which were 

 found by Mr. Frank P. Cook, catching his 

 bees, are known as Dasyllis sac^ator. They 

 belong to a numerous group of predaceous 

 flies; and although they may frequently 

 attack honey-bees they also get a good many 

 injurious insects, so that they may be ac- 

 counte"" -ot wholly a pest themselves. It 

 '^oes noi 2em practicable to destroy them 

 or prevent their ravages wholl}', the only 

 A^ay being to frighten them when they are 

 noticed about the apiary; but they will be 

 sure to come back another day after more 

 bees. The losses on this score are not very 

 great. It is also impossible to get at their 

 breeding-places, which are probably in the 

 ground about the roots of decaying vegeta- 

 tion. Frank Benton. 



Washington, D. C, July 25, 1903. 



red-clover bees of the MOORE STRAIN. 



I saw my bees getting honey out of red 

 clover, and they did not pick out the small 

 blossoms, but worked them as they came to 

 them. The time I noticed them on red clo- 

 ver was when there was plenty of white 

 clover in bloom. When they could not reach 

 the honey easily they would shove their 

 heads down into the little blossoms, and 

 then stay there until I was confident they 

 got at least a good part of the honey. My 

 bees haven't only long tongues, but they 

 have a determination back of their tongues 

 to get the honey. W. T. Davison. 



Velpen, Ind., July 26, 1903. 



yUEEN-CELLS REARED FROM WOODEN CELL CDPS. — SEE EDITORIALS. 



