PUBLISHED EVERY WEEK 



AT $1.00 PER ANNUM. 



35th Year. 



CHICAGO, ILL., JANUARY 24, 1895. 



No. 4. 



Cot;)tnbuted /Vrticles* 



On Important Apiarian Subjects, 



Bee-KeepiMg ia the City of Philadelphia. 



Br "STUDENT OF APICULTURE." 



It is not generally known that bee-culture is a feasible 

 city industry. Bees and honey are so suggestive of cows and 

 clover that a city bee seems, at first thought, an anomaly. Yet 

 when it is considered that these industrious creatures are 

 known to go three, four, and even five miles for forage, it is 

 plain there is no reason why a colony should not be housed on 

 a roof in the city, as well as in a door-yard in the country. In 

 all cities, even the largest, there are flowering herbs, shrubs 

 and trees that serve as a partial food supply, and failing there, 

 there is the open country within the working limit of the bee. 

 It must be remembered, though, that a long foraging trip 

 means fewer in number and a proportionately less harvest 

 gathered by the city insect than by her country cousin, which 

 is closer to the supply. The variation is, however, less than 

 might be supposed. The records show that the average yield 

 in an ordinary year is the same for both, but the harvest of 

 100 to 250 pounds to the colony is, as yet, only reported 

 from the country bee. 



That bee-keeping can be made profltab'e in the city has 

 been demonstrated in Philadelphia, where a successful apiary 

 has been conducted for several years. The owner is a young 

 man, who, without giving his whole time to the enterprise, 

 has managed, nevertheless, to add a considerable sum to his 

 income by its means. The apiary is on the top of a four-story 

 building in the business part of the town. Like the majority 

 of city buildings the roof is flat, covered with painted tin, and is 

 as hot a place in summer time as one would care to be in. The 

 hives are not shaded at any time during the day and have not 

 even the extra board, (sometimes in use for protection) over 

 the top. The excessive heat is tempered in Philadelphia by a 

 rather constant breeze, so that the discomfort in caring for 

 the apiary is not so great as might be expected. In fact, the 

 owner considers the heat an important factor in making choice 

 marketable honey, for it helps to thicken or ripen the nectar 

 quickly, and the bees cap it before the comb is darkened by 

 their working over it. Clear honey in a white comb com- 

 mands a higher price than the darker varieties, as nearly all 

 know, but many apiarists think the latter really preferable, 

 claiming that honey left long in the hive acquires a fine, rich 

 flavor that is lacking in that taken from the sections as soon 

 as it is capped. 



The apiary in question comprises 34 colonies, the hives 

 arranged in rows about three feet apart. The owner is in- 

 different as to the kind of hive used, providing it can be packed 

 for winter. He has both the Simplicity and the Dovetailed 

 chaff hives, each of which has its particular merits.but in either 

 case he prefers the 10-frarae size. Both of these hives can 

 be packed around the sides with cork, chaff, or better still, 

 pine needles, and are provided with chaff cushions to put in 

 an upper story under the cover. With this protection, 

 and a reasonable attention to the reports of the Weather 

 Bureau, in order to keep the temperature uniform in the hive, 

 the bees are comfortably wintered on the roof. 



The honey is removed about once a month, and the yield 



compares favorably with the average yield of those that are 

 country hived. Around Philadelphia the best honey-flow is 

 in .June, from clover, and lasts only four or five weeks. Later 

 comes that of asclepias, asters and golden-rod. Between 

 times there is not much doing, and sometimes feeding is re- 

 sorted to, to keep the bees in working condition. The best 

 colony in this roof apiary gave last year 72 pounds of comb 

 honey; to this should be added the harvest of 10 pounds each, 

 gathered by two swarms from the mother colony, soj that, 

 strictly speaking, the colony yielded 92 pounds in all. 



The colonies averaged about 50 pounds each during 1892 

 and 1893. Much of this honey is kept for family use, while 



DR. C. C. MILLER, MARENGO, ILL. 



{Sepfod need from n photoyraph taken, in Neptember, 1894.) 



the rest finds a ready sale at 15 cents per pound. Supposing 

 it were all sold, there would be a return of .'p255.00 from the 

 34 colonies, for honey alone. 



The income from the increase is another item to consider. 

 There is generally a demand for brood-comb of good stock at 

 75 cents per comb, queens 25 cents to $1.50 apiece, and 

 strong colonies at from ."jo. 00 to .S6.00. In general, colonies 

 may be doubled without affecting the honey crop, and in- 

 numerable queens can be reared if working for extracted 

 honey. As to brood, two frames may be taken from a good 

 working colony without materially weakening it. The minor 

 products of an apiary are wax, vinegar, wine and candied 

 honey, one of the finest sweets known to the confectioner. 



I 



