1895. 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



103 



comb is better for brood-rearing than new, and they need 

 every advantage in that respect. 



2. I don't believe anything can entirely take the place of 

 pollen. At any rate they'll not rear brood so well with it. 

 Still there may be an advantage in giving it in spring when 

 they can gather no pollen, even if the combs are stocked with 

 last year's pollen. The fact that they are gathering something 

 in that line seems to stimulate them to greater efforts in 

 brood-rearing. If there is no pollen in the hive, and none to 

 be had in the field at a time when weather is fine for outdoor 

 work, then there can be no question as to the great advantage 

 of feeding some substitute for pollen. I don't think flour is 

 the best substitute. I've tried a nnmber of different things, 

 and I think nothing satisfied me quite so well on the whole as 

 corn and oats ground together for horse or cow feed. I feed 

 it in shallow boxes, perhaps two feet square, and 4 to 6 inches 

 deep. Put a stone under one edge of it so as to raise it three 

 or four inches. Then the bees will work it down level, when 

 you will put the stone under the opposite edge. It's fun to 

 see them burrow into it. By night they'll have all the fine 

 parts worked out, and then you can feed the rest to the cows 

 or horses. 



3. They'll go at it without any baiting. If they don't 

 touch it they're getting the real thing from the flowers. If 

 you want to hurry them to work on it, bait them with a little 

 honey. 



Seed of Honey-Producing Plants, etc. 



Where can the seed of the following honey-producing 

 plants be obtained? Catnip, white clover, alfalfa and sweet 

 clover. When should the seed be sown ? Will they blossom 

 the first year ? Do any of these plants produce dark honey ? 



E. A. S. 



Answer. — The seeds can be obtained through any large 

 seed dealer, unless it be catnip. Write to some of the seed 

 advertisers in the American Bee Journal. 



Seed can be sown in spring and will blossom the following 

 year. I don't know whether any one has ever secured enough 

 unmixed catnip honey to know its color. The others give 

 light honey. 



Purifying Bees-wax. 



What is a convenient way to purify bees-wa.x ? I have 

 some dark wax which I want a lighter color. G. D. R. 



Answer. — Usually beeswax is dark because of impurities 

 mixed with it, such as particles of pollen, propolis or cocoons. 

 These remain mixed with the wax tjecause the wax cools too 

 rapidly to allow them to settle to the bottom. The secret of 

 getting wax of a bright yellow color is to allow it to cool 

 slowly. A large mass will of necessity cool slowly, and if 

 you have only a small quantity you can put a large quantity 

 of water with it. Or you can let it stand in the oven of a 

 stove in which the fire slowly dies out. But don't burn it. 



Wliat to Do With Foul-Broody Hives. 



One year ago I bought 11 colonies of bees and 13 empty 

 hives. As the owner claimed that they had been used 

 only a short time, and by uniting for winter had been vacated, 

 leaving plenty of drawn out foundation and brood-comb, 

 together with some honey, I thought that it would be a good 

 deal. But, alas ! vain hope. 



After moving them home, X examined them in April to see 

 how they were getting along, and found several of the heaviest 

 getting scantof supplies ; I went to a hive containing the honey 

 spoken of before, and gave each one 2 frames of stores from 

 an empty hive or one without bees in it. As soon as warm 

 weather came, I noticed a very queer smell, and saw numbers 

 of bees fanning at the entrance of these hives. Supposing it 

 to be all on account of the strength of the colony, I let 

 things go and finally found that the combs I had given those 

 colonies were those of a colony that died with foul brood. I 

 found this out by the description of the disease that I had 

 read. 



Going to these colonies I found them weak in bees, where 

 six weeks before they were the strongest. But the long and 

 short of it is, that to-day I have only one left to hope on. 

 Yesterday was warm, and only one colony came out, so I was 

 made aware of their condition. 



Now come my questions ; What can I do with those 

 hives? They are good now, and all painted three coats, and 



I want to continue in the business, but not till I have got 

 everything safe to start again. 



I think I can get bees in old box-hives, and transfer them, 

 if it would be possible to renovate the hives so the disease 

 would not appear in the next lot. 



If the party had told me the cause of the vacant combs, I 

 could have been on my guard and destroyed them. 



I just had a present of another lot of hives and fixtures, 

 which, upon examination, I found ample proof that they were 

 emptied by the same disease. These were the remains of a 

 very large apiary. 



Now if you will give me your opinion of the way to pro- 

 ceed in this matter, I will be greatly obliged. I am a poor 

 man, and cannot afford to destroy these hives, if I can cleanse 

 them and put them in shape again. N. T. S. 



Answeb. — Having no experience with foul brood myself, 

 I can only give you tiie opinions of others. I think all agree 

 that frames and combs must be burned. As to the hives 

 themselves, Wm. McEvoy, foul brood inspector of Ontario, 

 says to use them again just as they are. A. I. Root says they 

 must be boiled before being used. Boiling kills the germs, 

 freezing does not. 



If you had only one colony among a lot of healthy ones, 

 I should certainly advise to burn up the whole business, hive 

 and all. As your capital is in hives rather than bees, I should 

 just as certainly try to use them again. If you can have a 

 big kettle in which you can boil the hives, you will be on the 

 safe side. Otherwise you might try them as they are, not 

 going into so large a number that you will feel the loss severely 

 if the disease should break out again. If four or five work 

 all right the coming season, then you'd feel safe in using the 

 rest anoiher season. 



As you are in a foul-broody region, you may do well to 

 get all the literature you can on the subject, including 

 Dr. Howard's little book on foul brood. 



For the benefit of others, report as to your success in 



using those hives. 



^ I ^ — ■ 



Could Not, or Would Not Rear a Queen. 



I want to ask about a colony of bees that had the queen 

 removed and could or would not rear another in her place. I 

 have not been able to get any light on the matter in any of 

 the bee books or papers I have. 



Columbus, O. J. T. H. 



Answee.^I don't know upon what you want light, unless 

 it be upon the question why the bees did not rear a queen. 

 Without knowing anything about the case, I can only say in 

 general that bees rear no queen when they have no brood of 

 the right kind, and sometimes they take a freak without any 

 apparent reason to do everything wrong-end foremost. There 

 is not entire uniformity as to their promptness in taking the 

 first steps to rear a queen. Some are slower than others, and 

 some may be too slow to make it out at all. 



Shading Hives With Hop-Vines. 



Is it necessary to furnish shade for bees during the hottest 

 days ? Will hop-vines, planted near the hive, answer the 

 purpose ? I think the " A B C of Bee-Culture " recommends 

 grape-vines. Why will not hop-vines do as well? M. W. 



Answeb. — Shade, especially toward the north, is more for 

 the comfort of the operator than for that of the bees. Some 

 of my bees get the sun nearly all day long, and it's seldom that 

 they seem the worse for it, but sometimes I am. I like to 

 work in the shade. Last season I had some foundation melt 

 down in sections during the very hot weather, but I've some 

 doubts whether it would have done so in a good year with 

 plenty of bees in the super to keep up the ventilation. 



I don't think Mr. Root's grape-vines are a great success 

 for shade. At any rate, I've heard objections to them from 

 those that worked among them. I doubt if you would like 

 either them or hop-vines, unless you have some kind of an 

 overhead trellis to act as a roof. 



A good shade for a hive, supposing it's impossible to have 

 the shade of a tree, is to put on a board cover on top of the 

 regular cover, allowing it to project 8 to 12 inches on the 

 south side. Another way is to cover with long grass, putting 

 two or three sticks of firewood on top to keep from blowing 

 away, and this will last the entire season. 



Xlie Bee of the "future" will be the one that will gather 

 the most honey, be the most prolific, and, at the same time, the 

 most docile, hardy and industrious.— -Voooiajt. 



