1895. 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



187 



here in this out-of-the-way place, and nevei" saw a bee-paper 



till 1895, and now I think I would not keep bees without it. 



Stephen's City, Va. W. 11. H. 



Answers. — 1. Queens are generally kept in nuclei, a 

 nucleus being nothing more or less than a small colony. The 

 nucleus may have small frames, but of tener frames of full size 

 are used. A queen may be kept a month or more in a cage 

 with 10 or 20 workers. 



2. As a general rule, comb honey will sell more readily 

 than extracted, at least comb usually sells for the higher price. 

 It is quite possible, however, that in your place you might be 

 able to sell the extracted for as much as the comb. I'm just a 

 little afraid that your comb honey isn't in the best shape, and 

 if it's such a dauby mess as is sometimes seen, a good article 

 of extracted honey nicely put up in glass or tin might easily 

 outsell it. Nice white section honey, however, ought not to 

 go begging for purchasers. 



Black Gum — Extracting — Starters in Wired Frames. 



1. Does black gum produce honey to any amount ? If so, 

 what color? 



2. Can you extract from brood-frames 14x103^ without 

 their being injured if not wired ? 



3. Can you use starters in wired frames so the bees will 

 make straight combs ? W. C. K. 



Answers. — 1. Black gum is considered a good honey-plant 

 in the South, but I don't know anything about the color. 

 Perhaps some one will tell us about it. 



2. Yes, only you must be very careful with them when 

 they're new. If a comb is quite heavy with honey, turn 

 slowly till that side is half emptied, then reverse your comb, 

 turn slowly till that side is half emptied, then increase your 

 speed suiificiently to empty the rest, then reverse again and 

 finish the side you did first. 



3. 1 think I've read something of the kind, but in the few 

 cases in which my bees were asked to do it they didn't make a 

 success of it. I wouldn't advise it. 



Slice in Bee-Hives — Sweet Clover. 



1. How long will mice live in a hive without water, if 

 they were closed in with wire-screen ? Would they die of 

 thirst. 



2. Will sweet clover grow in a wood lot where there are 

 not many trees, and plenty of marsh grass ? Does it make 

 good pasture for stock ? F. E. G. 



Racy, Mich. 



Answers — 1. I never tried it, but I don't believe they'd 

 die of thirst. There's generally moisture on the walls of the 

 hive, also in the honey. 



2. I think it will grow there all right. It doesn't seem to 

 be much relished by stock till they get accustomed to it, but a 

 good many report success after stock are used to it. I have 

 no trouble in getting stock to eat the dry hay. Lately I saw 

 one place mentioned where cattle preferred sweet clover to 

 Alsike, when both were in the same field. 



Putting Bees Out for a Flight. 



What is the result of taking bees affected with diarrhea 

 out of the cellar for a flight at this time of the year, if the 

 weather is warm ? How warm should it be ? Is there any 

 better way to treat them ? E. M. H. 



Kilbouru City, Wis. 



Answer. — If they're not very bad, I should rather let 

 them stick it out till weather comes for them to say out. But 

 if very bad, it may do to take them out in bright sunshine 

 with no wind when the thermometer gets up to 50'^ in the 

 shade. They will fly out at a lower temperature, but they 

 may not always get back. You may do a lot of good by seeing 

 to the air of the cellar. If the thermometer in the cellar 

 shows above id-', you can at night let in outside air enough 

 to bring it down to 40^, and this will give them fresh air — a 

 thing that may be much needed. If a warm night comes, 

 open wide all the windows and doors of the cellar, and 

 although at first they may roar and run all over the hives, by 

 morning they will be quiet. Possibly you can leave the cellar 

 open the next day, but keep watch, and if the bees begin to 

 fly from the hives darken up again. 



CONDUCTED BY 



MRS. JBffKIB ATCIILEY, BEEVIKLE, TEX. 



Tile Carniolan Bees. 



Mrs. Atchley : — Will you please tell me what kind of 

 bees Carniolans are ? How do they differ from other bees ? 

 Pike, Texas. J. M. Jeffcoat. 



Friend J., I have just described the Carniolan bees for 

 another bee-keeper, in the American Bee Journal, and I trust 

 you have read it ere this. Carniolans are a dark gray bee, 

 stick to their combs like Italians, and unless you were ac- 

 quainted with them you would likely pronounce them blacks, 

 but they have hardly any of the traits of the blacks. They 

 are usually very gentle, good honey-gatherers, and build up 

 very fast. 



^ I m 



Facing the Hives Differently. 



Mrs. Atchley: — Last year was my first to keep bees. I 

 have 88 colonies, and they had plenty of honey to winter on. 

 The hives I got with the bees are the old-time Simplicity, with 

 the wire-end frames, and I am doing away with them as fast 

 as I can. The new hives I am using are of my own get up, 

 and I think it just as good as the dovetailed hive. I also make 

 a closed end-bar that I like much better than the wire end- 

 bars. 



We have plenty of linden here iu reach of the bees, 

 though it did no good last season. 



My hives face the east, and I want them to face the souih, 

 so I can have a better view of them from the honey-house and 

 work-shop. At what time of the year would it be best to turn 

 them half around ? And how much at a time ? 



Last season was a very poor one here for honey, caused 

 by the cold spell last March, and drouth in summer. 



My bee-yard is on a gentle rise, and open all around in a 

 grove of pines. I intend to make it just as pretty as a park, 

 with one more year's work. J. W. Burrows. 



Smithton, Ark. 



Friend Burrows, I would turn the hives K the way around 

 at first, and then in a few days turn the other Ji. This done 

 when the bees are flying will cause but little trouble or incon- 

 venience to the bees. Why do you want them to face all one 

 way ? I have my hives face in almost all directions, and like 

 it better, but if you have your hives a good distance apart, it 

 will be all right to have them face all one way. 



Using Foul-Broody Hives. 



Mrs. Atchley : — One year ago I bought 11 colonies, and 

 also a lot of hives that had been vacated, as I was told, by the 

 bees dying of starvation, and by uniting for winter. vSome of 

 these had nice combs, and when I undertook to divide a colony 

 later in the season, I gave each one (the parent colony and the 

 swarm) several of these empty combs. I find now that the 

 bees died from foul brood, and in my ignorance I used all the 

 rest of the empty combs, spreading the disease. 



I had a gift of all the hives and fixtures of a fine apiary, 

 and on examination I found that these bees had also been ex- 

 terminated by the plague. To-day (Jan. 21)1 have only one 

 colony left, and I suppose they are infected also. Now, can I 

 do anythiug to those hives, to rid them of the disease and 

 make it safe to put another colony into them ? 



Please tell me in your reply what you think would be ad- 

 visable under the circumstances, where one is not able to 

 destroy the hives and replace by new ones unless it is abso- 

 lutely necessary. I intend to keep bees if it is possible, and as 

 I have the hives all painted and fixed in fine shape, I feel some- 

 what anxious to discover what others would do in the case. 



Weston, Ohio. N. T. Smith. 



Friend Smith, I think you will be perfectly safe in using 

 your hives if you will let them remain exposed to freezing 

 weather, then scald them well and paint the inside as well as 

 the outside ; also scald the frames well after they have been 

 thoroughly scraped. I would feel safe in using the hives after 

 such treatment. I tell you, it was bad luck to you, sure 

 enough, when you accepted that gift. I would destroy that 

 remaining colony and start anew. 



