1883 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTUSE. 



91 



51, nuclei and all. We fed 150 lbs. of sugar for win- 

 tei" stores. With the exception of this and a few 

 pounds of basswood, their winter stores are almost 

 entirely goldenrod hoHey. 



HYBRIDS, AGAIN. 



The colony that gave the largest yield was hybrid, 

 an Italian mated with a black drone. They were 

 far gentler than any of my pure Italians. 



Edgar IIusband. 



Cairngorm, Oat., Can., Dec. 28, 1832. 



My report for 18R2 is as follows: Thirteen colo- 

 nies, spring count, 5 of which were transferred from 

 log and box hives; amount of honey, 812 lbs., of 

 which one-third was comb honey; 62;; lbs. per colo- 

 ny, and increased to CO, or 131' . 



WINTERING t,>UEENLESS COLONIES. 



From one swarm I sold the queen the 6th of Aug., 

 and inserted a cell about to hatch, which they tore 

 down; then I gave them eggs from si tested Italian 

 queen. They raised a queen, and she was lost; so 

 the last of September, when 1 prepared for winter, 

 they were without any young bees or brood to com- 

 mence winter with. What would you have done 

 with the swarm, under these circumstances? I 

 brimstoned them. Which degree of murder was it. 

 —first, second, or third? 



CANDYING OF HONEY. 



We have tried to have our honey candy, and have 

 sometimes failed, although it was set in a cool room 

 inopen jars, with the temperature hardly ever above 

 freezing (it was very nice white-clover and golden- 

 rod honey, thoroughly ripened). Last winter I 

 mixed a little water with it, and then it partially 

 candied; but this j'ear it has candied perfectlj'. 



GIVING UNSEALED BROOD TO A NEW SWARM. 



You say, " Give the new swarm a card of unsealed 

 brood." I have done so, and find that the brood 

 must be put in the hive before the swarm is, or they 

 will be very apt to swarm out and leave the brood. 

 Every one I gave a card to swarmed out soon after 

 they were hived. When a swarm is hived they 

 should be left as quiet as possible, with plenty of 

 air, or they will be roasted out; and be sure to have 

 the frame in place, or they may build their comb in 

 bad shape. 



A SMART (JlEEN. 



A hive swarmed, having a virgin queen; and 

 wishing to return the swarm, and knowing they had 

 another cell about to hatch, I took out the card con- 

 taining the cell, and stood it against a tree, three 

 feet or moi-e from the hive. In a few minutes, and 

 before the swarm was all clustered, we saw a queen 

 on the edge of the hive next the card. We then 

 looked at the cell, and found the cell empty, as she 

 had flown back. I think she flew, as the ground was 

 grassy, and would have taken a longer time to have 

 crawled. We had a queen hatch on the fourteenth 

 day, and I don't want any more, as the bees then be- 

 gan to tear down the cells. I think I should prefer 

 the Holy-Lands to raise queen-cells. 



D. M. TORREY. 



Shiocton, Outagamie Co., Wis., Jan. 15, 1883. 



I think it was murder in a very bad degree, 

 certainly, friend T. If there were plenty of 

 bees, they Avoiikl have wintered all right, 

 and you could certainly have given them 

 some sort of a queen. — I am glad to know that 

 you have demonstrated that thin honey will, 

 at least sometimes, candy sooner than 

 thick : but I wouldn't like to have it said I 



was in the habit of putting water in my 

 honey, even if it did make it candy.— It may 

 be that it makes a difference whether the 

 bees be given to the comb, or the comb of 

 larva; be given to the bees; but I should be 

 inclined to think your experiment was ac- 

 cidental, until the matter is veritied by fur- 

 ther experiments.— The young queen may 

 have flown from the comb, as you suggest; 

 but as second swarms often have several 

 young queens, I should not be surprised if 

 one had escaped your notice. 



CALIFORNIA HONEY ON THE RISE. 



As we buy quite a little honey of friend 

 Wilkin, we wrote him a short time ago to 

 know what he could let us have some more 

 for. The following is his reply : — 



It is almost impossible to get any such honey in 

 California now. I sent 30,000 lbs. to Liverpool in 

 September, and have received an order for about 

 70,000 lbs. more; but as the quality is not what I like, 

 I shall furnish only a small portion of that amount. 

 I send you a sample of what I have on hand; and if 

 it suits you I will deliver it to you at Medina at 12! 2 

 cents, in lots of six cases or more. R. Wilkin. 



San Buena\entura, Cal., Dec. 26, 1882. 



The above looks a little more like making 

 it a paying business than it did a few years 

 ago. i presume our Pacific friends are now 

 only wailing for another flood of honey, such 

 as they used to have a few years ago. 



FROM 29 TO 90, AND 4000 LBS. OF HONEY. 



Last spring was vei-y poor for bees; so^Edmund 

 Pickup fed about 50c worth per hive in bee candy, 

 sugar, and honey. In the fall he got a little over 

 4000 lbs. of comb honey; an average of 138 lbs., 

 spring count, and increased from 29 colonies to 90, 

 besides si.x swarms otherwise used, and eight got 

 away. iSIore than one-half were black bees. The 

 best colony in spring produced 230 ?i lbs., and three 

 swarms; the best old stand, 99^ lbs., besides one 

 swarm. From the best new swarm, 122i'i; lbs.; from 

 the best 2d swarm, 68 lbs.; from the best third swarm, 

 27 lbs.,; the best 4th swarm, 29\i lbs. Honey at 15c 

 per lb., and new colonies at Ave dollars each give a 

 net compensation of $30. .50 per hive in spring. John, 

 brother of Edmund, has an interest in the bees; so 

 the Pickup brothers show great skill and industry 

 in raising them. Yesterday Edmund gave to the 

 Limerick church 6iJ6fS lbs. of honey — one hundred 

 dollars' worth — for an endowment fund. This is a 

 praiseworthy act of Mr. Pickup, and will live after 

 him. Besides the above, we understand he has 

 given 31 lbs. to preacher's salary, and 100 lbs. for 

 church repairs. Ruth. 



Friend Pickup, of Limerick, 111., tells us 

 the above was written by the minister's wife, 

 for the county paper. 



LARGE STORIES. 



Do you not think some of those bee-keepers out 

 your way tell some pretty big stories sometimes? I 

 believe if there is so much honey out there it will be 

 coming down here in a flood some time. What do 

 you think? Some say they can dip it up with a tea- 

 spoon; some say they get all covered with honey 

 from whcat-stubble, so they can't hardly woi-k. It is 

 too bad, but I can't help it. I guess they will get • 

 through. Don't you think so? I did very well this 

 year with my bees. I had six swarms last spring. I 



