1883 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



303 



energetic, and didn't want to be idle, so she 

 went around the second or third time after 

 she had tilled all of her cells. When young 

 bees are hatched out so as t'> make her reti- 

 nue larger, of course she had iio need of so 

 doing, and ''stopped such foolishness," as 

 you term it. — I would use a small quantity 

 of fdn., by cutting in strips and using it 

 for starters. The larger the starters, the 

 more time you will save the bees. 



OR HONEY-PLANTS TO BE NAMED. 



WASN'T IT A MISTAKE? 



1j?N last Gleanings, Fr. Holtke, p. 123, speaks of 

 Ji|[ Poinciana pulchanimi (pulcherrima. means teiu- 

 — ' tiful), a leguminous plant closelj' i-elated to 

 partridge pea, and really describes the beautiful 

 poinsettia of our greenhouses {Euphorhla pulcheni- 

 ma) which belongs to the Eupliorhiacw family. 

 Poinsettia is very showy, and each flower ha; a large 

 yellow gland which is cup-shaped, and always full of 

 nectar. This plant is a native of Mexico. I have 

 often thought that its habitat must be the paradise 

 of the bees and apiarist. A. J. Cook. 



Lansing, Mich., Mar. 8, 18.S3. 



Many thanks, friend Cook, for the valua- 

 ble information you give us in this matter ; 

 but are you not afraid so many great liard 

 words in just one little short letter may 

 discourage some of our younger ones, to say 

 nothing of the rest V The mistake was ours, 

 not friend Iloltke's, as explained in our last 

 issue. 



THAT nONEY-BEARINU HONEYSUCKLE. 



I send you the bloom of that honeysuckle, and will 

 mail you by this post a plant of the same. You will 

 observe by the bloom that it forms bunches, and 

 these bloom out in succession, keeping the plant 

 covered for about 4 weeks. It was covered with 

 snow about 3 weeks ago, but it did not hurt the 

 bloom. As soon as it melted, the bees covered it. 

 Perhaps it may be a good spring bee-feeder. 



F. L. Washington. 



Nashville, Tenn., April 4, 1883. 



Answer, by Prof. Lazenby: — 



The plant from F. L. Washington, Nashville, Tenn., 

 was received in bad condition for identification. All 

 of the flowers were broken off, making it very diffi- 

 cult to name the plant with any degree of certainty. 

 I judge It to be a species of DierviUa, or "Bush Hon- 

 eysuckle," belonging to the Caprifoliacefc, or Honey- 

 suckle family. It is probably £)jeci;(7?a tripida. It is 

 a shrubby plant, uot uncommon in hedges and thiCK- 

 ets, and receives its generic name from Dierville, a 

 French surgeon, and the discoverer of the original 

 species. Although the species mentioned above is 

 not as fragrant as some species of the lionicera, it is 

 much frequented by hummingbirds and insects, and 

 probably contains much nectar. The speciman was 

 so badly broken that there is no'hing left worth re- 

 turning. William K. Lazenby. 



Columbus, O., April 17, 1883. 



VETCHES FOR BEES. 



I send by mail some specimens, of vetch, which 

 flourish well in this country, and are floe for bees, 



Please have it analyzed for me. Can you tell me 

 where I can get the seed in quantity? I can not get 

 It here. ' W. S. Logan. 



Keatchie, De Soto Par., La., April 16^1883. 



The plant is Vicia saliva, L.; common vetch, or 

 tare; a plant formerly much cultivated here, and 

 still held in high repute as a fodder plant for cattle 

 in Europe. It was introduced from Europe, and is 

 now generally regarded as a weed in the LT. s. The 

 following is a description of the plant. An annual 

 with a simple stem and compound leaves ; the leaf- 

 lets in 5 to 7 opposite pairs, obovate, oblong to linear, 

 mucronnte; flowers bluish-purple, mostly in pairs, 

 sessile. Fruit a long, several-seeded pod. The plant 

 trails one to three feet, or climbs by the tendrils on 

 the ends of the pinnate leaves. Leaflets, Ji to IV2 

 inches long. Flowers axilary. W. R. Lazenby. 



Columbus, 0., April 27. 1883. 



the MESQUITE-TUEE of TEXAS. 



The mesquite-tree of Texas, one that yield-i the 

 "mesquite-gum," is the Prosnpis glandulosa, sub- 

 order Mimosco}, order Leguminosn'. It grows from 

 20 to 40 feet high, attaining a diameter of 18 inches. 

 It is said to grow where no other fruit-tree will live. 



Columbus, O. Wm. R. Lazenby. 



ANOTHER honey-bearing S.4GE. 



I inclose a sample of plant we call wine, or foliage 

 plant, that the Italians seem to like just now as well 

 as catnip or motherwort in fore part of season. 



Marietta, O. Maria L. Demino. 



The plant sent to you by Maria L. Deming, Mar- 

 ietta, O., is evidently a species of Salvia, a well- 

 known genus of plants belonging to the order ia- 

 hiata', or Mint family. It is undoubtedly Salvia' vav' 

 iegata, which is often grown as an ornamental plant. 

 It is quite readily propagated by seeds or cuttings, 

 and is quite closely allied to the common garden 

 sage. Nearly all of the salvias are handsome flower- 

 ing plants, some of them being hardy and herba- 

 ceous, while others are more tender, and assume a 

 somewhat shrubby character. The name "salvia" 

 is from aLatin word, salvco, meaning, to be in health; 

 probably in allusion to the salutary qualities of tho 

 sage. Wm. R. Lazenby. 



Columbus, O. 



^VINTEKIIVG BEES ON A LARGE SCALE. 



SUCCESS UNDER CONDITIONS APPARENTLY OPPOSITE. 



M S there so are many controversies regarding 

 ^^^ wintering bees, I think I will give a few facts 

 ' that have come under my observation in re- 

 lation to the matter. In the spring of 1882, wishing 

 CO purchase some bees, 1 made a visit to the apiary 

 of Wm. Denison, of Gowan, Mich , who keeps his 

 bees in box hives. Ho had removed about 200 hives 

 from his cellars a few days previous. He had win- 

 tered with trifling loss at that time, although I was 

 informed that he lost nearly one-third afterward 

 during a cold spell, and after the bees had gathered 

 natural pollen. His cellars were built in a very dry, 

 sandy place; tho earth in the bottoms was so dry 

 that it was dusty. 



I also visited the apiaries of J. II. Robertson, Pew- 

 aino, Mich., the same day, who had also just re- 

 moved his bees from bee cellar or cave. He had 

 some 400 colonies, which were in good shape. His 

 cellar was the reverse of Mr. Denjson's, as there was 

 ft considerable amount of water in t'Ue bottom, and 



