Vol. XI. 



SEPT. 1, 1883. 



No. 9. 



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NOTES FROM THE BANNER APIARY, 



No. 46. 



POOR HONEY SEASON. 



flHIS has been about the poorest honey season 

 we have had since I have been in the business. 

 — The spring was iate and cold, the summer was 

 cold and rainy, and the fall promi&es to be cold and 

 perhaps dry. Well, we have the satisfaction of 

 knowing that not a stone has been left unturned, 

 and not an ounce of honey has been lost from neg- 

 lect, or from lack of hives, sections, fdn., or fixtures 

 of any kiad. When the season is over, I will tell 

 you what we have done. 



THE FOUNTAIN PUMP 



is an instrument I should not think of doing with- 

 out, especially where natural swarming is allowed. 

 We have saved at least two swarms with ours this 

 season, besides "controlling" several more. We 

 keep two large tin pails of water standing near the 

 shop door, and the pump hanging near by, and thus 

 are always ready for business. 



CLOTHES-BASKETS FOR HIVING SWARMS. 



We have two of the 2.5-cent splint clothes-baskets, 

 lined with cotton cloth, and furnished with a burlap 

 cover sewed fast at one side, and I would ask for 

 nothing better in which to shake off clustering 

 swarms. The hive Is placed upon the stand that it 

 is to occupy, the bees shaken into the basket, the 

 cover "flopped" over, the basket carried to the 

 hive, the bees shaken to the end of the basket by 

 "chucking" it upon the ground, the cover turned 

 back, the bees shaken down in front of the hives, 

 and the job is done. 



N.VTURAL SWARMING PREFERRED. 



After having seen the ease with which bees can be 

 managed when allowed to swarm naturally, the en- 

 ergy with which they work, and the excellent results 

 that are obtained, i shall never, no, ncccr, go back 

 to artificial swarming; but I don't want any 



QUEENS WITH CLIPPED WINGS, 



as the few that we had of that kind gave us more 

 trouble than all the others. In the first place, we 

 have the queens to find and catch; but this, how- 

 ever, is the smallest of the bother; the bees roam 

 around a long time, and sometimes finally cluster; 

 and if atother swarm comes out they are sure to 

 join it. When the bees do come back they often go 

 " piling " into the wrong hive, or perhaps hiccs; and 

 if they do " catch on " to the proper hive, instead of 

 going in they often cluster all over the outside of 

 it. Sometimes, after the queen has been allowed to 

 run in she comes out again, thinking perhaps that 

 she hasn't " swarmed " yet. In my experience, a 

 swarm having a queen undipped will cluster, and 

 can be hived, and be at work in that " whooping," 

 " zipping," go-ahead style, in just about the same 

 time that it takes a swarm with a clipped queen to 

 make up its mind, sullenly and doggedly, to go back 

 home. I presume that a swarm with a clipped queen 

 feels very much the same as would a picnic party 

 whose lunch-basket had been stolen, and, as a con- 

 sequence, they had to come back and not have any 

 picnic. The following is from friend Doolittle: 



INTRODUCING VIRGIN QUEENS. 



I have just read your article on Alley's book, 

 friend H., in Aug. Gleanings, and note what you 

 say about introducing virgin queens. Now. won't 

 you tell us, in Sept. Gleanings, very minutely, just 

 how you introduce those virgin queens as soon as 



