742 



GLJiAKmGS IN B^E OULl'tJUE. 



i>EC. 



jumping at conclusions, T have taken years to watch 

 and investigate this characteristic, during which 

 time not a colony of these bees has ever suffered 

 from any cause, so far as we can discover, until I 

 am now compelled to accept the fact, although con- 

 trary to previous conceived ideas, that this strain of 

 bees possesses remarkable traits of hardiness that 1 

 never saw in any other bees. 



DESCRIPTION. 



The bees are three-banded; color, dark orange; ia 

 form they are more slender than Italians in general; 

 in movement they are active and rapid; in leaving 

 or returning to the hive they present a waspish or 

 bristling appearance, with wings widely spread and 

 highly elevated; are first-class comb-builders and 

 honey-gatherers. I have obtained a selected stock 

 of these bees, and have requeened a part of my 

 home apiary this season. I have arranged so as to 

 be able to produce queens of this strain another 

 season. The queens, like the workers, are a little 

 on the slender style,'but long of body; in color, a lit- 

 tle on the dark, being a light mahogany, yet they 

 are beauties. Perhaps their appearance is some- 

 what due to the care with which I breed them, 

 having grown all cells in a powerful colony; that is, 

 fed and kept right up to the swarming-point. I am 

 fully persuaded, that, to get the best results in 

 queen-rearing, we must exercise great care in the 

 production of the cells. 



Now, in conclusion, friend Root, what 8hould:;be 

 done? It seems to me, although we place the above 

 facts as prospective only, that there is a sufficient 

 probability in justifying us in the conclusion, that 

 this strain of bees should be utilized to the benefit 

 of bee-keepers, especially throughout the old bleak 

 regions of the North. And as Mr. Shirk is not a 

 practical bee-keeper, and therefore does not under- 

 stand queen-rearing, this labor, if done, will neces- 

 sarily devolve upon some one else; and as this 

 vicinity will be well supplied with this strain of 

 drone* by next season, it would be better to raise 

 the queens here. I have not bees enough to go into 

 the queen trade extensively, jet I could buy enough 

 in the spring to form my nuclei. 



Bloomdale, O., Nov. 19, 1883. R. B. Robbins. 



Friend R., this is, of course, a very impor- 

 tant matter to me ; and had the bees you men- 

 tion been brought from Japan or Africa, or, 

 perhaps, better still, Nova Scotia or Iceland, 

 1 should have faithi that they possess some 

 prominent desirable quality. As it is, I am 

 inclined to think the success you mention 

 was more accidental than because the bees 

 were especially different from any other bees. 

 Perhaps it is no more than fair to inform our 

 readers that friend R. proposes to follow 

 this article with an advertisement, and offer 

 queens for sale during the coming season. 

 Now, although I am sure, from the above 

 letter, that he is honest and conscientious in 

 the matter, he would have to be rather more 

 than human if he did not unconsciously get 

 to be a little biased in their favor when he 

 goes into the business of selling stock. An- 

 other thing : I have taken pains to test quite 

 a number of colonies that seemed to show re- 

 markable qualities, but I have not been sat- 

 isfied that their progeny had any very per- 

 ceptible advantage over the common run of 

 good Italians. Our red-clover queen, it is 

 true, seemed to give us a good many extra 



queens, but I am not sure they were much, 

 if any, above queens reared from any other 

 choice, queen. Now, then, friends, after this 

 word of counsel, I should be glad to see the 

 strain of bees possessed by friend R. fully 

 tested. — In regard to the matter of wintering, 

 I believe it is a common occurrence to have 

 particular stocks in almost every apiary that 

 winter safely year after year, and that, too, 

 with no extra protection. Sometimes this is 

 the rule only so long as the queen lasts. 

 Again, I have had reason to think the combs 

 the bees winter on, or some accidental pecu- 

 liarity of the hive, had something to do with 

 it. Also some accidental protection from the 

 wind, which the owner never thought of, may 

 have quite a marked influence on this result. 

 I am inclined to think something of this kind 

 is the case with the bees mentioned above, 

 although I may be mistaken. I suppose, of 

 course, the bees are good Italians. It seems 

 to me, also, that the queens should be fur- 

 nished at ahout the usual price, or a little 

 more, for any good queen-breeder could rear 

 a thousand queens or more without trouble, 

 from any particular queen. 



THE ORANtJIiATION OF HONEY. 



Aljkio a Splendid Report from Friend Pettlt, 

 of Belmont, Can. 



$1000 WORTH or HONEY FROM T3 COLONIES. 



^i^^^OW that my honey crop is disposed of , I send 

 Jr^l you my report for 1883. Fall of 1882 I went 

 ^' into winter quarters with 72 stocks. The 

 present season I disposed of 7542 lbs. of extracted 

 honey for S970 53. For use in the house, estimated 

 at 325 lbs, which will make ilOOO nicely. I go into 

 winter quarters now with 76 stocks. I had a large 

 quantity of late dark honey, which has reduced my 

 average price considerably. Inclosed you will find 

 a resolution and discussion on the granulation of 

 honey, clipped from the Toronto Gfobe of Sept. 21, 

 1883, which took place after you left the N. A. Con- 

 vention. The resolution was intended as an ed- 

 ucator of the public. We must not give up the bat- 

 tle until the people know the truth in this matter; 

 then as a class we will stand better before the 

 people, and the adulterated article will be forced to 

 take a back seat. 



GRANULATED HONEY. 



A resolution was prcRented by Mr. S. T. Pettit, 

 seconded by Mr. C. F. Muth, pledging the Associa- 

 tion t<i do h11 in its power to convince the public that 

 granulHted honey whs natural and wholesome. 



Mr. Pettit said that the lack of knowledge on this 

 sulijf-ct by the puhlic was a great drawback to the 

 business, and a direct inducement to unscrupulous 

 pnrties to adulterate the honey or get up some 

 mixture which the puhlic would accept as pure be- 

 cause it would not granulate. It was claimed by 

 some that honey could be put up so that It would 

 not granulate, but he doubted it. Certainly, pure 

 honey would graniilnte. 



Mr. Muth said bee-keepers knew very well that 

 pure honey would granulate, but the public did not 

 know it. It was necessary to educate the public on 

 this question. He had been offered a recipe by a 

 druggist, by which it was claimed honey could be 

 put up so it would not granulate. The druggist 

 wanted $5 or $10 for the recipe, but he (Mr. Muth) 

 (■aid he would not irive a five-cent pi. ce for it. If 

 the honey business was to be made a success. It 

 must be done by 8«^llin» the h'<ney in its pure and 

 natural state, and the public must learn that pure 

 honey would granulate. He knew, as a matter of 

 fact, that in France and Germany granulated honey 

 was preferred. 



