Ttwrn SMERicsN mmw johrhki,. 



535 



CORREt 



BEE-PASTURAGE. 



Season, Sweet Clover, Cliapiiian 

 Honey-Plant, etc. 



Written for the ^men'«in Bee Journal 

 BY JAMES A. GREEN. 



The present season in this locality 

 has not been one to encourage the apiar- 

 ist who hoped for at least an ordinarily 

 good yield after last year's failure. 



Basswood yielded reasonably well for 

 about six days, but there is so litUe 

 basswood about here now, that by itself 

 it does not amount to much. It was in 

 bloom from June 30 to July 12, but 

 yielded little except between July 2 and 

 July 8. 



Previous to basswood the bees had 

 brought in nothing except a little very 

 poor stuff, probably honey dew. White 

 clover yielded nothing until about July 

 27, when the bees began to work on it 

 somewhat. Sweet clover also began to 

 yield honey at about the same date, 

 and since then there has been a very 

 fair honey-flow. We may get quite a 

 crop of white honey yet. 



The prospect is excellent for a good 

 fall yield from heart's-ease, of which 

 there is a great deal. 



Value ortbe Cbapman Honey-Plant. 



On July 16 the Chapman honey-plant 

 came into bloom. 1 had been watching 

 closely for the first blossom, but the 

 bees found it before I did, and evidently 

 appreciated it. 



For some days, from two to five bees 

 could be found almost all the while on 

 every fresh blossom, but since sweet 

 clover began to yield, it has been rather 

 neglected. 



Its period of bloom is evidently 

 almost over. Only a few small heads 

 remain to blossom. The individual 

 flowerets yield honey only a short time. 

 Judging from my slight experience with 

 it, I should say that its value as a 

 honey-producing plant has been over- 

 estimated. That the bees work on it 

 freely does not prove that it is valuable. 

 I could find more bees on motherwort 

 and catnip, on the same area of ground 

 that it occupied. In a more favorable 

 season it might show to better advan- 

 tage. I tried the experiment of tying 

 Eaper over some of the heads, but the 

 oney did not become visible. 



These plants are growing in a rich, 

 loamy soil. They are about Uve feet 

 high. A single plant in clay soil did 

 not grow so large, nor bear as many 

 blossoms. I now have young plants 

 growing in a variety of soils in order to 

 learn its adaptability. Nearly a fourth 

 of the plants were killed last winter by 

 being " heaved " out by the frost. The 

 plant has at least one serious enemy — 

 two, I think. The first is a light, green 

 worm, beginning its ravages when 

 about half an inch long, but growing to 

 an inch and a half. This eats the sub- 

 stance of the immature flower-head. 

 At one time there was a worm on 

 nearly every head. 



When this pest had been destroyed 

 after careful search, several times re- 

 peated, a new trouble appeared. The 

 flower-stem just below the head would 

 be eaten halt way off, causing the head 

 to wither and die. No other place was 

 attacked, and I was unable to discover 

 the enemy. I do not think, though, 

 that it was the worm that had been de- 

 vouring the heads. A brown, striped 

 worm bored into some of the stalks, but 

 did not do much damage. 



Considering these enemies to the 

 plant, and the fact that it must be cul- 

 tivated one year, during which year it 

 yields no honey, while it is useless for 

 anything but honey, it would seem ad- 

 visable not to plant it to any extent 

 until further careful experiment has 

 proved its value. 



I am inclined to think that we will 

 find it more profitable to establish more 

 apiaries, than to attempt to increase 

 the resources of the home apiary, by 

 planting anything that will not pay 

 aside from the honey it yields. 



I am also inclined to believe that it 

 will never be found profitable to plant 

 anything solely for honey, that requires 

 cultivation or occupies land useful for 

 other purposes. To scatter the seeds of 

 such plants as sweet clover in waste 

 places, and let them take care of them- 

 selves thereafter, will pay well, but be- 

 yond this, the real profits of planting 

 for honey are apt to be exceedingly 

 small. 



Dayton, 111., July 31, 1888. 



OUR APIARY. 



What and How the Bees are 

 Doings — Sweet Clover, ete. 



Written for the Western Plowman 



BY C. II. DIBBEKN. 



The honey-flow, though long delayed, 



Sut in a very welcome appearance about 

 uly 1, and since then the bees have 

 been working early and late, and even 

 in the rain. Last month I was some- 

 what discouraged by my inability to get 

 the bees to breed up to strong colonies, 

 by the time for the honey harvest which 

 I confidently expected by the middle of 

 June ; but it seems the bees knew bet- 

 ter. At any rate they were on hand at 

 the right time, and right busily have 

 they improved the time. The prospect 

 now is a cheering one for the bee- 

 keeper, who has his "tubs right side 

 up." The season is certainly a peculiar 

 one for bees. All through May and 

 June there was great scarcity of honey, 

 the poor bees not being able to get more 

 than was required tor their urgent 

 necessities. 



On June 12 I hived a strong swarm 

 on empty comb, and supposed of course 

 all would be right. What was my sur- 

 prise when 3 days later they swarmed 

 out. Feeling qiiite certain that there 

 must be something wrong with the hive 

 I proceeded to open it. and was surprised 

 to find not a drop of honey in it. They 

 were literally on the verge of starva- 

 tion. Such a thing I had never known 

 before. I supplied a frame of honey 



and brood and returned the swarm, and 

 that satisfied them. 



We have now had abundant rains, the 

 young white clover plants are growing 

 finely and will probably furnish a good 

 bloom all through August, so that the 

 usual honey-dearth will not occur this 

 year, or be of but short duration. Then, 

 too, weeds that furnish the fall pastur- 

 age are growing everywhere, and pros- 

 pects are for rather weedy cornfields, 

 which means business for the bees. 

 Taken altogether, we, the bees and 

 bee-keepers are " all right." 



Sweet Clover VIelds Well. 



My three-acrepatch of sweet clover 

 is now in full bloom and on a pleasant 

 day it is a sight to behold. The bees 

 are on it from early morning till dark 

 puts an end to their labors. Last night 

 I watched them for full half an hour. 

 They were coming from this clover 

 patch in a perfect stream. By hun- 

 dreds, thousands, and ten thousands, 

 laden with the nectar of this little sweet 

 clover field, and yet there are profes- 

 sional bee-keepers that say that it don't 

 pay to plant for honey. My Chapman 

 honey-plants are just coming into 

 bloom. To-day they were only some 

 six or eight of the little flowerets out 

 on one of the balls ; but the bees had 

 already found it, as an Italian or two 

 were constantly hovering over it. 



Prevention of S^varmlng. 



Last season I tried some experiments 

 to prevent bees from swarming. It is 

 well known by bee-keepers that if this 

 could be certainly accomplished with- 

 out too much care and labor, a great 

 problem would be solved. Well, last 

 season bees did not swarm, and nothing 

 was determined. I tried the same ex- 

 periments again this year, and must 

 own up to an entire failure. The exper- 

 iments consisted of two kinds. One 

 was simply a box, about 6 inches deep, 

 without top or bottom, but filled in with 

 boards about half an inch apart, grid- 

 iron fashion, with an entrance for the 

 bees at the lower front end. The hive 

 containing the bees, which is also with- 

 out top or bottom, was now put on this 

 " non-swarming bottom," and the bees 

 compelled to march up and down the 

 boards placed in this bottom. 



The theory was that this bottom 

 ■would furnish plenty of air, prevent 

 the bees from becoming crowded, and 

 take away their desire to swarm. 

 Everything went well; they worked 

 nicely did not lay out, but swarmed on 

 July 1. 



Another plan was, to use one of my 

 new hives, but filling every alternate 

 comb with a board, and the other 

 frames with narrow strips of founda- 

 tion. My idea was, that a strong col- 

 ony, placed on a bottom like that, would 

 have plenty of room, could build comb 

 at their leisure, and would naturally 

 forget to swarm. I was pretty confident 

 this plan would work, and to give the 

 matter a more severe test. I prepared a 

 second bottom and doubled up two col- 

 onies and put on that, thinking that if 

 that stood the test, I had accomplished 

 my object. This, too, appeared to 

 work nicely, the bees commencing work 

 promptly in the sections, and I was be- 



