262 



THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW. 



Now for the third essential : When bees 

 are supposed to be in a tree seventy-five 

 or a hundred feet from the ground, 

 great care is necessary to see them with 

 the naked eye; and some experience is 

 necessary to make sure they are bees 

 when seen. Never examine the body of 

 the tree, but get the tree top between you 

 and the sun and simply gaze through it 

 into space. If you see insects flitting 

 about the branches you may suspect they 

 are bees; and if they move regularly, as 

 though they meant business, you may be 

 sure your suspicions are correct. 



Crowei<I-, Tenn., May 24, 1S99. 



HONEY DEW AND BEE HUNTING. 



Some Points as to the Origin of the Former 

 and the Prosecution of the Latter. 



J. O. SHEARMAN. 



JTT HE "spirit moves me" to make some 

 -»- comment on Mr. McKni ght's excel- 

 lent explanation of the cause of honey 

 dew, which seems a little incomplete at 

 the finish. 



Honey dew, in this latitude, at least, is 

 secreted only when there has been a rapiil 

 deyelopement of vegetable growth (a 

 "growing time") followed by a sudden 

 change of temperature; such as cool 

 nights, etc., causing arrested develop- 

 ment. As soon as the conditions change 

 back to normal, and everything is "hot 

 and booming" again, the honey dew disap- 

 pears — lice or no lice. Does that indicate 

 inseda impediinenta as a prime cause .'' 

 Please excuse the big "I" in the cau.se of 

 seience, and accept my experiences. In 

 an experience of thirty years in and near 

 this location, I have known three heavy 

 "flows" or secretions of honey dew; and 

 each time it was followed by a heavy loss 

 of bees. 189S was the most profuse, and 

 was followed by the worst effect of anj' 



previous year. It struck the bitternut 

 hickory this time; and just here allow me 

 to observe the same atmospheric condi- 

 tions do not seem to effect all plants in 

 the same way at the same time; owing, 

 perhaps, to a different stage of develope- 

 ment, or hardihood. "There are many 

 things twixt heaven and earth, my 

 Horatio, not ever dreiDiit'd of in your 

 philosophy" — nor mine either. This is 

 beyond our knovvled^^e. We do know 

 the effect, and can study into some of the 

 causes, but, practically, I suppose a good 

 thing to do would be to extract every- 

 thing from the brood chamber; leave noth- 

 ing for physic. This plant juice is very 

 laxative, even when a small quantity is 

 mixed with the honey. This may ex- 

 plain why some of my bees had dys- 

 entery early and others were not affected 

 till near spring. They had honey gath- 

 ered later, near the cluster, and did not 

 get too the outside and ends of the combs 

 till the best was used up. Last year hon- 

 ey dew came in June, just in the white 

 clover flow, and tainted it all. We were 

 having a fair flow of nectar with warm 

 damp nights, then came a rain with sud- 

 den cold for four nights in succession. 

 The bees neglected the clover (proba- 

 bly it did not secrete ) and fairly roared 

 on the bitter nuts, all over them, clear to 

 their tops, for half the forenoon or more; 

 and then again a little towards night, 

 only to begin again next morning where 

 they left off. No aphides were in sight. 

 There were aphides in plenty on a white- 

 wood tree for two weeks or more, but no 

 bees about them. Perhaps they were not 

 the right kind to Cook. (Editor, you can 

 expunge this last remark if it is improper 

 It was intended as a joke. ) 



Some sharp tongue may ask why I did 

 not try extracting the juice, when I had 

 had former experiences with it. I would 

 answer, I had enough else to do, with 80 to 

 100 colonies, and haying coming on, so I 

 took the risk as I did before and general- 

 ly came out with enough bees any wa}-. 



In 1880 the honey dew came on oak, 

 and even xvheat stubble; but I presume 



