Thf: Canadian Horticulturist. 



AMATEUR BEE-KEEPIX(}. 



HAVPv selected the above topic as the basis of a few remarks on the 

 loney industry of Ontario. If an amateur be one who.takes up and 

 [)rosecutes the study of his subject, because his tastes lead him in 

 that direction, regardless of the substantial profits he may reap 

 from it, then I fear there are but few true amateurs in bee-keeping. 

 Exaggerated notions of the profits derived from bees, and the erroneous opinions 

 entertained by many, that bees " work for nothing and board themselves," lead 

 more men to engage in bee-keeping than does the desire to cultivate a closer 

 acquaintance with the life and habits of the bee. Still, the interior economy of 

 a bee-hive is so wonderful, the instinctive powers and social habits of the insect 

 so remarkable, that ordinary people become enamoured of the calling, and, in a 

 measure, prosecute it for the pleasure and information it affords. Most practical 

 bee-keepers are more or less amateurs, and like their calling for the pleasure it 

 brings with it, which goes far to compensate them for hopes occasionally defer- 

 red, or a stinging resentment of their untimely interference with the domestic 

 concerns of their pets. 



A dozen years ago bee-keeping was in its infancy here and but few under- 

 stood the subject. To-day there are hundreds of people throughout the province 

 who have little to learn of the life history of bees, or of the theory and practice 

 of their management. A dozen years ago honey was considered a luxury and 

 could only be bought in drug stores. To-day it finds a place in every well regu- 

 lated grocery, and is with many people a daily article of food. A dozen years 

 ago a few hundred pounds of honey was considered a large gathering. To-day 

 there are hundreds of men throughout the country, who annually harvest tons of 

 it. A dozen years ago its price precluded its common use. To-day it may be 

 bought for a little more than the cost of good syrup. Such has been the increase 

 in apicultural knowledge, and what that knowledge has produced in the last de- 

 cade, that we sometimes wonder what it will result in twenty years hence, for people 

 are constantly joining the ranks of those engaged in the honey industry, whose 

 possibilities can only be known when the necessary force to fully develop it is 



employed. 



R. McKxiGHT, 



07i'en Sound, Aug. nth. 



The Prince Albert is reported from the Geneva Experiment Station as an 

 excellent red currant, with distinct dark green foliage. The fruit stems are extra 

 long, and the fruit is of fair size. The fruit ripens about three weeks later than 

 either F'ay's Prolific or Cherry, thus lengthening the season about six weeks, as 

 the berries hang a long time on the bushes before they become unfit for use. 



