1876 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



165 



There is no ti-ouble about sawinj; large frames for 

 Biives, on Coraliined Power Go's machine as some ai>- 

 pear to tiiink, if tiie ma'cJiine and saws are kejit in 

 <?ood order. I have cut out over 3on sides for section 

 irames like the one sent j'ou, I'^xK-i, from half dried 

 cypress, in 'il'i minutes from the time tJie machine 

 started, and it is much more work than from white 

 l^iue. It would be very little work to cut out the pie- 

 •ces yours are made from. 



C. R. C'AKMX, Quincy, Floiida. 



Are Italian bees better honey gatherers than black 

 ?jees ? I have trie<.l both kiiids and find the blacks 

 ■Buch superior in every respect, with same treatment. 

 Therefore I have gone back to the old kind again. I 

 would be glad to pay juiy one c2'>,(-0 for a colony of 

 gnire Italian beas, if they will warrart them better 

 honey gatherers than mine, with same treatcient. I 

 have the tjniaby closed end frame hives. 



H. C. Gr.EEX, Independence, Ohio, Mar. 20th, 'T'O. 



Friend G. we have a neighbor who a few 

 .years ago, talked almost in the same strain ; 

 but not long ago, he said he thought he would 

 Jiardly care to keep bees, if he were confined 

 to the old black kind. We cannot tell where 

 your trouble is, but there is assuredly trouble 

 *5omewhere ; audtjour reckless offer, strength- 

 ens the idea, that }"ou are feeling stubborn 

 about it, for some reason. Do you suppose 

 the thousands who testify so differently, are 

 dishonest or have never tried both kinds ? 

 We have now in our apiarj-, one of the most 

 energetic colonies of common bees we have 

 ■ever seen, and are keeping them just to see 

 how they will compare with the Italians. In 

 the height of the apple bloom they seemed to 

 come pretty nearly up to the others, but when 

 ■clover and locust had just commenced, they 

 were loafing about home or trying to rob, 

 while the others were making a very fair day's 

 work. Again we have to keep picking the 

 moth worms out from under their quilt, while 

 the Italians never think of allowing such ver- 

 min about. Get some real Italians, newly 

 imported, not the yellow ones ; and you will 

 very soon be convinced — nay if candid, you 

 can be convinced iu one hour, by looking 

 through the hives iu any apiarj*. 



Mii. Editor:— In Vol. Ill, I told you I had made a 

 ciive packed with 3 in. of straw, the straw being next 

 the bees, (you thought there was no advantage ia such 

 hives) as you are now in favor of packing, I will tell 

 5"ou about it. It is three weeks ahead of all the rest, 

 iiilcd to overflowing with bees and honey from apple 

 blossoms. Drones were flying on the 20th. of May. 

 ?s o loes in wintering, no dwindling- in spring : it will 

 compare well with your packed one. But it don't have 

 to be packed and unpacked like yours, it beats any 

 thing I ever had in the bee line. I have wintered in 

 cellar and in pits, but never had one do as well as 

 this. Have made 5 more like this to use this season ; 

 the rest are doing usually well. Xo loss in wintering, 

 aor dwindling this spring. V. McBkide. 



Chardon, Ohio. June Ist. 1S7(>. 



Beee in good condition and working Jike little he- 

 roes. White clover beginning to blossom. Troubled 

 with a sprinkling of unsealed cells of full grown 

 brood in several hives. Geo. G, SCOTt. 



Dirbuque, Iowa. June 1st, 1S7C. 

 But we do not know why you should be 

 irouNcd, friend S. The bees know whether 

 the larvce should be .^eal over or not. and if 



they leave them unsealed, you may be sure 

 they are right about it. Perhaps they think 

 they do better thus during warm weather, 

 just as we let the children go barefoot during 

 the summer time. We notice this every sea- 

 son, and never thought it worth mentioning 

 until some one feared the}' were all dead when 

 found thus. If j"ou cannot take our word for 

 it, keep watch of the bareheaded ones and see 

 if they do not make just as good bees as any. 



I have a few hives of bees. I Iwught a patent two 

 years ago which I don't think worth much. There 

 are about Gt pieces of lumber in the hive. There are 

 two honey boxes on the top of the "homestead," S lit- 

 tle frames in the "Homestea-d," a wire screen at the 

 bottom, and under the screen is a moth trap. And 

 there are several tricks about the hive; enough to 

 trick me out oitiventy dollars. 



Bexjamix Gc'xn, Alton, Mo., March 1.5th, '76. 



Eggs ill 4 worker combs in section boxes in one hive. 

 The only eggs found in combs of that kind. Every hive 

 has part drone comb for guides in section frames, and eggs 

 are found in part of the drotie comb of e^ery h ive. 



C. R. C.'LELIX. 



P. S.— Part of the worker comb has some pollen in it, 

 and we find it in a few more cells of drone comb. 

 C. U. C, Quincy, Fla., June 8th, 1S7G. 



If I understand aright your great trouble North is win- 

 tering or springing ; so far I ha^e never known any troub- 

 le here. I now have hives as full of Ijees as tliey can be, 

 with from 10 to 15 combs of brood and no honey to gather. 

 Our season is over here by the time yours begins. Would 

 it not pay to ship bees Xorth after the season is over here, 

 leai-ing the combs here to build up again for our fall 

 yield, and perhaps shipping back in fall to be wintered ':" 

 3Iuck of our honey here is dark and does not sell as readi- 

 Ij- as lighter colored. The time in transit would not be 48 

 hours, and a car load without combs, in light boxes made 

 for the purpose, ought not to be expensive. See if you 

 can glean any thing from this. 



G. V.'. Gates, Bartlett, Tenn., June lOth, IS7G. 



The idea of wintering bees in the south, and 

 moving northward as fast as the yield of clov- 

 er honey demands it, we think may some time 

 lie made praelicable. At present the high 

 price, and difficulties of safe transportation, 

 are obstacles iu the way. Ii' one could have a 

 boat properly arranged, it seems if they might 

 follow some of our large rivers with a mov- 

 ing apiary as did the ancient Egyptians. It is 

 a fact that the honey crop moves gradually 

 from south to north ; and to illustrate, we 

 mention that by this mail we have with above 

 report, others from about Cincinnati, narrat- 

 ing astonishing j-ields, the flow being just at 

 its height, while with us here, the clover sea- 

 son has only just commenced. Who will 

 have the floating apiary '? Luckily the mat- 

 ter is entirely out of our power, or we might 

 waste another lot of money on it. No spring 

 scales will be needed, for the height of the 

 water mark on the boat, will indicate the 

 number of tons of honey. Just think of keep- 

 ing in the height of the clover season from 

 March until — can't we manage to work all the 

 way up to Greenland somehow ? 



ME. ROOT :— Put 13 colonies into ceUar. One died of 

 disease. One was too weak. One starved. Actually 

 starved like jours. Another had a drone laying queen. 

 Will never again attempt to winter a colony with a di"one 



