SOS 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Dec. 



The impulse to swarm the pnst season was ver.v preat, 

 but we mana^eil to kf-^p down the rtuantity of naw 

 Nwarms to quite a moderate number, usiiiir the bees for 

 surplus instead of increase- But it takes some labor 

 •ind sometimes a considerable stock of paticnct . 



COMB MADE TO ORDER. 



Mr. GLEAJiixifS how do you like that r But mark ye. 

 We refund no money to dissatisfied piu'chasers. No sir Ve ! 

 We work in this way to jsct comb for guides, and can get 

 all we can use. Take a hive four or live frames larger 

 than the size you use, transfer your swarms to it, put in 

 a tight flttinii; division board letting it be H inch short so 

 1 he bees can jjass under it to the other department. Vut 

 licxes on the pai-t above the main hive, and bang in the 

 other side, frames two inches apart from centre to centre. 

 Xow if the hive is crowded with tees they will pass un- 

 der the division and build comb on the.se frames- But 

 the queen will not go through, neither will much pollen 

 iie stored in it. Every three days, if honty is plenty, 

 these combs can be removed, the licney extracted and 

 combs cut into strips for surplus. The beauty of this 

 comb foundation is they don't sag or stretch, but are O. K. 



Did I understand that you would like to have your bees 

 •-warm when fruit trees are in bloom r I am forced to 

 that conclusion by some remarks from you in C4leanings 

 Nome time back. 1 return all swarms that issue when 

 fruit trees are in blossom, and consider it the better way, 

 in my location. 



J. BniEE. Jackson, MicL. Nov. loth, 187fi. 



We do not know that we should care to Jiave 

 swarms during apple bloom, but we wish the 

 colonies strong enough to do so. Ti'n stocks 

 ready to swarm at this season, might jield 

 more profit than 100 readj' to swarm by the 

 middle of Juh' ; but if extracted honey were 

 wanted, we should try to have no swarming. 



It seems that you and Doolittle, friend B., 

 would get along without any occasion what- 

 ever, for fdn. ; we shall rejoice if you are cor- 

 rect, and will be glad to publish anything that 

 will help the matter along. As we dislike all 

 unnecessary machinery about the apiary, we 

 shall be very glad indeed, if natural comb can 

 be produced at a price that will render fdn. 

 unnecessary for comb honey ; but friend D., 

 who is now at our elbow, says he would by no 

 means think of having the bees do such work 

 when they are gathering white honey. 



THE r,ATE ADAM GRIMM. 



M, DAM Grimm was born in Germany, in the j^ear 

 Jr^^ IS'24. His lather kept a few hives of bees In 

 "~ which Adam took deep interest, and did not 

 rest satisfied till he himself became the owner of a 

 lew colonies. 



He emigrated to this country In 1849, settling at 

 Jefferson, Wis., on a farm where he remained until 

 tlie time of his death, which occured April 10th, 187G. 

 Soon after settling at Jeflerson, he obtained a few col- 

 onies of bees and was so successful with them, that at 

 a time when all other crops failed, his bees came to 

 the rescue and heli)ed him over the most critical 

 time of his life. 



fn 1863 he had increased his apiary to 60 stocks of 

 lilnck bees in all sorts of box hives, and in 18G4 he 

 commenced to use frame hives and transferred all his 

 bees into them. In the same vear— 18fU— he botight 



his first Italians and as rapidly as possible Italianized 

 his apiary, and then sold large numbers of Italian 

 qeeens all over the countr.v. 



About 18(j9 or 1870 he imported, personally, 100 Ital- 

 ian queens, CO of which were alive on their arrival at 

 New York. Of this number he introduced 40 in his 

 own apiaries. He increased his stock regardless of 

 cost, every year, but had larger returns especially in 

 late years both from the sale of honey and bees. 

 Queen rearing he thought unprofitable. 



He had an intense enthusiasm in the business and 

 worked so iiard in the apiary as probably to shorten 

 his life. His success was the cause of many others 

 engaging in the business. 



He established a bank at Jettcrson, of which he was 

 cashier, (his bees having provided the capital) but 

 during the honey harvest he left the bank to the care 

 of employees and went from one apiary to the other, 

 personally supervising all that was done. 



ADAM GKIMM. 



We shall not soon forget two or three pleasant vis- 

 its which we made at his home with his interesting 

 family. He told us that his wife remonstrated with 

 him for working so hard, telling him that lie now had 

 a competence, and could give up his bees witli the 

 laborious care of so many, but he seemed to think the 

 returns were large for the amount of labor, making 

 the work still a pleasure, although no longer a neces- 

 sitj'. He reached the number of 1,400 colonies, and 

 on one of our visits when he had nearly 1000 colonies. 

 he said, with a half comical expression, "What would 

 I do if all should die in the winter ?'' And then the 

 comical look giving way to one of German determina- 

 tion, he said, "I would buy some more, and with so 

 many hives full of empty comb I would show you 

 how soon I would fill them up again." 



His daughters, Katie and Maggie, (since married) 

 were his able and faithful assistants, and the son, 

 George, since his father's death has assumed the 

 principal care of the bees, for which he is well fitted 

 by his previous training.— i^)w?i A. B. J. 



[By following tlie writings of our departed friend in 

 the A. B. J., and in the back volumes of Gle.^nino.s 

 one can get a better idea of his peculiar virtues, and 

 of his strong love for oee cnlture, than perhaps from 

 any other source. Wc at one time sent him the money 

 for some Italian ((ueens on Jlonday morning, and re- 

 ceived them in fine order on Saturday of the same 

 week, and tbis all the way from ^.Vis. In all his deal- 

 ings, we believe he was ahvavs thus prompt, besides 

 being lair and liberal.) 



