14 



GLEAXLN'GS IX BEE CULTURE. 



May 



V^j 





hesTT vmugiii irMi, pnce 7^ oeau 



of 



HASD CIBCULAK REP SAW. 



This machine i? for ripping boards s'nd pHnks of 

 hird r>T ?oft Inmber. into any width di*«ired It is 

 7u«t The Thin? for chaff hive inaking^. Price *.>•.(». 

 For further particulars send for circular of foot 

 power machinery. 



SISIDS or HONEY PLANTS. 



A brisk demand ha.s sprung up for these, and 

 wh-ther or not they r* ally pay. for h^neij a2'>nf. is a 

 riiesTioH up^n wh'ch I am not yet fully sstisfied. I 

 hive no doubt but ibat buckwheat. raT>e and alsike 

 «--;->ver. sometimes >ield honey enough t~> pay all 

 •»x:_>*»n^=es of cultivari n. aside from ser-d. hay. etc.: 

 ■feut T vi^rymuch duubt whether any "ne ever got 

 enoiighfrom mignonnette. m''>th*'-w"rt. catnip, etc., 

 tn T>av for the lab'">r of raising the cr>p. Xotwi'h- 

 =trnding all this. I believe in raising honey plants 

 ju-T for the fun of seeing the V «»es work on them, if 

 n iThin? else, and I have now got a patch of tumif**. 

 '*>even Top Turnips." in full bkibm. that are worth 

 to me a full S5.i>i bill, just on account of their 

 Wv.Tity. and bec-ause the t)^-* are humming over 

 thi^n so constantly, and in =ueH very great numbers. 



T have f'"«r vr^^rs had dreams of a honey farm, 

 wiih acres of flowers of different colors, blooming 

 f^ different seasons, and keeping The be«^ away 

 from the stores and groc-erif-s when we have a dry 

 sp"ll in the fall. At the pvesf^nt writing, this dream 

 tteems to bid fair to be realized, nnd if I do not suc- 

 '•'"ed in raisins mn= of honey. ' think I can at l*^.st 

 «-TipIy you with all kinds of honey plant seeds. 

 I am g'ling to have a dandelion bf>d. and if we oan- 

 To* r?ake them bear blossi">ms as iT^e as a lea-'mp. 

 — w- 11. 1 think. Then. T shaU have an fcre or two of 

 mammoth Russian sunflowers, and if nature does 

 noT =Tr.-y^b-'^dlv with all the cf>lors of the rainbow. 

 a=tV- "" - nelds c-omesuec-essively into bloom. 

 it w; -e there is no such thing as making 



her - y. At>riut 6 years ag' .. I planted 



nf^ri'- -,.••'' '■ai--ir.-«;>d trees on a piece of liV, acres. 

 !?Tid thovar*- n<^(w just l>'='8inning to bear bl'"»ssoms: 

 the =i£rht of th<^m when they first leave out in the 

 spring, is worth to me. well, all the speculation ever 

 ej->st mf- so far I think, and if I should live 'o see a 

 hons<» apiary— it is I'-i miles from our home, so you 

 sp-<i wf must have a house aniary. t'> have thf' hon- 

 ey saff from depredation— in full blast amid the 

 a?T*«ding tM->ughs. bending with honey, and roaring 

 With myriads of yellow banded Italians. — well. I 

 guess when that time comes I shall have faith in 



raising honey plants, for honey alone, if I have not 

 now. 



Alsikk Clover.— Can be sown almost any time, 

 but perhaps gives best results for seed, when sown 

 in April or May. About -t lbs. are required per 

 acre, and it does not blossom much, until the sec- 

 ond year. Its treatment and cultivation are much 

 the same as for common red clover, but the seed is 

 saved from the first crop. Fresh seed raised near 

 us. so that we know it is f --ee from dangerous seeds. 

 price per lb. 25c; per peck. ?:i.(50: per half b'-shel. 

 -<T.rti: per bushel, of 60 lbs.. J13.50. If wanted by 

 mail, add ISc per lb. for bag and postage. 



n.vsswooD. — Such poor success has attended all 

 •E-fforts so far as I can learn, in growing basswood 

 tree* f ron the seed. I d ■> not offer them for sale, 

 but would recommend the small trees as described 

 on page 3. 



Borage. — A strong, hardy, rapid growing plant. 

 b<=^iring a profusion of blue flowers. It may be sown 

 any titne. but will, perhaps, succeed best, at about 

 com planting time. As it axows talL and branches 

 o-,it considerably, it should have plenty of room. 

 I know that bees are very busv on it. almost all the 

 day lone, but I do not know how much honey an 

 ^cre of it would furnish. It is easily tried, because 

 it STOWS so readilv. Prices, same as for catnip. 



BtrcKWHEAT. — I think we shall have to regard 

 This as the safest investment we can m;ike for arti- 

 fioi-Al pasturage, although, in many localities, it 

 yields honey only occasionally. About 3 pecks per 

 acre a"^ usually sown, and it may be sown in April. 

 May. .Tune. July, or even August, but in the latter 

 month, it would furnish only blossoms for the bees, 

 and no seed. The best results for b<"ith honey and 

 seed are obtained by sowing in the latter part of 

 June. If you want much honey, you must have 

 E'ood soil. "VTe can furnish the common kind fo-^ 

 ^1.50 per bushel. .tOc per peck, or he per lb.: the 

 silver hull for S2..5rt per bushel, T-"c per peck, or lOe 

 per lb. If wanted by mail, add 18c for bag and 

 p>o stage. 



C\TXTP.— This has bf^n very much talked about, 

 and we have record of some experiments with on 

 sc^ or more, but if I am correct, no one has ever 

 yet seen a barrel of catnip honey. Still, some one 

 may raise catnip honey by the barrel, and make 

 money at it. If you wish to try, we can ftimi=h you 

 gotMj seed, that we have tested our«elve«. for?Oc per 

 o7_. or $2.00 per lb. : ISc per lb. extra, if wanted by 

 m-iil. 



Ci-ovet; — ^The be^t honey In th" world, nil things 

 considers d, is. without doiibt. that obtained from 

 white clover: but. unfortunately, there seems to be 

 a diflSculty in saving the seed, so it is generallv 

 allowed to grow spontaneon«ly. The nearest w- 

 can come to it. is the TThitp T>utch clover, and a« I 

 . have r>«»ve'' seen it grow. I (-nn tf»U you hut littb- 

 nbont it. T think we will all have to sow some seed 

 nt onr^. and sep how it i*. Price per lb., 60c. If 

 wontod i.rmail. add 1^ for baeand postajre. 



Sw-TFT Cr.ovER. AJJ^o C.\L,I.ET> >TET,r.ir>iT. — Same 

 P'ir'o !i« n^ove. Great things are claimed for thi'=. 

 >>ut T hnvt> not found the bees particularlv fond of 

 if. This T do know, it is awfullv hnrd work to pull 

 th'' roots ont of the garden, when they come where 

 you do not want them. 



DAxoTruoys. — I presume every body can get 

 dandelion seeds and roots without buyine them, 

 but for all that. I have almost as much faith in an 

 acre of cultivated dandelion", as In the same 

 arnount of <n-ound devoted to any other honoy 

 plnnt. Tour seed catalogues put the price at .tOc 

 per oz.. but It strikes me. I can set «ome of our 

 bovs and sirls to gather seed cheaper than that. 

 TVe shall see. 



MiGXOxvTrrTE.— This is a great faTortte with the 

 bee*, and also with those who are raising plants for 

 their b*^^: but. although we sell great quantities of 

 the seed for bee pasturage. I am not sure that any 

 one has erer made it pay in dollars and cents, for 

 the honey alone. It will pay. without any doubt, to 

 raise the seed, especially, if the price keeps up any 

 where near what it is now: but for honey alone — 

 who will demonstrate its value beyond doubt? The 

 tall varieties seem be*ft suited to the bees, but are 

 not as fragrant. It should be sown in the spring, 

 and as the seed is small, it should have fine clean 

 soil, and t>e covered lightly. This plant seems to 

 have a rare capacity for standing frost, and bees 

 may often be seen "busy upon it clear into Oct. I 

 should very much like to see an acre of it. on our 

 honev farm. The seed is 20c per oz.. or il.V\ p*>r 1^. 

 If wanted bv the lb., add 18c for iKistage. Parson's 



