1878. 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTUKE. 



343 



CALIFORNIA. 



The honey season is over, after 100 days of ex- 

 tracting, arid we are siad of it. Atwood and myself 

 have taken 70,000 lbs. this season. We had 18S 

 stands in the spring, increased to 300, and made all 

 our combs for extracting, also for the new colonies. 

 Our best work was 3,300 lbs. in 6 hours, all capped. 

 R. W. has taken 45,000 lbs., and has 420 colonies. He 

 and Mr. A., my partner, are going to Europe. They 

 have in their care 150 tons; other parties are send- 

 ing by them— J. G. C, J. H., and others; there is no 

 market here. Quotations arc 5 to 6c in San Fran- 

 cisco. 1 think there has perhaps been 300 tons pro- 

 duced in this county, this year. I think our average 

 is far above anything ever done in California before; 

 we frequently took a ton a day. The best swarms 

 made lbs. per day, for 10 days. We use the L. hive, 

 10 frames below, and 8 above. 



Your friends, A. & K. 



Scenega, Ventura Co., Cal., Aug. 24th, '78. 



P. S.— Please insert no names, if published. K. 



We are just now getting lots of honey, but it sells 

 tor nothing. Yet it is a good thing to have in the 

 house. Wm.C. Grier, Lamar, Mo., Sept. 3, 1878. 



ONE TIER OP SECTIONS OVER THE BROOD. 



My bees are doing poorly, this year, only one or 

 two out of sixty filling an upper story. Two tiers of 

 lioxes above are too deep this year, and I hope you 

 will walk around the C. S., and evolve some way of 

 putting on one tier, without the expense of another 

 set of cases. I have tried two or three ways, and 

 don't find it yet. Buckwheat sections sell here for 

 12;4c.; clover sections 15c.; white ext'd IGc.; dark 

 cxt'd 8c. 



RIPENING TDIN HONEV. 



Freeborn and Hatch, of Hichland Co., I under- 

 stand, are candidates for "blasted hopes," having 

 400 or 500 stocks, with thin buckwheat honey, their 

 only stores. Now, if it were my case, I should re- 

 duce those 500 to 100, exti-aet that thin honey, and 

 make vinegar with it, and feed up on A sugar; I 

 think I would thus have 100 good stocks next May, 

 that, with the empty combs, would easily be in- 

 creased to 400. 11. L. Joiner. 



Wyoming, Wis., Sept., 2, 1878. 



Why, it is the easiest thing in the world, 

 friend J., to give the bees only one tier of 

 sections. Cut some strips of wood, or even 

 pasteboard, 3| inches wide by 14^ inches 

 long, and lay them across the bottoms of ths 

 upper tier of sections, and not a bee can get 

 into tlie up]ier tier. Only 4 of tjiese strips 

 will be needed to a hive, and when you want 

 to let the bees above, you have only to re- 

 move these pieces. To ])rit them in or take 

 tJiem out. tip the upper story partially on its 

 side, and then draw all the" frames of sec- 

 tions (all togetlier) out half way. When 

 fixed let them all slide down in their places 

 again, and wedge up as they were before. I 

 liave never meiitioned this, because I have 

 not been satisfied that it v»'as of enough ad- 

 vantage to give them one tier at a tinie. 



If your neighbor's bees are crowded into 

 so small a compass as to cover the combs 

 densely, I feel siu'e they will ripen and seal 

 the honey. Take a hive and remove half 

 the combs, and confine the bees on the other 

 lialf, by a division board, keeping them en- 

 tirely out of the vacant side, and see if the 

 lioney is not ripened. If you crowd a part 

 of them out doors, in hot Aveather, it will be 

 just right. 



instincts of the bee, it should be capable of being 

 readily adjusted to the wants of small colonies. If 

 a small swarm is put into a, large hive, they will be 

 unable to eonrcntratc their animal heat, so as to 

 work to the best advantage, and will often become 

 discouraged, and abandon their hive. If they are 

 put into a small hive, its limited dimensions will not 

 afford them suitable accommodations for inci-easo. 

 By means of my movable partition, my hive can, 

 in a few moments, be adapte<l to the wants of any 

 colony, however small ; and can, with equal facility, 

 be enlarged from time to time, or at once restored to 

 its full dimensions." 



This same partition, or dUision board, was pat- 

 ented by Mr. Langstroth, 25 years ago, and used by 

 him as long as he kept bees. 



I have no desire to injure Mr. Mitchell in any vray, 

 but I do think that the bee-keeping public should be 

 warned against his agents, who are threatening to 

 prosecute people, tor using an article upon which 

 the law will not sustain his patent, if he has one. 



D. A. McCOHD, Oxford, O., Sept. 10, 1878. 



P. S. lam happy to inform jou that Mr. Lang- 

 stroth's health is much improved, and I think he 

 will do something more yet for the bcnelit of bee- 

 keepers. D. A. M. 



The volume mentioned has long been 

 among our books, and the quotation is a cor- 

 rect one. I have not before mentioned it, 

 because it scarcely seemed worth while ; but, 

 if we are to have such complaints of black- 

 mailing as we have had lately, it may l)e a 

 good idea, after all. We shall all most hear- 

 tily rejoice to hear from Mr. L. once more, 

 even though it be only a few brief words. 



I am glad to say, there seems to be a pros- 

 pect of xMitcheirs doing Letter ; for he has 

 just sent our friend C. T. Smith, whom he 

 has owed so many years, 4 queens on the ao- 

 count. _^ 



Well, I never saw bees so cross as these hybrids 

 from the queen I bought of you. I have use for the 

 novjce smoker now. Wm. St. Maktz. 



Moonshine, Martinsville P. O., 111., Sept. 9, 1878. 



J'H. LANGSTROTH, ALSO SOMETHING ABOUT DIVISION 

 BOARDS. 



In a recent conversation v.'ith the Rev. L. L. Lang- 

 stroth, upon my referring to Mr. JNfitchell's selling 

 patents on the movable division board, Mr. Lang- 

 stroth handed me a book on the J live and lloncy Bee, 

 written by himself, in the year i853, and referred me 

 to page 97, from which I will give you an extract: 



"While the hive is of a size adapted to the natural 



FLORIDA. 



From the two hives bought of you in the spring, I 

 h:\ve never taken one ounce of honey; the bees 

 have eaten all there was when the hives were sent; 

 winter is approaching; would you feed? and what 

 food? 



I have successf nlly raised two beautiful queens, 

 and made two swarms from my first two hives. I 

 have not a drone now. How am I to get drones 

 when I want to raise a queen? 



In swarming time (spring*, if I go over my frames 

 and see that there arc no queen cells being made, is 

 it possible for me to avoid all natiual swarming and 

 just divide the swarm myeelf, when the hives get 

 too full? 



I have ?(('jx'*' of having some honey to eat next 

 spring. The queens 1 raised myself are much 

 larger, and of a much more golden yellow than their 

 mother, and their bees more gentle. 



G. W. Wolfe. 



Jacksonville, Fla., Aug. 31st, 1878. 



It is not at all strange that the bees have 

 eaten up till the honey they took with them 

 from Ohio, if they have found none in your 

 suimy land of Florida. Had they remained 

 here. I am sure they would have stored ai 

 least -5() lbs. apiece. 



I fear, my friend, you have not quite got 

 the run of the business yet. It is a ])retty 

 hard matter to get the bees to rear drones 

 when tliere are none. Heavy and constant 

 feeding for a considerable time is the only 

 way I know. You can prevent natural 

 swarming usually, but not always. I am 

 very glad to hear you can raise nicer queens 

 thttn we do, and sincerely hope you may 

 have some honey next year to eat. If you 

 do not look out, you will make a bad report 

 for Florida. See feeding and feeders in ABC. 



