100 



SEVENTH ANNUAL. REPORT OF THE 



stocks which would not take feed from 

 the top at all, and by giving them a 

 bottom feeder, in practically every 

 case, in twenty-four hours, no matter 

 what the quantity was, they emptied 

 the feeder. The natural way to take 

 stores is from down up, and when 

 that syrup was put on it was warm; 

 it excited the whole stock at once; it 

 helped to warm the brood chamber, 

 and they could go down in cooler 

 weather than by taking the food from 

 up down. I would consider that was 

 a very heavy loss. I have done ex- 

 perimenting, but I am not a very good 

 hand at rememibering figures, and un- 

 less I have the data with me I do not 

 like to venture upon giving it. But, 

 in order 1:o have the least waste in 

 feeding I believe the time to do it is 

 just about when the brood chamber is 

 empty in the fall of the year, and giv- 

 ing them the food from -below, and 

 not using as much water as is given 

 there, but using two parts of sugar to 

 about one of water, and they will take 

 it up better and quicker. I 'have a 

 bottom feeder, which I got from a 

 gentleman in New York state, Mr. 

 Betsinger; it is a tin pan inside of 

 practically what would be a comb 

 honey super; it has divisions in it 

 jnade of wire cloth that separators 

 are made from, and it is the length 

 and width of the hive. 



Mr. Pratt: It is a very simple matter 

 to have the foundation built into the 

 brood chamber by simply driving off 

 the ODOttom bar three-eighths of an inch 

 until the comibs are constructed; after 

 they are drawn down in shape, turn 

 the comb over and drive the bar on 

 again. 



Mr. France: Then I would ask that 

 our bee-keepers in "Wisconsin get a 

 frame that has a better bottom bar. 



Prof. Surface: I do not think that I 

 ought to challenge the experience of 

 others in bee-keeping, but it is my 

 opinion from what I have seen in this 

 locality that we are using too much 

 sugar when we use two to one of wa- 

 ter. There is considerable danger of 

 granulation and filling the cells in 

 such a way that it is not taken out 

 when it crystallizes. I have some that 

 was so fed and it was crystallized and 

 we had trouble with it. I have fed 

 very satisfactorily with equal parts of 

 sugar and water. I was better satis- 

 fied with that than any other propor- 

 tion I used. I should like to know 

 what experience others have had in 



feeding stronger than equal parts of 

 sugar and water. 



Mr. Holterman: We put tartaric 

 acid in. I know that it is a practice 

 which has been used and abandoned. 

 If you take a recent number of the 

 British Bee Journal you will find the 

 statement of some professor which 

 tells you, first of all, that by the use of 

 tartaric acid you do away with the 

 danger of granulation. It has another 

 action, and that is, it turns the cane 

 sugar to fruit sugar; and it has a third 

 action, it tends to act as an antiseptic; 

 and may tend, where there are only a 

 ■t&w cells of fouT brood, to destroy 

 these germs. Therefore I consider the 

 use of tartaric acid in feeding sugar 

 syrup at any time is desirable. 



Prof. Surface: How much tartaric 

 acid to ten or one hundred pounds of 

 sugar ? 



Mr. Holterman: I will not give it to 

 you now, but you will see it in my next 

 notes in "Gleanings." It is something 

 like a teaspoonful to fifteen pounds, 

 and you must dissolve the tartaric 

 acid before you put it into the syrup. 

 It has to boil after you put in the tar- 

 taric acid. 



Mr. Cook: Is it necessary to boil the 

 syrup ? 



Mr. Holterman: I don't want to get 

 into any flght. I think it is desirable 

 to use the tartaric acid. If you use 

 it and want to get the proper results 

 you require to boil it; but it is not nec- 

 essary to make syrup for feeding by 

 boiling it. 



Mr. DeGraw: Last fall I used up 

 about four barrels of sugar; and in 

 134 pounds of sugar, to fill the kettle, 

 I used about 66 pounds of water, and 

 I took four teaspoonfuls of tartaric 

 acid mixed up in a cup full of syrup 

 and then mixed it with the 134 pounds 

 of sugar syrup. 



The President: I might say in re- 

 sponding to Prof. Surface, that the 

 formula which is given is very much 

 like my own. I have fed barrels of 

 sugar. I use about two parts of sugar 

 to one of water. With Mr. Holterman, 

 to fifteen pounds of sugar I would add 

 about half a teaspoonful of tartaric 

 acid dissolved in enough (water to fill 

 the teaspoon. The instant it is dropped 

 or poured into the boiling mass it 

 chemlc^llv unites and prevents . all 

 crystaillization afterwards. I have 

 never had an instance of crystal! iza- 

 tlhn. 



Mr. Selser: I fed last year in the 

 ,1 



