46 FIFTY YEAKS AMONG THE BEES 



Sweet clover may have a little to do with it, and also hearts- 

 ease. If the yield of fall honey keeps on the increase, it will 

 hardly do to say, there is <»nly one source of honey — ^white clo- 

 ver. The season of 1902 emphasized the change in seasons. 

 During the proper time%£or white clover, the bees would have 

 stai-ved if it had not been that they were fed about a thousand 

 pounds of sugar. Clover grew well, but blossoms were scarce. 

 The bloom, however, kept increasing, and during the latter part 

 of August and the first part, of September a number of colo- 

 nies stored fifty pounds and more each. How much of the 

 honey was from clover I cannot tell. As late as the last half of 

 October I saw bees busy on both red and white clover. 



TAKING BEES OUT OF CELLAR. 



The difficulty of wintering bees, at the North, is not en- 

 tirely without its compensations. I am almost willing to meet 

 some losses, for the sake of the sharp interest with which I look 

 forward to the time of taking the bees out of the cellar in the 

 spring. I live on a place of 37 acres, about a mile from the 

 railroad station, and on ray way down town a number of soft- 

 maple trees are growing. How eagerly I watch for the first 

 bursting of the buds ! and when the red of the blossom actually 

 begins to push forth, with what a thrill of pleasure I say, "The 

 bees can get out. on the first good day!" 



In former years I did sometimes bring out the bees earlier, 

 because they seemed so uneasy, but I doubt, if I gained any- 

 thing by it. I have known years when a cold, freezing time 

 came on at the time of maple bloom and I did not take out the 

 bees for a good many days, but generally I go by the blooming 

 of the soft maples. So I watch the thermometer and the clouds, 

 and usually in a day or two there comes a morning with tlie 

 sun shining, and the mercury at 4.5 or 50 degrees, with the pros- 

 pect of going a good deal higher through the day. 



TAKING OUT WITH A BUSH. 



This is one of the times when I want outside help, for 

 carrying two or three hundred colonies of bees out of the cel- 

 lar is not very light work if it be done with a rush ; &nd I waiit 



