178 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST 
[Mat, 
Bee Notes for May. 
BY L. C. ROOT. 
The success of the beekeeper for the season will largely 
depend upon his properly conducting the operations of 
the present month Those who read these “ Notes ” are 
aware that I differ with most writers as to stimulating 
early breeding. 1 speak chiefly from experience gained 
in Central New York, and my advice is especially ap¬ 
plicable to similar climaies. Those in warmer or in 
colder localities must time their operations according to 
the difference in the seasons. 
With ns the Soft Maple blossoms about May first. 
This I find the most suitable time to remove bees from 
their winter quarters. As soon as they are placed upon 
thdir summer stands and have had a flight, honey will 
be uncapped and removed to the center combs. The 
queen will at once begin to deposit eggs, and a general 
movement will be made towards rapid increase. The 
beekeeper should be prompt to aid, in all possible ways, 
the securing of the large force necessary to gather the 
stores of honey which will be afforded, as the season 
advances. If the stock is reasonably populous and has 
a good queen, proper food and a good degree of warmth 
are tho essentials to its rapid increase. If the number 
of combs to each colony was limited as dirocted in April, 
supply each hive with additional combs, as the strength 
of the swarm demands. Sometimes, in the best swarms, 
nice clean combs may be placed in the center of the 
cluster when the queen will occupy them more readily; 
but take care not to injure the swarm by spreading the 
brood too rapidly. As brood is now being extensively 
reared, large quantities of honey are consumed, and 
care must be taken that the supply is not exhausted. 
During this month, in many localities, the Yellow Wil¬ 
low, and Sugar Maple, will furnish sufficient honey to 
aid largely in the increase The general bloom of fruit 
will closely follow the yield from these, which often 
affords a rich harvest, and brood-rearing will go on rapid 
ly. Following the fruit blossoms and preceding White 
Clover, there will be a period in many localities when 
little honey will be gathered. Breeding may have gone 
on up to this point to such an extent, with so great a 
consumption of honey, that the supply of food may now 
be entirely exhausted, the result of which is more dis¬ 
astrous than beginners can appreciate. Breeding will 
not only be discontinued, but large quantities of im¬ 
mature brood will die for want of food, and be removed 
from the cells. If at any time this scarcity occurs, feed¬ 
ing is absolutely necessary. To sum up for this month: 
Do not remove bees from the cellar so early that the 
weather will be likely to hinder continued breeding. 
When once started, see that the entrance is small, that 
the warmth of the hive is retained, and that there is 
always a supply of food. Add empty combs, but only 
so fast as the strength of the colony requires. Never 
add more combs than the bees will occupy, as it in¬ 
creases the space that must be kept warm, which is not 
only unnecessary but harmful. 
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS. 
Feeding Bees to Stimulate Breeding.— “ In the 
spring shall I feed colonies with syrup that have a good 
supply of sealed honey ?”_“If at no other time, is it 
necessary to feed colonies having sealed honey, during 
the scarcity between apple blossoms and white clover?” 
....“Are weak colonies with an abundance of sealed 
honey benefited by feeding syrup?”_“To stimulate 
breeding shall I uncap unsealed honey ?”.. . .These are 
very practical questions. While I am an advocate of 
Judicious feeding, if done under the direction of an ex¬ 
perienced operator, yet there are so many chances of 
failure, if improperly conducted, that I hesitate to ad¬ 
vise the average beginner to practice it under the above 
mentioned circumstances. 
Strengthening Weak Colonies. —“To strengthen a 
weak colony, or one that does not work in the boxes 
during honey gathering, will it be safe and a benefit to 
remove it to the stand of a stronger one, and thus ex¬ 
change them?” .. .When bees are gathering honey very 
rapidly I have practised this'with success. If honey is 
notgathered plentifully, it would be preferable to remove 
cards of brood from the stronger stocks, and exchange 
them for empty combs from the weaker ones. 
At What Age to Destroy Queens.—“Do you kill 
your queens when they are three years old ?”_“ Shall 
I not leave our queens just as they are, when by the 
presence of brood I know she is present ?”... .As a rule 
we do not rely, upon a queen after the third season. Un¬ 
less a close record is kept of the different colonies, it 
wii! be difficult to ascertain the exact age of all the 
queen-'. If we have a choice queen, we do not destroy 
her until we see signs of deficiency. Such queens as 
prove themselves prolific by a good quantity of brood, 
we would prefer to leave undisturbed. 
Glassing Honey Boxes.— “Shall we put the glass in 
boxes filled with honey, as soon as removed from the 
hives, or not until time to send it to market?”... .For 
many reasons it is preferable to wait until ready to ship. 
Swarms in Hives with Comb Foundation.—“C. W 
N.,” asks, “ In hiving a natural swarm in a hive filled 
with comb-foundation, would you put the bees directly 
into such a hive, or gather them first in a common box 
hive and transfer them in the evening?". ..Hivethe 
bees in an empty hive just like the one containing the 
frames of comb-foundation. Then place the hive con¬ 
taining the foundation over the one containing the bees, 
and they will pass up into it, when the lower hive may 
be removed. This is preferable to waiting until evening 
and disturbing the bees a second time. If hived in this 
manner early in the day, a fine start will be made at 
comb-building. Comb foundation used for this purpose 
should have wires incorporated with it to prevent sagging. 
The Weeklies’ “ Agricultural Column.” 
—Tho importance and the popularity of Agriculture in 
this pre-eminently agricultural country, is recognized by 
the newspaper press generally, by a maintenance of an 
“ Agricultural Column.” As a rule, thes^columns are a 
positive injury to the interest they would compliment, or 
even try to benefit, from the fact that those who edit—or 
rather “scissor” the contents, are not fitted by experi 
ence and education to do their work well. There are, if 
possible, more quacks among professed agricultural 
writers, than among medical practitioners, and these 
ambitious gentry have the faculty of setting forth their 
ideas, their whims, their crude theories, in a language 
and style that make them appear very plausible. Such 
items are quite as likely to go the rounds of the “Agri¬ 
cultural Column,” as the cautious, careful teachings of 
well informed, experienced, practical men. There are, 
however, exceptions to this general sweeping charge 
against the so-called “Agricultural Columns” of the 
weekly press, and the number of exceptions is increasing. 
First, are those who make up such columns, not from 
the usual floating deadwood or light wood, but only make 
their selections from the few agricultural journals of un¬ 
doubted reliable and standard character. A few others 
go to the expense of securing the aid of men of acknowl¬ 
edged study and reliability to editor provide material for 
such columns.—The above remarks were suggested for 
the moment, by noticing the series of articles on “Recent 
Developments on Dairying,” by F. D. Curtis, Sec’y of 
the N. Y. Dairymen’s Association, which are being issued 
from week to week in the “Northern Christian Advo¬ 
cate,” of Syracuse, N. Y., whose agricultural, as well as 
other columns, are really edited with care and not at ran¬ 
dom, in the easy way, with “scissors and paste.” 
The Corn Crop.— The value of a corn crop cannot 
be fairly estimated by taking into the account the grain 
and fodder produced. It should be looked upon as a fal¬ 
low crop, furnishing the opportunity for the thorough 
pulverization of the soil and the extermination of weeds 
in the labor required for promoting its full growth and 
development, while the raw manures that, can safely be 
used will have an influence upon the soil that, the other 
more sensitive cereals will in their turn profit by. The 
manner in which manure should be applied will be de¬ 
termined by its condition and the economical disposition 
of the labor required in hauling and spreading. 
The New York Horticultural Society is 
showing signs of renewed life in several directions. Its 
Monthly Exhibition, held on April 6th last, was so attrac¬ 
tive that the room was so crowded as to suggest the need 
of a larger place in which to hold future monthly shows. 
We have recently received a copy of the essay read by 
Peter Henderson at the March meeting, on “ Horticultur¬ 
al Progress,” especially as relates to New York City. 
This interesting sketch is prefaced by a list of the officers 
and members of the Society, and all is produced in a 
style of such exquisite neatness that indicates rare good 
taste on the part of some one. We would again remind 
our friends that these exhibitions are held on the first 
Tuesdayin each month, at 2 o’clock p.m. ; all are welcome. 
“Stagger Weed.”— A Virginia correspondent 
writes that many horses and cattle die from eating a 
plant popularly known in his locality as “ Stagger-weed.” 
lie sends a specimen which will, we think, soon flower, 
when we shall be able to determine what it is with cer¬ 
tainty. Our correspondent resides in Tazewell Co., and 
the object of this note is to ask if a plant poisonous to 
domestic animals is known as “ Stagger-weed ” in other 
parts of the State. We are aware that there is a “ Stag¬ 
ger-hush,” but this is an herb that dies down at the ap¬ 
proach of winter and comes up tender and succulent in 
spring. Any information concerning the effects and an¬ 
tidotes, if any are known or suggested, will be welcome. 
Increase In Value.— Good Doct. Torrey in his 
lectures,as an illustration of the increase in value im¬ 
parted to raw material by the processes of manufacture, 
used to compare the value of a pound of crude steel with 
a pound of the hair-springs to watches. We have bow 
forgotten the figureB he gave, but were reminded of tho 
incident by an item now going the rounds of the papers, 
which begins with 75 cents worth of iron ore. This 
amount of ore is said to yield $5.50 worth of bar iron, 
which will be worth $10 made into horse-shoes. Con¬ 
verted into steel it will make $6 ,800 worth of needles, 
$200,000 worth of watch-springs, $400,000 worth of hair* 
springs, and if made info pallet arbors (which are parts 
of a watch) its value would be $2,500,000, 
A Great Waste. —It is the practice of many dairy 
farmers to kill the calves at a very early age, long before 
they can be—or should be, of any use as rood. This Is a 
source of loss, which, take the country through, is some¬ 
thing enormous. An animal already grown to the weight 
of 60 to 80 pounds, and which might, through a few weeks 
of proper feeding, he made to yield a' large amount of 
food, is killed, and all that is saved is the skin 1 There 
are cases when it is the best economy to get rid of the 
calves so soon as they come, but these are exceptional, sod 
in the ordinary dairy of a farm practising mixed hus¬ 
bandry, there is seldom, if ever, a call for such an un¬ 
timely and unprofitable removal of the calves. It will 
pay well in many cases to grow the calves until they are 
six months old, and thus produce an animal weighing 
500 pounds, and of the best quality, commanding a ready 
sale in the markets. 
Improvement Through tho males. —The 
only practical method of the means that is within the 
reach of the average farmer, of raising the standard of a 
herd of cattle, flock of sheep, etc., is through pure blooded 
males. A male of this character may be bred to a con¬ 
siderable number of females, and all of the offspring will 
be brought more than half way up from the level of tho 
dam to that of the sire. The sire being pure bred, will 
have the greater power to fix his characteristics upon the 
offspring. If the qualities of the Ayrshire are desired, it 
is not necessary to buy a full herd of Ayrshires, but in¬ 
stead, a single pure blooded hull, and with ordinary 
stock a good herd may be produced, which will, year by 
year, by careful selection, become more and more desir¬ 
able, and thus, in (lie course of a short time, a very valu¬ 
able stock may be built up at a comparatively small cost. 
T3ie Massachusetts Horticultural So¬ 
ciety continues its annual offer of special prizes for the 
best essays on various horticultural subjects. For 1880 a 
prize of $50 is offer d “For the Best Essay upon any 
Special Action of Fertilizers, illustrated by Accurate Ex- 
p’laments.” A prize of $25 “ For the Best E-say upou 
Flowers for the Home, with lists of the Best Animals, 
Herbaceous Perennials, and ‘Bedding Plants,’ and a 
comparison of the merits of these classes.” These prizes 
are designed to bring out new and important facts upon 
tlie subjects chosen. “Competition is open to all.” 
Further information can be obtained by addressing the 
Secretary, Robert Manning, Boston, Mass. 
Extreme Cold Hindu red by Seeds.—Some 
recent experiments by DcCandolle and Pictet, of Ge¬ 
neva, are of interest as showing the great cold which 
seeds may endure without injury. Mustard and cabbage 
seeds and grains of wheat, without previous artificial 
drying, were enclosed in sealed tubes and subjected to a 
temperature of 50 to 80 degrees below zero Centigrade (60 
to 100 of our ordinary Farenheit thermometer), for from 
2 to 6 hours. These seeds afterwards germinated prompt¬ 
ly and with a vigor equal to those not thus treated. 
Suggestions 'offered to Farmers in a recent 
“ Bulletin ” issued monthly from the rooms of the Now 
Hampshire Board of Agriculture: “ Pursue a higher and 
more economical line of farming, by adopting a better 
system of breeding and feeding domestic animals ; by a 
more thorough preparation of the soil, and increased 
tillage; by adapting products to the markets, or to eco¬ 
nomical consumption ; by the uso of machinery in all 
farm operations; by increasing the manure heap, and 
its better care and application, supplementing it by the 
use of chemicals and specific fertilizers as required by 
soil and crops ; by a judicious rotation, and the saloof 
crops in the most condensed form ; in short, strive to 
secure the highest results from tho least expenditure.’' 
Vegetation Retains Soluble Matter in 
the Soil.— The April number of the “American Jour¬ 
nal of Science” relates the following: “Soil three 
inches deep was placed in two glazed earthenware pans 
17 inches in diameter, on July 21; f ttr seeds of white 
clover were sown in one, the other being left blank. The 
pans were equally exposed until October 4, when tho 
drainage water was collected mid analyzed ; that from the 
clover soil contained 4S.1 grains of solid matter per gal¬ 
lon. the other 220 grains. The author concludes (hat 
rain removes much more matter from an lincropped than & 
cropped soil.” We need more such experiments as these. 
