260 
THE RURAL. NEW-YORKEK 
February 20 : 
A START IN BEE* EEPING. 
M ANY times I have « rmined to go 
into bee-keejiing. Y iere would you 
advise one to get t' supplies? At 
what time of the year should one begin, 
and about how much money ought one 
to spend, to run as a side line a fairly 
paying bee-keeping business successfully? 
Clayton, Ill. E. c. s. 
.Since one can begin bee-keeping upon 
as modest a scale as he desires, the ex¬ 
pense need not be great. Some money 
will be required, however, and about the 
minimum in the way of expenditures will 
be given. The first necessity is a hive 
and this should be of modern standard 
type, so that when additions are made all 
will be of uniform design. The hive al¬ 
most universally used, and certainly equal 
to any for all around purposes, is known 
as the 10-frame dovetailed hive with Hoff¬ 
man frames. With this 'hive m-ust be 
purchased a bottom board, cover, and at 
least one super, or upper chamber in 
which the surplus honey is to be stored, 
and it must be furnished with frames and 
sections for the brood comb and surplus 
honey and comb foundation for “start¬ 
ers.” Such a hive, complete, may be 
purchased from the manufacturers, un¬ 
painted and in the flat, for about $3. The 
next necessity is a colony of bees for the 
hive. This is best purchased from some 
reliable bee-keeper who will take the 
empty, but furnished, hive in the Spring 
and install a new swarm. A “first” 
swarm should be bargained for. and, if 
of black bees, should be obtained for 
from onr to dollars. Black bo eg may 
be purchased -^per than Italians, and 
are easily Ii...ianized later. 
In caring for the bees, one will need a 
smoker, and this, in medium size, will 
cost 85 cents. A hive tool for opening 
the hive, prying apart frames, etc., while 
not a necessity, is a good investment at 
•10 cents. Next, a veil for the bee-keeper 
will be needed and may be improvised 
from mosquito bar or purchased at from 
30 cents up, according to the material. 
Gloves are also needed but any old pair 
of light leather gloves will answer the 
purpose; after a time, they will be large¬ 
ly dispensed with. These comprise the 
absolute necessities, and five or six dol¬ 
lars should settle the bill. As the apiary 
grows, more hives will be needed and 
Italian queens for Italianizing the colon¬ 
ies will cost from 75 cents up, accord¬ 
ing to quality and the season in which 
they are purchased. A good new swarm, 
installed in the hive in early June or 
before, should, in a good season, nearly, 
or quite, pay for this outfit in the first 
season. Don’t infer from this however, 
that a dozen swarms would pay for a 
dozen outfits: while such an inference 
would be accurate mathematically, it 
would probably fail practically. 
The best time to begin bee-keeping is 
in the Spring, and the sooner after fruit 
bloom appears the better. A swarm of 
bees in May is worth a load of bay; in 
June, a silver spoon; and in July, not 
worth a fly; runs the old adage. This is 
nearly enough correct for the beginner; 
when he becomes an expert he may make 
a July swarm buy two loads of hay. 
M. B. D. 
A COMPLETE FERTILIZER. 
I NOTE in your editorials, page 134, that 
in speaking of some methods to force 
the wheat crop to an extra yield you 
make certain recommendations. You end 
by saying that “Even very poor soil or 
where the crop made a poor start a com¬ 
plete fertilizer will pay better than the 
nitrogen alone.” What is meant by a 
complete fertilizer? Would it be wise to 
use a light coating of hen manure which 
had been well mixed with the litter from 
the floors of the coops? If so, when 
should it be applied, during the Winter 
or in early .Spring? L. A. s. 
Schenectady, N. Y. 
There are three elements of plant food 
which are absolutely essential to plant 
growth. Nitrogen is an element which 
lias to do particularly with the rapid 
growth of the plant Phosphoric acid has 
for its function the production of what 
(responds to the bones in a plant, the 
eed. the skin of the fruit, the husk of 
the grain, and in fact the solid frame, 
stem or wood of the free or vine. Potash 
has another function. It is found largely 
in the stem of a plant, but not very 
much in the fruit or grain; it exists in 
the sap, helps in the formation of starch, 
and if we make a comparison with the 
human body, potash would be more like 
those elements in the blood -which aid 
digestion and stimulate growth. Potash 
too has much to do with the color of 
fruit or grain, and with the formation 
of starch. A complete fertilizer is one 
which contains all three of these ele¬ 
ments. nitrogen, potash and phosphoric 
acid in fair proportion. The nitrogen 
alone put on the wheat crop would stimu¬ 
late a quick growth of stem and leaf, 
make larger straw and to some extent 
give more grain. Phosphoric acid and 
potash would help, hut they are slower 
in their action, and unless the soil is 
very deficient, it would hardly pay to 
use them in the Spring for the current 
season’s crop. Better have used them 
last Fall. With regard to your hen ma¬ 
nure this is largely valuable for its nitro¬ 
gen. A fair quantity of it scattered over 
the grain would certainly increase the 
growth and yield. We should prefer to 
put it on in the Spring just at about 
the time when the grain was starting up. 
We like to use the manure on corn 
in preference to other crops. The corn 
usually makes best use of such mauure. 
If you are plowing sod for the corn we 
should spread the manure first and then 
plow all of it under. As a rule corn re¬ 
sponds less to lime than most other 
crops. We should use lime when seed¬ 
ing to grass or small grain. Use the fer¬ 
tilizer on the potatoes. That low ground 
when well broken up ought to make a 
good situation for onions, celery or other 
vegetables. It will have to be limed. Our j 
plan would be to put it in corn the first 
year and in this way break it well up 
and make it fit—then follow another sea¬ 
son with onions or other vegetables. It 
would give very hard work to keep a crop 
of onions clean on such soil without first 
growing some hoed crop like corn. Such 
a crop will clean the ground and fit it 
for the smaller seeds. 
“I remember one picture that brought 
tears to my eyes.” "A pathetic subject, 
I presume?” “No, sir; it was a fruit 
painting. I t\as sitting close under it 
when it dropped on my head.”—Credit 
Lost. 
Lady Passenger (up in aeroplane and 
nervous) : “Hadn't we better descend 
now, something might go wrong with the i 
engine?’* Aviator: "Don’t worry, miss. ; 
No engine can prevent ns making good j 
time on the return trip.”—Boston Tran¬ 
script. 
GALVANIZED 
Write for Catalog *C* and price delivered your station. 
GRIFFIN LUMBER CO., Boxl99, Hudson Falls. New York 
ROOFING 
S2." 7 Per Sq. 
r 
E. Frank Coe Fertilizers 
1QC7 THE BUSINESS FARMERS’ STANDARD 1 C 
_ lOO/ FOR OVER FIFTY-FIVE YEARS 
YOUR OPPORTUNITY 
The editor of one of our leading agricultural papers writes us under 
date of January 12th, 1915, as follows 
‘I am doing all I can to induce farmers to plant grain crops this year. 
“Grain is very high and it is going higher. Wheat is going to $2.00 
per bushel and other grains will share in the advance. Wheat costs $2.50 
per 100 pounds now, and pound for pound oats cost as much. 
“It .seems to me that the eastern farmer’s salvation is to buy plant 
food and grow Com, Wheat, Oats, Barley and Buckwheat. 
“Last fall 1 doubled my acreage of winter wheat and this spring 1 
shall triple the acreage of oats. I managed to produce 40 bushels of 
wheat to the acre, and sold the straw at $17.00 per ton in the bam.” 
tt^pJEttpntng g»un 
NEW YORK, JANUARY 30, 1915 
SEES $2 WHEAT 
I N TE N DAYS 
Chicagoan Say* That Is Senti¬ 
ment on Market There. 
The developments in the wheat situa¬ 
tion to-day were ; The prediction that 
the commodity would soon touch $2 a 
bushel ; the introduction to a House 
committee of the Manahan resolution 
for a Congressional investigation into 
the fluctuation of price, and the virtual 
decision of Chicago bakers to raise the 
price of bread to 6 cents a loaf. Wheat 
went to $1.50^j to-day shortly after the 
opening on the Chicago Exchange. 
The price of wheat will go to $2 a 
bushel soon, according to S. M. Hast¬ 
ings, vice-president of the Illinois Man¬ 
ufacturing Association. 
Chicago, Jan. 30. — May wheat sold 
on the local Board of Trade to-day for 
$1.52 per bushel. At one time July 
wheat sold at $1.35 per bushel. 
May corn closed at 82 cents and 
July corn at 833^ cents per bushel, both 
new records for the crop. Oats, also, 
set. new high season records by closing 
at cents per bushel for May and 
58 y 2 cents for July options. 
V 
IT WILL PAY YOU TO TOP DRESS YOUR WHEAT 
Be sure that you buy 
E. Frank Coe Fertilizers 
They are Available Plant Foods that more than meet the most 
exacting requirements, giving plump, sound, full heads of grain and vigorous, 
healthy straw. 
Eastern users of E. Frank Coe Fertilizers are raising 40 bushels of 
wheat to the acre. The average for the United States for three years is 
14n> bushels to the acre. 
THE OPPORTUNITY IS YOURS! WILL YOU MAKE THE MOST OF IT ? 
Write us and mention The Rural New-Yorker. 
THE COE-MORTIMER COMPANY, 51 Chambers St., N.Y 
GROUND 
LIME 
STONE 
$1.50 BULK-BAGS $2.50 
WRITE FOR FREIGHT RATES 
ROCK-CUT STONE CO. 
531 Union Bldg., Syracuse, N. Y. 
It tells the facts about a system of soil cultivation founded on plain 
common sense knowledge of soils and plants. 
It covers many important subjects, preparing seed bed, giving seed a 
quick start, cultivation of growing crops, saving moisture in dry seasons, 1 
preventing blowing of soil, etc. 
It is illustrated with actual photographs of work done by 
THE... M 
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trade mark 
The wheels of this machine are scientifically built for crushing 
lumps, firming loose soils, and stirring the surface like a cultivator— 
three things that are necessary for making and keeping the seed bed in 
* 'good condition. 
With the plow and harrow it makes a complete outfit. Jold by 
dealers everywhere, and backed by a guarantee. 
THE L. C. DUNHAM CO., Berea, O. 
