January  2§,  1896. 
JOURNAL  OP  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
85 
spy 
HP',  UUF  irFFPFPl 
$ 
ill./  X3I-/J-/  IVI/JC/l  J-/XY. 
•'!  -  1  -  i  -  i  -  1  -  1  -  1  -T-~l 
APIARIAN  NOTES. 
HINTS  FROM  EXPERIENCE. 
( Continued  from  page  63.) 
In  my  last  notes  I  mentioned  Mr.  S.  Bevan  Fox’s  huge  super 
of  7U  lbs.  weight,  but  twenty  years  or  more  before  that  Mr.  Baird, 
now  of  Carron  Lodge,  Falkirk,  was  at  work  producing  his  hundred¬ 
weight  supers  on  the  two  queens  in  one  hive  system,  paragons  of 
beauty  and  purity,  but  too  large  for  handling  or  selling.  The  art 
of  supering  is  simple  and  easily  understood,  but  often  not  carried 
out  as  it  ought  to  be.  The  practised  eye  can  tell  almost  to  a  minute 
when  hives  are  ready  for  superiDg,  and  if  they  arrive  at  that  point 
at  the  longest  day  it  is  opportune.  I  use  thin  adapting  boards, 
admitting  the  bees  by  the  side  openings  only.  This  allows  more 
bees  to  go  afield  for  honey  ;  the  purity  of  the  supers  is  preserved, 
much  extra  labour  to  the  bees  and  nasty  work  to  the  bee-keeper 
avoided,  than  when  excluder  zinc  is  used.  The  adapting  board 
preserves  the  tops  of  the  frames  in  a  cleanly  state,  and  facilitates 
the  lifting  of  the  supers  en  ma^seii  a  trap  is  used.  The  con¬ 
struction  can  be  made  to  admit  the  bees  to  the  crown  of  the  hive, 
or  lead  them  outside  above  the  main  entrance.  Cone  escapes,  as 
they  are  termed,  do  not  work  satisfactorily  at  all  times. 
The  strength  of  the  hive  determines  whether  one  or  two  supers 
should  be  given,  and  in  the  event  of  fine  weather,  and  the  honey 
flow  continuing,  I  pile  the  empty  ones  over  those  nearly  finished. 
There  is  much  to  lose  and  nothing  to  be  gained  by  interposing 
them,  which  I  will  endeavour  to  show.  Our  supers  are  not 
darkened  by  the  vitiated  air  of  the  bees  as  when  zinc  is  used,  nor 
in  consequence  of  the  crown  being  close,  do  the  bees  in  the  supers 
prepare  the  cells  for  brood  as  they  do  when  open  It  sometimes 
happens  that  bees  cluster  out  frequently  before  a  change  when  the 
air  is  sultry  and  the  honey  most  plentiful ;  yet  the  bees  lie  idle. 
On  these  occasions  the  bee-keeper  should  have  his  wits  about  him, 
and  must  study  the  weather.  Now  suppose  a  hive  could  carry  in 
10  lbs.  a  day  and  you  will  realise  the  loss  by  letting  them  loiter. 
When  my  bees  show  distress  for  want  of  room  by  the  hive 
being  too  small  or  for  want  of  super  room,  which  I  know  by  their 
loud  humming,  and  this  occurring  at  such  times  as  alluded  to 
above,  I  give  them  every  chance  to  finish  the  supers  already  on, 
adding  sections  or  small  supers  in  proportion  to  their  wants.  If 
occasion  require  I  give  gradually  till  a  change  comes,  as  by  that 
system  the  bees  are  kept  at  work  during  the  time  of  the  greatest 
honey  flow. 
As  a  rule  feeding  back  does  not  pay,  and  this  holds  good  when 
the  unfinished  ones  are  in  the  majority.  But  when  they  are  few 
in  number,  and  the  bee-keeper  has  no  honey  but  that  from  white 
combs,  it  does  pay  to  feed  back,  which  is  best  done  by  driven  bees. 
Put  one  or  more  colonies  into  an  undersized  hive,  crowding  them 
as  much  as  possible,  letting  them  remain  in  that  state  for  about  a 
day,  or  even  more.  Now  put  sections  or  supers  on  this  hive  a  little 
before  sunset,  by  which  time  the  bees  will  have  their  wax  pockets 
filled,  and  be  ready  to  begin  sealing.  Have  the  very  finest  honey 
you  can  procure,  little  diluted  with  water,  to  the  consistency  of 
nectar  in  the  flowers,  as  the  bees  gather  it.  Feed  constantly  with 
under  feeders,  keeping  the  supers  warmly  covered.  A  hive  such 
as  I  have  in  “my  eye  ”  will  finish  to  perfection  100  lbs.  in  a  week. 
After  all  I  have  said,  there  are  times  when  the  bee-keeper  may  find 
it  to  his  advantage  to  deviate  from  the  true  course,  but  it  must  be 
with  the  utmost  care. — A  Lanarkshire  Bee-keeper. 
NOTES  ON  BEES. 
At  the  present  time,  when  so  many  bee-keepers  are  making 
arrangements  for  another  season,  it  may  be  an  advantage  to  refer 
to  this  interesting  pastime,  examine  any  notes,  mental  or  other¬ 
wise,  made  during  the  busy  season,  and  endeavour  to  improve  as 
far  as  possible  in  the  future.  Mistakes  have  probably  been  made 
in  the  management  of  certain  stocks.  Some  may  have  been  supered 
too  early,  others  too  late  ;  but  from  whatever  cause  let  us  try  to 
make  less  errors  during  the  coming  season.  The  secret  of  being  a 
successful  bee-keeper  is  to  do  the  right  thing  at  the  right  time, 
and,  as  “  L.  B.-K.”  lately  remarked,  “  The  whole  question  of 
successfully  wintering  bees  lies  in  keeping  them  with  ample  stores 
in  a  perfectly  dry  state.”  If  we  all  did  this  there  would  be  fewer 
complaints  as  to  the  want  of  success  in  bee  management. 
Profitable  Bee-keeping. 
When  one  has  a  hobby  it  is  much  more  satisfactory  to  the 
majority  of  people  if  they  can  make  it  pay.  The  weather,  how¬ 
ever,  is  a  great  factor  in  honey  production,  and  unfortunately  we 
have  more  bad  seasons  than  good  ones.  What  is  even  more 
annoying  to  a  bee-keeper,  after  all  the  care,  trouble,  and  expense,  is 
to  find  that  during  the  honey  flow  his  hives  are  full  and  overflowing 
with  bees,  and  yet  no  harvest  is  collected.  Day  after  day  the  weather 
is  dull  and  showery,  and  when  the  fine  bright  weather  comes  it  is 
too  late.  Bee-keepers  require  a  great  amount  of  patience  ;  still, 
taking  one  year  with  another,  bees  may  be  kept  at  a  profit  in  this 
country.  But  the  fancy  prices  obtained  a  few  years  ago  cannot  be 
obtained  now  except  amongst  a  few  local  retail  customers  who  are 
not  particular  as  to  price  if  honey  is  of  a  superior  quality. 
It  should  be  the  aim  of  all  bee-keepers  to  endeavour  to  create  a 
local  trade  for  their  produce,  putting  it  up  neatly  in  saleable  form. 
If  in  sections,  although  not  necessary,  it  is  an  advantage  to  glaze 
them,  and  for  run  honey,  for  retail  purposes,  I  prefer  the  1  lb. 
screw  top  glass  jar.  These,  of  English  manufacture,  can  now  be 
obtained  much  cheaper  than  formerly,  and  if  neatly  labelled  with 
the  producer’s  own  label,  it  will  be  a  mark  of  genuineness  which 
will  be  appreciated  by  the  general  public.  During  the  past  few 
years  bee-keeping  in  this  country  has  made  considerable  headway, 
and  tons  of  honey  are  now  gathered  where  previously  hundred¬ 
weights  were  obtained.  It  behoves  all  bee-keepers,  and  others 
interested  in  the  business,  to  use  their  best  endeavours  to  create  a 
liking  for  the  home-produced  article.  The  foreigner  has  a  great 
advantage  iu  the  weather,  but  cannot  compete  with  the  British 
honey  for  quality  ;  still  vast  quantities  are  imported  into  this 
country,  as  from  a  return  furnished  by  the  Statistical  Office,  H.M. 
Customs,  “the  total  value  of  honey  imported  into  this  country 
during  1895  was  £41,302.”  Some  of  this  is  doubtless  sold  by 
unprincipled  dealers  as  English,  as  owing  to  the  low  price  at  which 
it  can  be  purchased  in  bulk  a  much  greater  profit  is  made  out  of  it 
than  would  be  the  case  with  English  honey. — An  English 
Bee-keeper. 
Wide  versus  Narrow  Entrances. 
On  page  42  “An  English  Bee-keeper,”  in  reply  to  my  letter  of 
January  2nd  says,  “  It  is  interesting  to  learn  from  ‘  A  Howdensbire  Bee¬ 
keeper  ’  that  he  approves  of  bottom  ventilation,  and  that  we  are  both 
working  on  the  same  principle.”  1  fail  to  see  that  the  principle  is  the 
same.  To  my  mind  it  is  very  different.  My  hives  with  perforated  zinc 
floors,  and  the  entrances  1  >nch  wide,  must  be  warmer  than  hives  with 
solid  floors  and  entrances  from  6  to  8  inches  in  width.  My  hives  with 
ventilating  floors  wintered  on  eighteen  frames  far  better  than  standard 
hives  on  ten  frames  with  solid  floors.  A  ventilating  floor  is  a  safety 
valve  to  any  hive,  both  as  regards  wintering  and  transit.  I  believe  a 
strong  hive  would  winter  if  nised  half  an  inch  from  the  floor  board. 
But  it  is  the  dry  warm  cosy  hives  in  which  most  progress  in  breeding  is 
made,  and  in  such  breediug  is  now  going  on.  It  is  interesting  to  see 
that  “  An  English  Bee-keeper”  now  recommends  an  inch  wide  entrance 
for  hives  with  ventilating  floors,  for  he  says  on  November  28th,  1895, 
page  520,  “  Some  of  my  hives  have  ventilated  floor  boards,  others  have 
an  eke  4  inches  in  depth  placed  under  the  body  of  the  hive,  but  all  have 
their  entrances  fully  open.”  This  letter  is  not  in  the  spirit  of  carping 
criticism,  for  I  am  an  anxious  inquirer  iuto  the  best  methods  of  wintering 
bees.  I  read  the  articles  of  “  A.  E.  B.”  with  pleasure  and  profit,  but 
cannot  see  eye  to  eye  with  him  in  this  matter. — A  Howdenshire 
Bee-keeper. 
TRADE  CATALOGUES  RECEIVED. 
J.  Carter  &  Co.,  237,  High  Holborn,  W.C .—Specialities. 
Daniels  Bros.,  Norwich.—  Guide  for  Amateur  Gardeners. 
B.  R.  Davis,  Yeovil,  Somerset. — Begonias  with  Separate  Coloured 
Illustration. 
Fisher,  Son,  &  Sibray,  Limited,  Sheffield.— Seed  Catalogue. 
Fotheringham  &  King,  Dumfries. — Seeds. 
Hogg  &  Wood,  Coldstream,  N.B. — General  List  of  Garden  Seeds. 
John  Jefferies  &  Sons,  Cirencester. — Seed  Catalogue. 
A.  Robinson,  lA,  Bishopsgate  Street  Without,  E.C.— Seeds. 
William  Rumsey,  Waltham  Cross. — Catalogue  of  Seeds. 
T.  Sibbald,  Market  Place,  Bishop  Auckland. — Seeds. 
B.  Soddy,  243,  Walworth  Road,  London. — Seeds. 
W.  H.  Titt,  24,  Thames  Street,  Windsor.— Seeds. 
Vilmorin,  Andrieux&  Co.,  Paris.— Seed  Catalogue. 
GARDENERS’  CHARITABLE  AND  PROVIDENT 
INSTITUTIONS. 
The  Gardeners’  Royal  Benevolent  Institution.— Secretary, 
Mr.  G.  J.  Ingram,  50,  Parliament  Street,  London,  W.C. 
United  Horticultural  Benefit  and  Provident  Society.— 
Secretary ,  Mr.  W.  Collins,  9,  Martindale  Road,  Balham,  London,  S.W. 
Royal  Gardeners’  Orphan  Fund.— Secretary,  Mr.  A.  F.  Barron, 
Royal  Horticultural  Society’s  Gardens,  Chiswick,  London,  W. 
