It was with much pleasure we noticed, in last Thursday's Associated Press dispatches, evidences of Prof. Vennor's reformation. He undoubtedly has become convinced that the realization of the eleven feet of snow attributed to his prophecies, would not only cause much suffering and privation with the majority of humanity, but work serious and permanent injury to the country itself. He has relented, or probably been bribed by Mr. McColm's liberal offer in the Bee Journal of March 2, page 69, and now promises us better weather in the future. His latest prediction is a reasonably early, warm, dry spring, cool, pleasant summer, and late, dry fall, followed by a mild and pleasant winter. Of course, he promises abundant crops, and a satisfactory and remunerative harvest.
But without any further reference to Prof. Vennor, and without laying any claim to the “spirit of prophecy,” we believe the coming season will be a very satisfactory one to those bee-keepers who may be prepared to profit by it, and who have the industry and intelligence to make the most of it. The winter of 1879-80 was very mild and open, the scarcity of snow left the earth's surface exposed alike to the freezing temperature of night, and the pleasant sunshine of the balmy days; spring-like showers were of frequent occurrence, and heavy rains accompanied with thunder were so numerous that they ceased to create surprise; while the weird spring-music of the frogs was a familiar sound every month, and nearly every week, throughout the winter. The alternating cold and heat “threw out” the roots of the perennial plants, breaking off the long, deep-reaching taps and killing the rootlets; hence the frequent expression, “but little white clover in bloom, and no honey in the blossoms.” The honey-producing annuals have done but little better, owing, we presume, to the germination of the seeds in mid-winter, and the frequent frosting of the tender sprouts before spring set in. Thus, the summer and fall bloom was limited, and no provision having been made to supply the short-comings of nature, bees entered upon an unprecedented winter with a poor supply of good—or a good supply of poor—honey. The many empty hives in the country this spring is the result.
The past winter, whatever else may be said of it, has been propitious for the honey plants. Cool weather in this latitude set in during October; vegetation was checked in the perennials and biennials; the ground was frozen in November, and it was overspread with a mantle of snow quite early in the season, which has constantly held the roots of the perennials in position, and prevented the seeds of the annuals from unseasonable germination. The stand of white clover last fall was good, and mostly of quite recent growth, which should bloom profusely this season, and will only need heat and favorable sunshine to develop the nectar. The causes enumerated will also tend to confine the vitality of the linden trees to the roots, to be drawn out in profuse foliage and bloom by the genial rays of the summer sun. The numerous variety of flowers we believe will gratify the eye of every lover of the beautiful in nature, and well reward the labors of the painstaking bee-keeper. That the price of honey will be remunerative next fall no one can doubt, in view of the lessened competition, owing to the heavy losses the past winter and the many who will utilize the bees they have left to refilling their empty hives.
It would take more space than we can give a single article, to explain why we have much confidence in Prof. Vennor's latest prediction, referred to above—though perhaps “the wish is father to the thought.” We feel confident many of our readers will cordially unite with us in welcoming the better time coming.
Why do not the enterprising bee-keepers of these parts go South with their bees, and wait till the March “blizzards” are over? Seems to me the bees and honey saved would about pay the expenses of the trip. How much does a colony need in those parts to winter on? Would there be any prospect of obtaining any surplus down there before the season opens here? These and a dozen other questions I am vainly speculating upon. Are Messrs. Bingham and Perrine the only ones that have tried the migratory plan? I believe neither of them was successful; at any rate, they have abandoned it. Probably they could not give it the necessary attention. The loss of larvæ in shipping seems but trifling compared to the gain in young bees. Considerable damage may be done by combs breaking down, but wired frames would obviate that difficulty. Is not wired foundation (wired in frames) the only kind that can be depended on under all circumstances? You report in the October number, 1880, page 468, that the Northwestern Convention disapproved of wired foundation. There were but few present that had given wired foundation a fair trial, and if I am not mistaken, they were strongly in favor of it.
H. W. Funk.
Bloomington, Ill., March 5, 1881.
The first question is difficult to answer, as enterprising bee-keepers, like the balance of humanity, are generally governed by motives of convenience or profit. There are very few but have other business connected with bee-keeping, and this would suffer if close attention was given the migratory system. The amount of honey required to winter in the South is much less than in the North, but the quantity is governed by contingencies, as would be the question, How much honey will a colony obtain in the South in a season? Usually bees obtain considerable surplus in April and May, in some localities. Mr. Bingham, we believe, abandoned the migratory system on account of excessive freights, while Mr. Perrine met with a series of disasters from the first which would have discouraged any one. Mr. W. O. Abbott was engaged last season with a floating apiary on the Mississippi river, from which large returns were anticipated; but as nothing definite has been made public since the close of the season, we suppose it was not a success. Others have tried Southern wintering, but we have no data upon which to base conclusions, except the fact of its abandonment. The trouble has not been so much from destruction of combs, as the expense attending the removal.
A private letter from a gentleman with several hundred colonies of bees, located a short distance below Memphis, Tenn., dated March 5, says: “My colonies are mostly very strong; they are bringing in 5 kinds of pollen; many are clustering in front of their hives; most of them had large quantities of honey left over, and I could extract an average of 15 lbs. per colony with profit to the bees. Bees here are given no attention in the fall, but are left on the summer stands, sometimes with the second story over them, and often with only a honey-board. Frequently there are entrances at front and rear, and wide cracks in the sides from which bees pour out, but disaster never overtakes them except from starvation.”