The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1865-02-21 00:00:00

BEE-KEEPING IN DORSETSHIRE.

To the Editor.

SlR—Erveing been successful, heyond my own
expectations, in the management of beer, lain desironi
to communicate my experience and mode of treat-
ment to those interested in the suhject —a plan no
ample, and adapted to this county generally, and
costing no more than the usual popular bell-shaped
hive—that those who are pleased to adopt it can hart
no complaint to make on the score of expense. No
fine glasses, or elaborate boxea and drawers are
necessary, and it is within the reach of the poorest
cottager to follow. But before it can be made of
reel benefit, he must subscribe faithfully to one im-
portant conditien. He must absolutely give up the
cruel process of taking his honey by destroying his
bees with sulphur, and be must have a year or two
of patience before he can realise a good harvest of
honey.

I "do not propose, nor am I ambitions in these
articles, to imitate the Times' bee-master, nor to
oritiedie his method, nor introduce politics, nor the
politica of the wise little insect herself. Dr.
Cummings district may give rise to some difference
of treatment, as it does with tie; for though the
natural history of the bee is the same everywhere,
they are influenced entirely by one leading
principle—the obtaining and storing food ; and while
in one place, at the some time, bees will be
busy in the &ids, in another place they are at home
quiet, because in the latter case they have nothing to
get. Dorsetshire is eminently welt suited for them,
and they have four distinct working seasons, and
upon that hinges the difference between writers who
have merely recognised their own particular locality.
Dorsetahire landscapes are commonly rivers with
valleys of pasture land. On the sides of the hills we

see crops of grain, roots, and orchards; and the high
land is usually nothing but heath, descending here
and there int-, the valleys,—in autumn literally a
mass of rich crimson flowers. We also have large tracts
of downs where the bees delight to feed upon the
short flowers, especially on the wild thyme and d warf
thistle. These different and distinct features have
each their own season, for the bees, (for it must be
borne in mind that they never or rarely trouble
themselves about small patches of flowers, with the
exception of one or two species), they delight in
spring to visit rows of flowering willows, and the
first food they fled is generally at the edge of a river.
As the spring advances they soon obtain plenty
from the profusion of bloom in the orchards,
the turnip flower, and fields of lucerne in summer,
the downs, late clover, and the honey-dew on high
trees; and last, the bloesoins of the heath and buck
wheat.

Here therefore is, for them, enough to replace
what you take from them in summer. And as this
point is one I wish to lay particular stress upon,
shall here say that the end of June, or beginning
of July, is the proper time for depriving them of
some of their store, because they will be enabled, by
tin additional effort, to replace enough for their wants
during the winter. "Yes, all very good," soya one,
"You aastune every year a favourable season for
blossoms." "Yes, friend, I do, and frankly admit
that some of these seasons may fail, in that case
and the worst time is autumn." You must, if
you have robbed your bees in June, feed them;
give back some of what you have taken, made up
with sugar, and the receipt you shall have presently
In its proper place." But, seriously, suppose you
could not feed them, or by some mischance they
should perish? I will answer you. I never yet
last a hive by starvation ; but if I did, I should
think it a consolation in place of barbarously
destroying about 5.000 valuable lives—a vile cruelty
practised too often, merely for the sake of a little
foul honey without flavour. Adopt this simple plan,
and you will have pure masses of honey-comb,
without a single cell of pollen, or a dead bee to be
seen, rich and full Claims-red, compared to which the
destroying system only delivers you something
between treacle and river mud, Before I describe
the hives or pots one or two other invariable rules
must be remembered. . _ _

The first is, let your hives be entirely protected
from wet by a few boards—a neat little shed is easily
put together; if boards cannot be had, a thatch
will answer ; have nothing to do with bottles, and
never place earthenware pans on the top of the hive.
The pressure soon finds its way into the hive,crushing
the combs together, in which ease the hive soon
becomes tenantless. In winter, if your hives are
under oover, they will require some little additional
protection—old mate or pieces of carpet will answer
the purpose—but do not load them heavily.
These must all be removed as soon as the
warm days in April or May arrive, for it is
not alone the warmth of the weather, but the tem-
perature of the interior of the hive increases as the
activity of the bees increases.
Another popular delusion, and fatal to success, is
placing your hives in the warmest part of your
gardeu. Place them in the shade. The heat of the
sun, superadded to the heat of the interior, renders
the bees either very irritable, or causes them to
cluster outside—the inside being too hot, and
endangers the melting of the combs. I have lately
established a shed for them, where the sunlight
can never fall upon them. By keeping them cool
in summer they are not half so annoying to visitors.
Never change the place of a hive alter it is once
chosen; the moving it will Cause the loss of
hundreds, for they return to the original spot, and
there hover about till they fall and die.
Wet or damp, and vermin, (as woodlice or moths,)
are the greatest enemies to bees; therefore keep the
hives clean by occasionally brushing them, and
endeavour to isolate them as much from the ground
as possible. Several thin supports are thus prefer-
able to one stout one. When you pot a swarm, do
not attempt what is called dressing the pot, either
with bean-leaves or honey, merely see that the inside
is perfectly clean. Never introduce sticks inside. It
is a fault with the common straw hive, that it is alto-
gether too high ; and as combs are made by the
bees, the entire height of the hive, they are, when
filled, sometimes too heavy for it, and certainly do
endanger their falling. A hive should be low, and
made fiat at thelop, which form will alive the bees a
great deal of trouble, and you will have much better
shaped combs, and a great deal more honey.
When swarming is in progress, do not go out with
a key and frying-pan to perform the operation of
"tinging." It is the most useless and absurd practice.
All the senses of bees are very acute ; and but for
the fact that they are at that time evidently attend-
ing to their own affairs, they would at once takes
loos flight and leave you gaping after them. As it
is, it often prevents their pitching so near home as
they would if DO noise had been made. The
best rule is, to keep yourself as quiet as possible,
and insist on lookers-on doing the same. It does,
however,occasionally happen that bees do take flight
altogether. The causes always are either too high •
wind,or a queen very strong on the wing. These are
unavoidable, and have no remedy.
Here are a few golden rules, and must be observed
to ensure disappondatent. In another paper I will
describe the proper hive and super required, and
gite as nearly as possible the exact time for the
several operations. These cannot be given to a slay,
because nothing can be done during bad weather.
Aad here it is proper to observe that all changes and
all operations,even to the taking away the heney,ars
to be done in the middle of the day, and thafillei.
the day the better, because then most of the bunny
are abroad and at work in the fields.—(To be eon-
tissue& )
I rem•:-

I remain, &c.,
WELD TAYI4())4,

AN OLD 731711-HONNED STAGE•COAON Wit:l. ERZ LONG
be less • novelty than premature Phil Hair, which is
fast disappearing under the effects of Herring's Magnetic
Bnuihes and Combs, which recent improvements have
rendered almost infallible; in restoring the color to Grey
Hair, and also in roinciting the Agony of Ti. Doloreux
and Nervous Heidiehe.
N. B. —Counterfeits are being made.
Odium, $2, ftitaingliall-street, London.
11* following is an extract from the Second Edition
(page "of the Translation of the Pharmacopeia of
the ' College of Physicians, of London, by Dr. G.
F. ished by Longman end Co. : ibis no
this compilation (speaking of the
that we have no purgative anus but
does; yet we know that hcemorrhoidal
bear aloes erupt it be in the form of
which chiefly consists of aloes
colooynth, which I think are formeti
end extract, the acridity of which
, by an alkaline promise, and by a
known to me) of an aromatic tonic
no better and no worse of it for it.
medicine. I look at it aa an article of
domestic convenience, and do not he'd.
the best made 011 in the kingdom ; a
a mucous purge, and • hydrogogue
and their effects properly controlled by
That it does not commonly
. . _ .

pub. 'haled

aloes

itins
Gannet

aomponild

suspect,
(unknown

ing;edi-eai

think

attribute I'

&metro pills, I
soluble, tm that no andisaolved
MCICOUi membrane.