The apiary; or, bees, bee-hives, and bee culture [1866]: Being a familiar account of the habits of bees, and the most improved methods of management, with full directions, adapted for the cottager, farmer, or scientific apiarianNeighbor, Alfred
Science
The apiary; or, bees, bee-hives, and bee culture [1866]: Being a familiar account of the habits of bees, and the most improved methods of management, with full directions, adapted for the cottager, farmer, or scientific apiarian
There are many persons now in this noisy city pent, who frequently
remember the days of childhood, when, among pastures of clover, or
amidst flowery heath and woodlands, they listened to the cheerful hum
of bees. Partly from a desire to revive these old associations, and
also from a natural liking for the tendance of living creatures, such
persons would be glad to keep bees if they thought it possible to do so
in London or its suburbs with any chance of success. We do not wonder
that many should doubt even the possibility of bees feeding themselves
amidst such an "endless meal of brick;" but we can easily prove that
bees, if not placed too near to smoky chimneys, are able to produce
honey, both for themselves and for their masters. To make this plain,
we will mention some special instances of metropolitan bee-keeping.
About ninety years ago, a Mr. Wildman kept a bee-house and honey
warehouse, near to Middle Row, Holborn. He was not only a tradesman,
but was also the apiarian of his day. He kept hives of thriving bees on
the roof of his house in Holborn, and many of the nobility and gentry
used to mount thither, in order to inspect the apiary. At that period,
St. Pancras was a "village two miles north-west of London," and what
is now the Regent's Park was open country. It was then much easier for
London bees to find their favourite forage, but Mr. Wildman believed
that his hives were filled with stores from a considerable distance.
Whilst enjoying his country rambles on Hampstead Heath, he had a shrewd
suspicion that many of the bees he there observed gathering honey were
labourers from his own apiary. In order to identify his own flock
amongst the rest, he hit upon a homely but very effective expedient.
Having borrowed Mrs. Wildman's "dredging box," he stationed himself
near the entrance of his hives, and gently dusted his bees with flour
as they issued forth. He then betook himself to Hampstead, where he
found his previous surmise confirmed, for there were numbers of his
bees in their livery of white.
Wildman became noted for the remarkable control he obtained over his
bees, many instances of which he exhibited before the public. Several
of his operations with them were regarded as feats of legerdemain by
the uninitiated, as when he appeared before King George III., with
a swarm of bees hanging in festoons from his chin, or suspended in
a cluster at arm's length. The _Journal of Horticulture_ recently,
in alluding to Wildman, gives the following particulars as to his
performances:--
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account