1895 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



663 



under. We thought mey would have to be 

 cleaned at the end of each season, but were 

 pleased lo find that they would not. On the 

 left-hand side you will notice tliat boards are 

 in the open space ; those are fur use in winter, 

 fall, and spring. 



During the honey st a^on we use the wire 

 cloth in its place. By looking closely you will 

 see the grooves in the shelves alongside of each 

 opening ; these are for feeding. They are °-^ of 

 an inch deep, and % wide. Before using they 

 are varnished with shellac varnish to keep 

 them from leaking, and absorbing the feed, 

 thus keeping them tight, sweet, and clean. 

 The hives are placed on the shelves with the 



hive ; and with two-quart cans there is a ca- 

 pacity of 6 tt>s. at each feed. We have found 

 that one can to each colony is sufficient in or- 

 dinary casi^s. Two cans can be used over each 

 groove, and this will give a capacity of 12 lbs. 

 to each colony. It will be much better to have 

 the shelves gotten out by machinery ; and if 

 you think of building, I would give the order to 

 the A. I. Root Co. Mine were made by them ; 

 and in ordering, mention "sizes given in order 

 26,542."' with two blocks for each hive, 2 in. 

 long, Jf thick and ^| wide. Order 26,.542 was 

 for 100 colonies. The blocks are to use in 

 the feeders when not in use, to close up the 

 hole under the hives to keep bees in. Looking 



INTERIOR VIEW. SHOWING ONE END OF HOUSE-APIARY. 



frames running the same way as the shelf ; and 

 as the hives are 20 in. long there Is about 4 in. 

 between the ends of the hives. The shelves 

 are 28 inches wide from the siding. The 

 groove for feeding is long enough to run from 

 about 2 in. from the inner edge to nearly across 

 the hive. By using quart Mason fruit-jars you 

 can see at a glance from each end of the build - 

 ng how the food is being taken. In using the 

 grooves, place a piece of wire cloth in the 

 groove close up lo the hive, and no bees can 

 come out into the building. Feeding with this 

 arrangement has no terrors, and no robbers can 

 bother. The feeder is always ready at a mo- 

 ment's notice. Two grooves are under each 



overhead you see openings in the center, and 

 running the entire length of building, with 

 slides to cover them when not needed. 



In the winter and summer months they are 

 always open; in the winter, to keep every thing 

 dry, and in the summer to keep down the tem- 

 perature and carry off the smoke from the 

 smoker. During the spring months, keep them 

 closed. 



The first building built had only three open- 

 ings, each about 8 in. square. These would not 

 carry off the smoke fast enough, and this build- 

 ing was made so there is ample ventilation. 

 Each opening is 2 feet by 10 in., and are 2 feet 

 apart. All the openings overhead are equal to 



