6()4 



GLEANIiNGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Sept. 1. 



one opening 3.5 feet by 10 inches. The smoke 

 just hustles up and out lively. On the floor 

 there is built a raised floor 12 in. high and 22 

 in. wide. On each side of this are openings 23 

 in. long and 6 in. wide every 6 feet. The raised 

 floor begins 6 feet from the door, and runs to fi 

 feet of the honey-roona, which is in the center 

 of the building. No flooring is laid under this 

 raised floor. The honey-room is made tight, 

 and has a door in each end of building. Each 

 end holds (iO colonies. Studs are 2 feet apart 

 from center to center, except the second one 

 from the ends, which are 28 in. from the end. 

 This gives room to handle the corner hives. 

 Rafters are 2x4's, placed exactly over each stud. 

 Collar beams are 9}4 feet from the floor, and are 

 also 2x4's. Over the shelf, and nailed to the 

 studs, are boards about 14 in. wide and % in. 

 thick. In the winter there is placed another on 

 the inner edge of the shelf, and these boards 

 make a trough in which is packed chafl' or 

 planer-shavings. The building is ceiled over- 

 head. The entire length is 70 feet, and width 

 12 feet; cost per running foot, S!4 80. or 1336 for 

 the building; all work hired. If you do all the 

 work yourself, the cost would bo about §=90.00 

 less. 



DO BEES DISTINGUISH COLORS ? 



Bees locate themselves nicely by the colors, 

 very few bees going into the wrong hive or dif- 

 ferent color. I happened to see something a 

 few days ago that convinced me that bees can 

 tell colors. The north end of the building has 

 no bees in it, but there are 46 in the south end. 

 I noticed that there were bees flying out and in 

 the yellow color in the north end, and thought 

 it was rather funny; thought possibly a new 

 swarm had gone in there. In the south end 

 there was one colony that was flying strongly- 

 young bees out for exercise. They were from 

 the first hive in the yellow toward the north. 

 The bees were also Eeturning, some of them, to 

 the first entrance toward the north in the yel- 

 low color in the north end. After the bees in 

 the south end had quieted down, there were no 

 bees going out and in the other in the north 

 end. The entrances were 27 feet apart. This 

 is plain evidence to me that bees can tell colors: 

 and, mind you, they entered the entrance in 

 the north end of the building, and the same 

 relative position of the yellow color, and not 

 any other. F. A. Salisbury. 



Syracuse, N. Y., Aug. 7. 



[When friend Salisbury was visiting us a few 

 months ago he told me something about his 

 house-apiary. Knowing that it was a success I 

 requested photos and an article describing it. 



I have always felt a little skeptical regarding 

 the ability of bees to distinguish colors; but 

 friend S. gives an incident that shows conclu- 

 sively that they have this power. In the build- 

 ing of house-apiaries I think we shall have to 

 conclude that painting the different parts of 

 the structure in diiTerent shades is a necessity. 

 One difficulty with house-apiaries heretofore 



has been the confusing of the entrances by the 

 bees. — Ed.] 



BOTTOM STARTERS IN SECTIONS 



SOME INSTRUCTIONS TO BEGINNERS. 

 Bii Dr. C C. Miller. 



A correspondent writes: " I believe you cut a 

 starter in both bottom and top of the section. 

 I have tried putting in a bottom starter, but the 

 bees always gnaw it down. Can you tell me 

 what to do to prevent this sort of work ? " 



I believe it may be worth while for me to do 

 more than merely answer the question asked. 

 Possibly I overestimate the importance of a bot- 

 tom starter, as we are always likely to think 

 well of our own babies. But I know that, since 

 I used bottom starters, I don't have combs 

 break out in sections in shipping as I formerly 

 did. Often, before using bottom starters, a sec- 

 tion would be finished up with a space of about 

 half an inch between the comb and the bottom 

 bar of the section; and in transportation such a 

 comb would swing back and forth and break 

 off. Besides, a section looks ever so much bet- 

 ter to be filled clear down, and it weighs more. 



There is another point in favor of bottom 

 starters for those who have out-apiaries that I 

 never thought of till I saw it mentioned in the 

 ABC. A starter that comes down within one- 

 fourth inch of the bottom-bar of the section is 

 inclined to swing in hauling to the out-apiary. 

 If the starter is only an inch or so wide it will 

 not swing at all. Just how wide it must be be- 

 fore it commences to swing, I don't know; but 

 I know that a starter that fills the section all 

 but a quarter of an inch will swing a great deal 

 more than one that is three-quarters of an inch 

 less. 



In "A Year among the Bees" I say I shall 

 never use bottom starters less than 1 in. deep, 

 and shall experiment to see how much deeper 

 can be used. That's one of the many cases in 

 which I doH't know as much as I thought I did. 

 Further experience made me settle down on 

 nothing wider than three-fourths inch for a bot- 

 tom starter. Wider than that they're in too 

 much danger of toppling over when they be- 

 come warm with bees on them. 



Sometimes bees will gnaw down to bottom 

 starters; but if every thing is just right, there 

 isn't much danger in that direction. If sections 

 are allowed to stay on a hive when there is no 

 need for them, bees are likely to gnaw the 

 foundation, both upper and lower, and the 

 lower sosms to have the worst of it. So it's a 

 good plan to tafke ofi' sections when a dearth 

 comes, even if they be put on again later. Be- 

 sides gnawing the foundation, the bees daub it 

 with propolis when idle. 



Bees are more likely to gnaw rery thin foun- 

 dation, whether it be at top or bottom, and the 

 very thin topples over more easily than that 



