THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW. 



more water. For out-door feeding any kind 

 of a tight trough with suitable floats, that 

 the bees may not get drowned, will answer. 

 The Heddon feeders are just the thing, 

 though I generally use large atmospheric 

 feeders holding ten gallons of feed. 



These I make by taking a ten-gallon flour 

 can, such as I use for storing extracted 

 honey, set it on a hive bottom-board, place 

 a grooved board or shallow trough feeder 

 over it upside down, clamp the two together 

 with wire loops and "spreaders," then invert 

 the whole. It will surprise one who has 

 never fed in this way to see how much feed 

 the bees of a large apiary will carry away in 

 a day. This thin feed which the bees carry 

 in from outside the hive more nearly ap- 

 proaches the natural honey flow, and I think 

 has a much more stimulative effect than 

 what is fed them in the hive. Is is true that 

 some colonies will get the lion's share and 

 others little or nothing, but it is an easy 

 matter to flnd out which are the lazy ones 

 and stir them up, which may often be done 

 by feeding a little warm honey in the hive, 

 leading them to go out and look for more, 

 or these few may be fed in the ordinary way. 



I have been in the habit of saving the cap- 

 pings from extracting for spring feeding. 

 The best way to use them is to cover them 

 with water and allow them to soak for sev- 

 eral hours, then feed the sweetened water 

 and allow the bees to work over the soaked 

 cappings to get out what honey may remain. 



At times when bees are inclined to rob, or 

 when a few cross bees are continually fol- 

 lowing the apiarist about, a little very thin 

 feed will keep these nuisances busy, to the 

 great comfort of their keeper. By diluting 

 it to the proper degree you can regulate the 

 rapidity with which they will work on it to 

 suit yourself, and if you choose you can 

 make a little feed keep a great many bees 

 busy for a long time. 



A great drawback to out-door feeding is 

 that cool weather, by keeping the bees from 

 flying, stops the regular supply of feed at a 

 time when it may be badly needed. A much 

 worse feature is that an ordinary light rain 

 will not keep the bees from flying after they 

 have grown accustomed to being fed regu- 

 larly, but they will visit the feeding place in 

 great numbers, only to be chilled and 

 drowned. On this account it would be well 

 to have the feeding place under an open 

 shed, as it is not so much the flying through 

 the rain that wets them as the waiting around 

 the feeding place. 



By doing the feeding early in the morning 

 I have found that the bees a mile away did 

 not get any percepible amount of the feed, 

 though I have known other insects, and es- 

 pecially the large gray hornets, to come in 

 considerable numbers. 



Feeding for winter may be done out of 

 doors, feeding until the best colonies have 

 enough, then finishing with individual feed- 

 ers. It is my opinion, on which however I 

 have not experimented carefully enough to 

 be certain, that feed given in this way is not 

 nearly so apt to granulate in the combs. 



Unless the feeding for winter is done very 

 early, the feed should be nearly as thick as 

 honey, and in all cases should be given as 

 rapidly as possible. 



Dayton, 111., • Sept. 7, 1892. 



Desirable Points in a Feeder.— Bees Do 

 Swarm on the Revolving Stand. — The 

 House-Apiary a Success. — Impor- 

 tance of Good Queens. 



B. TAYLOB. 



T N regard to special 

 X kinds of feeders, 

 I confess that I have 

 never used any ex- 

 cept those of my own 

 planning and con- 

 struction, and am 

 not prepared by ex- 

 perience to discuss 

 the merits of others. 

 A feeder should be 

 convenient to fill 

 and use, and so con- 

 structed that no bees except those in the hive 

 to which it is attached, can gain access. 

 This I regard as of first importance, as 

 otherwise robbing is sure to be started, and 

 then there is an end to all peace and com- 

 fort. I have tried feeders varying in capac- 

 ity from three to sixteen pounds. They are 

 all made on something of the same principle, 

 viz., a tight box to hold the syrup or honey, 

 an opening to give the bees access to the 

 feed, a place to fill them when empty with- 

 out removing them from the hive or disturb- 

 ing the bees and a float to keep the bees 

 from getting daubed or drowned. 



I have twenty-five feeders that I have used 

 several years, and they work well for spring 



