1887 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



95 



harvest time is the one most sure of success. In 

 nothing is this more true than in bee-keeping; and 

 yet the majority of bee-keepers while away the win- 

 ter days and months, not seeming to think that an- 

 other season of heat and toil is coming until the 

 season is upon them. To the truth of this, nearly 

 every supply-dealer can testify ; for in spite of dis- 

 counts ottered, and entreaties published and other- 

 wise made during winter, all know that the great 

 rush comes in May, June, and July. These thoughts 

 were brought up by a friend desiring to know how 

 1 made my bee-feeders, and saj'ing, " I want to get 

 every thing in readiness this winter for another 

 summer." I predict for that young man a success- 

 ful life, health and strength being given him. As I 

 have just finished making a lot of feeders I thought 

 it might not be amiss to answer his question through 

 Gleanings; for after trying nearly all the feeders 

 ever advertised, I like the best of any the one about 

 to be described, so I have discarded all the others. 

 The idea of such a feeder I got out of some of the 

 bee-papers; but when and where,! do not know. 

 This feeder I call a division-board feeder, yet it is 

 different from any such feeder which 1 have ever 

 seen described. 



To make, get out one piece ?B of an inch square, 

 and the same length as the bottom-bar to your 

 frame, providing the end-pieces to your frame are 

 nailed to the end of the bottom-bar. Otherwise 

 make this piece as much shorter as the two end- 

 pieces of your frame are thick; for it is to hang in 

 the hive the same as any frame. Also the end-bars 

 and top-bar are to be only ?8 wide, as a feeder of 

 that width keeps the bees from drowning without a 

 float, while, if wider, a float is necessary. Besides 

 these four pieces spoken of above, you want two 

 very thin boards (I make them 3-33 of an inch thick), 

 the same size as the outside dimensions of j'our 

 frame, less % of an inch at the top, it being suppos- 

 able that the top-bar to your frame is only \i thick. 

 In any event there is to be a •/i-inch space between 

 the under side of the top-bar and the upper edge of 

 the thio boards, for an entrance to the feeder. 



Next, get some white lead and thin it with boiled 

 linseed oil till of the consistency of thin cream; for 

 all the joints of the feeder are to be fl.xed so there 

 can be no possibility of leaking. Now with a small 

 marking-brush put some of the thick paint on the 

 end of the % bottom-bar, and also on the lower end 

 of the end-bar, where it is to be nailed to the bot- 

 tom-bar, and nail together, preparing the other side 

 the same. Next lay down your frame, which is com- 

 plete, except the top-bar, and paint the sides which 

 are up, and also around the edges of three sides of 

 the under side of the thin board where they are to 

 come in contact with the frame. Place the board 

 so it comes even with the bottom and outside of the 

 frame, and nail on, using ?4-inch wire nails, and 

 driving the nails from !4 to U inch apart, when the 

 other side is to be treated the same way. Now take 

 the end-bar of a frame and saw it off short enough 

 so it will come up within V4 of an inch of the top of 

 the inside of the feeder, when it is to have three ?« 

 holes bored in it near the bottom, the bottom one 

 cutting out just a little at the end. Slip this down 

 in the center of the feeder, and nail each side to It. 

 This piece is to keep the thin sides of the feeder 

 from bulging out when the feeder is filled, and the 

 holes in the bottom of the stick are to allow the 

 feed to run through from one side to the other, or 

 it will be filled only from'one side.; 



There is nothing more to be done with it at pres- 

 ent, except to paint the outside with two good coats 

 of paint, when it is to be set away for two or three 

 months, to have the paint thoroughly dry in the 

 joints. When thus drj% melt five or six pounds of 

 beeswax or paralhne (the latter preferred), heating- 

 it quite hot, and pour into the feeder till full, when 

 it is to be poured out again in a moment or two, us- 

 ing it for another feeder, and so on till all are coat- 

 ed with wax on the inside. If the wax is quite hot 

 and the feeder well warmed, it will penetrate the 

 wood to the depth of I-lti of an inch, which is a 

 double preventive against leaking, while the main 

 object is the keeping of the wood from taking up 

 the feed by soaking, in which case the feeder soon 

 becomes sour, and will sour the feed ever after- 

 ward, unless at once taken up by the bees. 



We are now ready for the top-bar, which, after 

 having a hole bored in it near one end for the point 

 of a funnel to enter, is nailed on. Our feeder is 

 now complete; and, barring accidents, it will last a 

 lifetime. 



HOW TO USE. 



To use it, hang it in the hive the same as a frame; 

 and if the colony is at all weak, put it at the side of 

 the hive the furthest from the entrance. In fact, I 

 always use it at one side of the hive: for in that 

 case the slit which is cut in the quilt over the hole 

 through which the funnel is inserted is always in 

 the right place, while otherwise it would not be. 

 Having the feeder in place, and the slit cut in the 

 quilt, insert the funnel, pour in the feed and remove 

 the funnel, when the slit will close up so no bees 

 can get out or in the way. Twenty cubic inches of 

 ordinary honey will weigh one pound, so it is easy 

 to tell how many pounds your feeder will hold. 

 Mine, made to fit the Gallup frame, holds nearly 5 

 lbs., so I am sure not to run it over, if I feed 45^ ft>s. 

 at a time. If I wish to feed more at a time I use 

 two or more feeders; if less— well, I will tell you just 

 how Ido, even if it does make this article a little long. 



To carry feed, I use a common watei'ing-pot with 

 the rose, or sprinkler, taken oft'. This watering-pot 

 is set on the scales, and feed poured in till one pound 

 is registered. I now, with the point of mj^ knife, 

 scratch the tin a little at the top of the feed in three 

 different places, about equal distances apart; pour 

 in another pound and mark again, and so on till the 

 vessel is as full as I can carry it, which is generally 

 about 1.5 ttis. I now pour out the feed, and wash and 

 dry the watering-pot, when I touch a little paint, 

 made of red lead, on each of the places scratched 

 with the knife, and by the side of them I place fig- 

 ures, made with the same paint, from 1 up to 15. 

 When this paint becomes dry I always have a scale 

 of pounds with me which tells me at once how much 

 feed I have, and just what I am doing, as soon as 1 

 hold the watering-pot level, and glance down into it. 



Now just a word as to why I like these feeders. 

 Placed where I put them, they become a part of the 

 side of the hive; and by knowing that the cluster of 

 bees is next to them (as a few minutes' preparation 

 will always make them), they will take the feed at 

 any time of year if the feed is a little more than 

 blood-warm when fed, so there is no danger of feed 

 not being taken in cool or cold weather. Second. 

 These feeders require no storage room, as they can 

 be left in the hive when not in use, if it is wished so 

 to do; and at such times they can be used as a 

 division-board. Third. The weakest nucleus can 

 be fed with no danger of robbing, when used as 1 



