1902 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



339 



WINTERING AND HOUSE APIARIES. 



Will you please state in Gi.eaninos the 

 best method of uniting' two or three colonies 

 to make one strong- one when they are scat- 

 tered about ten feet apart among 25 other 

 hives ? Also please state the advantages 

 and disadvantages of a house-apiary for 

 25 colonies, and ask other subscribers to 

 give their experience with same. 



Philadelphia, Pa. John P. Tull. 



[If the colonies or the nuclei to be united 

 have been outdoors all winter, and if it is 

 desired to combine them together into one 

 colony, utilizing the heat, the task is not 

 an easy one. I have united nuclei in the 

 spring ; but in two or three days after 

 bringing them together, the little colony 

 that received fresh infusions of strength 

 from other sources was about as weak as 

 ever. The trouble is, the bees of the sev- 

 eral nuclei, as soon as they fly, will be 

 prettj' sure to go back to their old locations. 

 If there are no combs of honey to receive 

 them they will starve even if they do not 

 chill to death; but weak nuclei in the cel- 

 lar can be united before taking them out, 

 or afterward if it is more convenient. But 

 the uniting must be done before the bees 

 get to flying and marking their locations. 



Regarding house-apiaries, they should 

 be used only when land is scarce, and 

 thieves are prevalent in the locality. They 

 are handy to work in all kinds of weather, 

 and the colonies can be opened up without 

 inducing robbing. A lot of cross bees can 

 be handled in such a building much more 

 comfortably than outdoors. 



The main objection to the house-apiary is 

 the expense and its lack of portability. For 

 further particulars you are referred to the 

 A B C of Bee Culture, where the subject is 

 discussed very fully. — Ed.J 



WHAT TO DO with COMBS OF STORES ON 

 WHICH BEES HAVE DIED. 



What do you do with honey and comb 

 that are left in the hive after bees have died 

 in spring? Would you advise hiving new 

 colonies on this old comb at swarming, or 

 would you think it best to give them new 

 foundation? J. H. Murdaugh. 



Croswell, Mich., March 11. 



[There is no objection at all to putting a 

 fresh lot of bees upon combs from which 

 other bees have died, unless the combs are 

 badly smeared with stains of dysenter3'. — 

 Ed.] 



spanish names. 

 Mi'. Root: — In regard to the pronuncia- 

 tion of the Spanish names of shrubs or 

 trees you give on p. 863, I will beg leave to 

 say that, according to the rules laid down 

 by F. M. de Rivas, who is a graduate of 

 the University of Sevilla, Spain, and of St. 

 Edmunds College, London, it should be re- 

 spectively: goo-ah-//6v/-ee-ah and mais-Xv^- 

 tai, and not as you give it, which I judge 

 you did, probably, after the manner of 



Americans who pronounce largely after the 

 manner of the Mexicans, or according to 

 local custom, which is often about as rnuch 

 Spanish as the Scotch brogue is English. 



J. B. WiENMILLER. 



Pineridge, Cal., Feb. 23. 



[You are quite right. I was simply giv- 

 ing the local pronunciation. But I fear 

 your spelling would be capable of still 

 greater perversion, as you make five sylla- 

 bles out of guajit/a, which is pronounced 

 gwah-//d'^'/-yah. The other word has three 

 syllables, pronounced like the English 

 " mace--t6'6'-tay," and not " mes-X;^^-ti," as 

 you seem to make it. — Ed.] 



SPREADING EXTRACTING-FRAMES. 



1. In extracting from the top story of a 

 Dovetailed hive would it not be better to use 

 only seven combs, dispensing with the Hoff- 

 man principle altogether? It is a vexatious 

 and tedious job to extract from Hoffman 

 frames when placed in contact with each 

 other. 



2. Is not the ten-frame hive superior to 

 the eight-frame when used exclusively for 

 extracting? Alpine McGregor. 



Inglewood, Ont., March 12. 



[1. It is the practice of some bee-keepers 

 to space their combs further apart in the 

 extracting-supers. Hotfman frames can be 

 spaced anywhere from IVi to \% in. from 

 center to center; and from the fact that thej- 

 have wide end-bars, a half-inch space does 

 not interfere in the least with the practice. 



2. The ten-frame hive is generally re- 

 garded for extracting purposes as better 

 than the eight-frame, especially in the 

 South.— Ed.] 



WHERE TO START AN ABIARY. 



I wish to know where in the United States 

 would be the best place to start an apiary. 

 Steen Freeman. 

 Cedar Mills, O., March 30. 



[It would be almost impossible to answer 

 this question satisfactorily. The climate 

 and general conditions of various localities 

 are such that I would have to know what 

 your capabilities and general health are. 

 Some persons can not stand the hot or dry 

 climate of Texas and Arizona; others can 

 not live in a high altitude, like Denver or 

 up on the Rockies in Colorado or Montana; 

 and others could not bridge over two or 

 three bad years out of five, such as one 

 would find in Southern California; and 

 still others would not like to pioneer it in a 

 new country without its modern conven- 

 iences and "good society." If you follow 

 the series of articles that I am writing, 

 giving an account of my trip through the 

 various bee localities of the United States, 

 from Alabama to the far West, and back 

 again, j'ou will, perhaps, be able to come 

 to some conclusion as to where j'ou had 

 better locate. — Ed.J 



