1908 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



697 



hives, witli tlv mother-mouse and several little 

 (iiu's, till- cninlis iiaving- been badly eaten to make 

 room tor the nest — Fig. 3. Perhaps this might 

 not ha\e happened in a stronger eolony, but the 

 Hueen had died and the bees ilwindled and 

 seemed discouraged. 

 West Chester, Pa. 



PREVENTION BETTER THAN CURE. 



Paintinji Cracks and Entrances to Pre- 

 vent Robbing. 



BY R. M. SPENCER. 



I notice an article in the Sept. 1st issue, page 

 U.'il, in regard to the robber-trap invented by J. 

 F. Mclntyre, who resides only fifteen miles from 

 me. Being a good friend of Mr. Mclntyre, and 

 claiming his way of stopping robbers by use of 

 the trap is good, I wish to write only on the sub- 

 ject of the prevention of robbing, which will do 

 away with the use of any trap. 



A few years ago I saw a short article in one of 

 the journals in regard to the use of fresh paint as 

 a preventive of robbing. The idea looking good 

 to me I tried it; and to say it was a success is 

 putting it mildly. The directions were to use 

 paint the same color as the hive, but I add a 

 small amount of turpentine. In beginning tc 

 open colonies of bees when they are inclined to 

 rob they will show signs of robbing after you 

 have opened a few; and as soon as these signs 

 show I get my paint and brush, and paint all 

 cracks under the cover and between the super and 

 brood-body on all colonies that I have looked 

 into. To see these bees pounce on the cracks o' 

 hives they have started on is amusing, because, 

 as soon as they do so, they alight on this fresh 

 paint and get off from it at once; hence they will 



m 



FIG. 1. COLONIES PREPARED FOR WINTER. 



A super containing a chaff cushion was placed over each hive, and building-paper 

 nally a large box was placed over all. 



PIG. 2. OUTSIDE BO.X REMOVED TO SHOW THE 



PAPER. WHEN THE HIVES WERE EXAMINED 

 IN THE SPRING, MOUSE-NESTS WERE FOUND. 



not hang on any hive in clusters or in long 

 strings as they do when they begin the robbinr. 

 This, then, confines the robbers to the hive that 

 you are working with; but^as soon as you close 



it, and paint 

 all cracks, they 

 will bother it 

 ro more, and 

 you can look 

 over a yard of 

 bees by usirg 

 this method, 

 and have little 

 trouble, and 

 also be paint- 

 ing part of your 

 hives. But if 

 robbing is so 

 bad that the 

 bees begin to 

 get in the en- 

 trances I do not 

 close them, but 

 paint all the 

 alighting- 

 boards and 

 about two inch- 

 es above on 

 the hive-body, 

 as the robbers 

 always alight 

 either on the 

 alighting-board 

 several inches 

 back and crawl 



/rapped around it. 



