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VEGETABLE FORCING 



the hives of bees inside the houses, and this is necessary 

 if the bees must work before outside weather conditions 

 are suitable for their comfort. The hives are generally 

 at the ends of the houses, and they should be shaded to 

 keep them as cool as possible. 



Other growers keep the bees just outside the houses, 

 as shown in Figs. 118 and 119. This plan is preferable 

 from the standpoint of the bees, for the conditions, except 

 when they are working in the houses, are normal and 

 they keep in better health. If desired, there may be open- 

 ings into the hives on two sides, so that the bees may 

 enter the greenhouse where a pane of glass has been re- 

 moved, or they may work on plants out of doors, which 



Fig. 119. Box containing several hives of bees. 



has the effect of stimulating better health and greater 

 activity. This plan is now followed by some of the most 

 careful and successful growers, and especially by those 

 who are interested in bees as well as in cucumbers. Bees 

 should be placed in the houses as soon as the plants begin 

 to blossom. The earliest fruits are the most profitable, 

 and there should be no uncertainty about the flowers 

 being properly fertilized. 



The use of bees in cucumber houses is necessarily ex- 



