MAY 15. 1912 



303 



\i ii:ii.\ of (ieo. 11. Kirkpatrick, Rapid City, Mich., show lat 

 Kach hive stands on four cedar stakes. 



mcLluid of arraiife'iiis; the hives in pairt 



HOW THE LOCATION AFFECTS THE HONEY- 

 FLOW 



Points to be Considered in Laying Out an Apiary 



BY GEORGE H. KIRKPATRICK 



Much depends upon the location of a bee- 

 yard. In the spring of li»09 I had an apiary 

 located on a high altitude, a stretch of coun- 

 try known in this section as the "snow 

 ridge." The bees of this apiary had been 

 removed from the cellar April 14, at which 

 time they were in first-class condition, the 

 clusters occupying seven to eight spaces in 

 ten-frame hives. The nearest water was one 

 mile distant. By June lu the colonies were 

 re<luced b\ one-half, and I received no sur- 

 plus. The bees were left for two seasons in 

 this location, and were reduced to a worth- 

 less condition. The location was the prin- 

 cipal cause of the failure. 



Note the difference: At the same date in 

 1SI09 I had an apiary -'0 miles north, located 

 on a stretch of land lying l)etween (Jrand 

 Traverse Hay and Torch l-ake. The soil is 

 a hea\ y clay, wet and springy, and there is 

 water in every horse-track in early si)ring. 

 Soft maples and pussy willow are plentiful. 

 The bees at this apiary had wintered i)oor- 

 ly, being reduced to very small colonies 

 while in the cellar. I carried them out April 

 16; but with a sheltered location, plenty of 



water, pollen, and honey-producing plants 

 near by, they bred up to good colonies and 

 gave me a net average of 110 pounds per col- 

 ony, spring count. The bees in the two 

 apiaries had the same care, each receiving 

 the same number of visits. 



LOCATING THE APIARY. 



In locating an apiary there are several 

 points to be considered. First is the pas- 

 ture. We must seek a location where there 

 are hundreds of acres of honey-producing 

 plants. In this locality we seek to find rasp- 

 berry and milkweed, for on these two plants 

 we depend for our surplus honey. Then for 

 early pollen and nectar we must have maple, 

 elm, pussy willow, dandelion, and fruit blos- 

 som. 



THE ADVANTAGE OF SHELTER. 



The best locations are usually found in 

 valleys a mile or more in width, for such 

 ])laces are warmer in early spring than the 

 higher lands. A spot of ground should be 

 chosen in a sheltered nook; a clump of tim- 

 ber, a thicket of second-growth timber, or a 

 ridge of hills on the north and west of the 

 apiary will prove valuable. 



The ground should be nearly level, but a 

 gentle slope to the south or east is preferable. 



THE HIVE-STANDS. 



I make my hive-stands of cedar timber 

 .sawed into IG-inch lengths, and split into 



