180 



AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL, 



March 22 1900. 



followed with single brood-chambers, and unless this was 

 understood and taken advantage of it would be folly to use 

 divisional hives, for it would require more work to obtain 

 the same results as could be obtained with single brood- 

 chambers. 



The main objection I found, aside from their cost, to 

 divisible hives containing frames, was that with thick top- 

 bars the queen would not usually pass readily from one 

 story to the other, and with thin top-bars there would be 

 more or less sagging, and burr-combs between the sections ; 

 but with these box-hives this is to a great extent overcome. 

 The queen passes readily from one story to the other, and 

 in actual use there is much less burr-comb between the 

 stories than I expected, or than one would think from read- 

 ing the description of how they are made and used. 



But now I wish to be frank about the matter, and men- 

 tion one fault about them, and this is in regard to drone- 

 comb. As no foundation is used in these hives, it is a more 

 difficult matter to replace drone-comb that may be built in 

 them with worker-comb than it is with frame hives, but it 

 can be done, and I have many of them that are filled with 

 solid worker-comb. 



There are other minor faults about them which I will 

 not take space to explain, for all I claim for them is that 

 they will answer an excellent purpose for those who have 

 not the money to spare to buy all frame hives, unless one 

 has as many colonies in frame hives as he wishes, and de- 

 sires no further increase. In such case, if running for 

 comb honey and any method is practiced by which swarms, 

 either natural or artificial, are hived on empty frames, or 

 on frames containing only starters, then I consider these 

 hives superior to anj- frame hive, for I believe fully as much 

 honey with less work can be obtained from them. 



Last year the season was, with one exception, the poor- 

 est ever known in my locality, but I took oS 97 finisht sec- 

 tions of white honey from one of these box-hives. This was 

 'considerably more than any other colony in the yard pro- 

 duced, and there were about 75 colonies in frame hives in 

 the same yard, some of which did not fill a dozen sections. 

 But to be frank again, some in box-hives did no better. 

 The one that outstript all the others was exceptionally 

 strong at the commencement of the white honey-flow, and 

 made no effort to swarm, but seemed to devote its entire 

 energy to filling sections. 



I have this kind of hive of various depths, but the most 

 of them are about 7 inches. They are made from common 

 8-inch boards, but here the so-called 8-inch boards actually 

 measure only about 7'i inches, and if the edges are drest 

 or planed, it leaves them about 7 inches wide, which, for 

 the use I make of them, is about the depth I prefer to have 

 these hives ; but whatever the depth, they are all otherwise 

 the exact size of the 8-frame dovetailed hive. 



The top-bars are made from common lath nailed a bee- 

 space apart, and from the top edges of the hive. No bot- 

 tom-bars are used. The bottom-boards and covers are just 

 the same as those of the dovetailed hive. On account of 

 there being no bottom-bars I expected, when two or more 

 sections were used together, that there would be trouble on 

 account of the combs in the upper story being built down 

 and attacht to the top-bars of the lower story ; but altho I 

 have used them tiered up two and three stories high by 

 themselves, and also tiered up in combination with frame 

 hives, the combs in the upper stories have never been fas- 

 tened enough to the top-bars below to loosen the combs in 

 the upper stories when separating them, or to make any 

 practical difficulty, and on this account, with all being so 

 simply constructed, these hives possess in common with 

 hives made on the same principle as the dovetailed, the 

 great advantage of the tiering-up feature, and this tiering 

 feature I consider to be by far the most practical improve- 

 ment that has been or can be made in hives, since the 

 frame hive was invented. No one who has not used large 

 numbers of hives that did not possess it, and then large 

 numbers that did, can fully appreciate the great advan- 

 tages that the tiering-up feature has or admits of. 



In my next I will describe mj' methods of using these 

 hives, unless anything in favor of box-hjves in the present 

 advanced state of our pursuit is considered so much out of 

 place that this is thrown into the waste-basket. 



Southern Minnesota. 



Queenie Jeanette is the title of a pretty song in sheet 

 music size, written by J. C. Wallenmeyer, a musical bee- 

 keeper. The regular price is 40 cents, but to close out the 

 copies we have left, we will mail them at 20 cents each, as 

 long as they last. Better order at once, if you want a copy 

 of this song. 



Report of the Colorado State Convention. 



fContiuued from pajje ltj7.] 



WINTERING BEES. 



Mr. Porter — There is a universal complaint here about 

 bees wintering in dovetailed hives with flat covers. I have 

 here a frame made of pieces two inches deep to fit on the 

 hive, the lower side covered with wire-cloth, and the upper 

 side with burlap, and filled with planer-shavings. With an 

 ordinary flat cover I have used cleats under each end of the 

 cover, so as to carry off the moisture. This arrangement 

 could be used in winter for that purpose, and in summer 

 left on over a piece of cotton-cloth. The idea of the wire- 

 cloth is to be able to use the frame in moving bees. One 

 lot of my bees was half in the Wisconsin and half in the 

 dovetailed hives. Those in Wisconsin hives came out in 

 much better condition. 



H. Rauchfuss — I have used a super of chaflf. It does 

 very well. But I believe it is even better to have a heavy 

 burlap and a high cover. A flat cover is a great detriment. 



F. Rauchfuss — Mr. Porter forgot to mention why he 

 has holes bored in the sides of the frame, and covered with 

 wire-cloth. With the ordinary rim of wire-cloth, the first 

 thing the bees do is to rush up and obstruct it bj' clustering 

 upon it. and it is possible a strong colony might be smoth- 

 ered in the heat of the day ; but the holes at the sides of this 

 frame would allow a current of air under the cluster. 



H. Rauchfuss — I don't think a wire-screen is so good 

 for moving bees as burlap. The bees crowd against the 

 screen when they will not against burlap, and so it gives 

 more ventilation. 



Mr. Harris — Last spring I lost 30 percent. My bees 

 were weak in the spring, owing to the hard winter. This 

 is an important question. 



Mr. Lyon — Four years ago I was using a common super. 

 My loss didn't amount to anything as long as I used that, 

 and I am going back to it. We don't always need it, but 

 last winter we needed something of the kind. We want no 

 sealed covers here. One yard at Longmont lost 50 percent 

 on account of sealed covers. 



Mr. Brock — For 23 years I have wintered my bees with- 

 out losing over 10 percent ; some years not over 2 percent. I 

 use the old Langstroth hive with top 8 or 10 inches deep, 

 large enough to rest on cleats below the top of the hive- 

 body. I put on two thicknesses of gunny-sacking, and the 

 cover over the sacking. 



Mr. Porter — I have a number of Langstroth hives built 

 the same way. Thej- winter all right, but I could not be 

 persuaded to make anv more, for other reasons. I could use 

 supers, but I want my supers in the house during the winter 

 to fill with sections. I would rather go to the expense of 

 having a substitute on the hives during the winter. These 

 rims can be piled up when they are not wanted, and the 

 wire will prevent the mice from entering them. 



J. B. Adams — Last winter an apiary lost 50 percent one 

 mile from mine. I lost only four colonies, of which two 

 were queenless. When I first came here I put the hives in 

 a board box and packt all around. About the first of May 

 the rain and snow drifted in, and two or three days later 

 the bees were swarming out, and I had to pull everything 

 to pieces. Last winter I used oil-cloth sealed down, and put 

 four to seven gunnj'-sacks on top of the oil-cloth. The bees 

 came thru in good shape, and gave a good crop. 



F. Rauchfuss — When did you examine your bees the 

 last time that fall ? 



J. B. Adams — In October and November. 



F. Rauchfuss — Then the covers were not sealed very 

 tightly after you got thru. 



J. B. Adams — You are right. 



F. Rauchfuss — That saved your bees. They couldn't 

 seal up the covers again that late. 



J. B. Adams — The entrances were left wide open. 



F. Rauchfuss — A full entrance with little cracks above 

 gives sufficient ventilation to carry oS'all the moisture. 



