May 31, 1900. 



AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL 



343 



question is askt, if that question is fully answered, you 

 ought not to be too hard on the one who gives the answer 

 because he fails to tell some things you want to know about 

 but have not taken the trouble to ask. On page 70 of this 

 journal for Feb. 2, 1899, you will find full instructions in 

 the matter of foundation-splints, the instructions being as 

 follows : 



" The splints or little sticks are 1-16 square, anjl >i-inch 

 shorter than the depth of the frame, inside measure. The 

 paraphernalia needed to do the work are : A pair of pliers 

 to lift the sticks out of the melted wax, a board to use a.s a 

 presser, '4 -inch shorter thati the inside depth of the frame, 

 3 or 4 inches wide and % or 'yi inch thick, with one edge 

 kept well soakt in water so the wax will not stick to it, and 

 a board Js-inch thick just large enough to slip loosely in- 

 side the frame, having strips nailed on the sides as stops so 

 that the foundation will rest on the board while the frame 

 rests on the stops. Put a bunch of the sticks in the heated 

 wax. They will froth up at first because of the air and 

 moisture in the wood. In a little while that will be cookt 

 out and the wax will settle down clear. Then with tlie 

 pliers lift a stick out of the wax and lay it on the founda- 

 tion, and with the wet edge of the presser press it into the 

 foundation. Being hot it vrill melt its way into the founda- 

 tion, and if prest too hard or too long may cut the founda- 

 tion in two. A little experience will enable you to do it 

 right. It is perhaps well to heat the wax little more than 

 enough to keep it melted, for if too hot there will not be so 

 good a coating of wax on it, and if j'ou use a stick not 

 coated with wax at all the bees will dig out the stick. The 

 sticks are put perpendicularly, one about an inch from each 

 end, one in the middle and one on each side of the middle 

 one-half way between it and the end one." 



The only thing not answered therein that you ask is the 

 reason for having the splints Js-inch shorter than the depth 

 of the frame inside measure. The splints are made of bass- 

 wood, and basswood is said to swell and shrink endwise. A 

 stronger reason, however, is that if you have the splints 

 full length it will be very troublesome to get them into 

 place. It doesn't matter whether they are close to the top- 

 bar or bottom-bar. If other points are desired, ask, and 

 your questions will be cheerfully answered. 



Copper Wire for Wiring Frames. 



Will copper wire affect comb or honey ? I should like 

 to use it for wiring frames. Iowa. 



Answer. — I don't know, but I should be afraid of it. 

 The ordinary galvanized iron or steel wire is all right. 



Putting Nuclei on Moldy Comb. 



I have kept a few bees for 12 or IS years, but for the 

 last 8 years for bees and not for honey. I sell colonies to 

 the greenhouses that raise cucumbers (there are about 40 

 houses here.) I put 20 colonies in the cellar last November, 

 that I thought had honey enough ; but 8 starved, and 2 

 died, and left honey, after March 1 ; the other 10 I sold. I 

 think the cellar was too damp, as the comb left by those 

 that died is very moldy. Is it safe to put 2-frame nuclei on 

 that moldy comb ? Massachusetts. 



Answer. — There is no objection to giving moldy combs 

 to nuclei except that they may be too slow in cleaning them 

 up. A good way is to put them at once under strong colo- 

 nies, then they will Jbe in nice condition when needed for 



the nuclei. 



*-•-* 



Swarming and Nuclei Management. 



~ 1. In a strong colony of bees with 7 frames of brood, if 

 you take a frame of brood from them will it help them, or 

 yyill it make less average in the surplus honey from them ? 



c_: 2. To start nuclei, is it better to take six frames of 

 brood, or two frames of brood with bees and use a division- 

 board ? Arizona. 



Answers. — 1. If a colony will hold all its force without 

 swarming, that's the thing to give results in the surplus 

 apartment, and every frame of brood taken away would be 

 taking something from the surplus. If a colony swarms, of 

 course that reduces its surplus, and there might be such a 

 thing as taking away brood to prevent swarming, but a 

 single frame of brood taken away would have but little ef- 

 fect in that direction. Put it down as a basic principle that 



keeping the whole force of a colony together is the way to 

 get a good yield of honey. 



2. To use six frames of brood for a nucleus would be 

 rather expensive, and is not necessary. Two frames of 

 brood with adhering bees make a good nucleus, providinf; 

 none of the adhering bees return to their old home. Take 

 bees that have been queenless two or three days, and they 

 will staj' much better where put. Two nuclei can be put in 

 the same hive, with entrances at opposite sides, a bee-tight 

 division-board between. 



Mating of a Clipt Queen. 



If the queen mates with the drone while on the wing, 

 would not a clipt queen have to be replaced this spring ? 



Subscriber. 



Answer. — No, a clipt queen doesn't need replacing any 



more than she would with whole wings ; a queen mates 



once for life. 



^-•-* 



ttneen-Excluders from Foul-Broody Hives. 



In reply to a question not long ago, I advised boiling 

 such excluders before using again. In a subsequent num- 

 ber I gave the opinion of the expert, Wm. McEvoy, to the 

 effect that no boiling was necessary. Now we have a vary- 

 ing opinion from Editor Root, also high authority in foul 

 brood. In any case it can do no great harm to boil. Mr. 

 Root says, in Gleanings in Bee-Culture : 



" While there is a possibility that queen-excluders in 

 foul-broody hives might not carry infection to colonies in 

 hives on which they were placed, yet I would never take 

 any chances. I would put the whole bundle in a kettle of 

 water and boil not less than two hours, this extent of time 

 being necessary to kill the spores: for, as Mr. Cowan points 

 out, spores are very different from microbes." 



Swarming Management— Belgian Hares. 



1. After a swarm issues, will shifting the old hive from 

 one side to the other of the swarm prevent an after-swarm, 

 or must the queen-cells be cut out ? 



2. When is the proper time to cut them out ? 



3. Where can I get the Belgian hares, and what are they 

 worth per pair ? Minnesota. 



Answers.— 1. The right kind of shifting ought to pre- 

 vent swarming without cutting out queen-cells. The favor- 

 ite way is as follows : Hive the swarm on the old stand, 

 setting the old hive close beside it. A week later, move the 

 old hive to a new place. The bees will do the rest. 



2. If you want to prevent swarming by cutting out 

 cells, listen at night to hear the young queen piping. This 

 may be as early as 6 days after swarming, but most 

 likely later. Next morning after hearing the piping, cut 

 out all queen-cells. 



3. I don't know. If Belgian hares get to be popular 



with bee-keepers, no doubt they will be advertised in these 



columns. 



•^-•-^ 



Arranging Hives-Changing Sections— Shorter Spelling. 



1. On account of space, I have my apiary arranged in 

 rows, 14 hives in a row, 2 feet apart in the row, and the 

 rows 18 feet apart. Would it be better to pair them so as to 

 have each two hives 6 inches apart, and the 3 feet or so be- 

 tweeti the pairs ? 



2. I am using4;4:x4Xxl^ sections. Would you change 

 to the Ideal, 3!sxSxl'< ? 



3. I like the Bee Journal best of all the bee-papers, tho 

 I don't like the short way of spellitfg. I saw where a fellow 

 had "least " (smallest) a piece of ground to run an apiary on. 



Alabama. 

 Answers.— 1. Yes, better have them in pairs with 2 or 

 3 inches between the two hives of each pair. Then there 

 will be only half the chance for a queen or a worker to enter 

 the wrong hive. 



2. That cannot be answered till you find out whether 

 the tall sections will sell better in your market. 



3. Yes, one of the unfortunate things about our lan- 

 guage is that the same word has often more than one mean- 

 ing, as when it is said that a corn-stalk has on it two ears 

 (organs of hearing) ; or poetry has so many " feet " to the 

 line, and yet can't walk. 



