THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



63 



Surplus Honey. 



REAB BEEOKE THE MICH. B. K. ASSOCI- 

 ATION, DEC. 31, 1876. 



The best method of obtaining surplus 

 honey is probably yet unknown, but my ex- 

 perience is that I can get it better in small 

 frames of from 1 to 4 lbs., than in any other 

 way, and sell it too, for that matter; for we 

 need offer only the nicest for sale, using the 

 others, after extracting, as guides again. 

 The best supers 1 have ever used are boxes 

 without top or bottom, sitting directly on 

 the ends of the frames l)elow; the frames of 

 all to hang on the upper edge of hive and 

 boxes. These edges are made sharp by 

 having frames touch each other at the ends 

 for about 13^ inch, and open between. We 

 can put on another super, over or under, 

 can make all tight with quilts, pieces of 

 wood or leave open for ventihition. There 

 should be a space of % iucli hctwfen upper 

 and lower frames. The super sliould cover 

 the hive completely and contain one or two 

 division boards so that we can make the 

 space large or small to suit circumstances, 

 and directly over the brood nest. I have 

 had three supers filled the past season on 

 one hive; they were ail kept on till Sept.; 

 their weight is 140 lbs. It is necessary to 

 have at least one guide-comb, reaching 

 down to stepping distance, for the bees to 

 climb up on; put this over the brood nest. 

 My hives are 2 ft. long, 1 ft. wide, and lOJ-^ 

 in. deep. My supers, 6 in. deep and cover- 

 ing the hive. 



Ventilation has a good deal to do with 

 surplus honey, especially box honey. Give 

 plenty of ventilation, above as well as 

 below, in very hot weather. But we should 

 have strong colonies for comb honey, and 

 keep them so. With black bees and my ar- 

 rangement, I think there would be but few 

 swarms to hinder. But I use those broad- 

 banded, light colored Italians, and when 

 they swarm, the queen drops on the grass; 

 I pick her up in a cage; put her on the 

 frames and let the bees return; then in the 

 afternoon proceed to make a swarm, with 

 this caged queen, from her own hive (but 

 make it very small to save the (jueen) and 

 the hive is still strong. 



Now, in mj^ experience this hive works 

 better than if we left the queen* and cut 

 off queen cells, for the bees work right 

 along, but will fill the cells from which 

 young bees hatch, until a young queen 

 hatches; piping will then be heard. If the 

 harvest is rather scantf we must either cut 

 oif all but one of those cells, before piping 

 is heard, or having heard it, take away 

 every piping qiieen and leave a younger 

 queen or cell. Then all will go on smoothly, 

 and the filling of boxes will proceed. 



As soon as the queen is accepted, and 

 there are no rivals, the bees will unload the 

 brood cells (for the expected eggs of their 

 new queen) and carry the honey above to 

 the supers; and if there is a chance, will 

 clear a space as large as they need. This is 

 just my experience with my yellow Alpine 

 bees and small frames and supers. 



Delhi, Mich. J. L. Davis. 



For the American Bee Journal. 



Answer to J. C. Newman. 



The idea of preventing increase as given 

 in the A. B. J., Nov., 1876! W. keeps his 

 queens' wings clipped. I do not; the idea 

 is new to me; will try it next season. I 

 will answer you by giving the process 

 again. 



Prevent increase all we can by giving 

 shade and plenty of surplus room. When 

 they do swarm, turn the old hive so that 

 the swarm will not enter it, but go into the 

 new hive, which place close to the old one. 

 You can give the swarm a comb from the 

 old hive or not. After the swarm has got 

 nicely to work and are satisfied, remove 

 their empty frames with the starts they 

 have made, which will do for other hives or 

 for surplus boxes, and give them— the 

 swarm— the contents of the old hive, viz: 

 combs, bees, surplus boxes (minus queen 

 cells), and remove old hive; which keep for 

 another swarm. J. W. says they will go 

 ahead and finish up boxes, and work as 

 though nothing had happened. It is a little 

 trouble, but tell us a better way? 



D. D. Palmek. 



For iTie American Bee .Journal. 



Comb Foundations. 



Mk. Newman:— In the Jan. number of 

 the A. B. J., I see a couple of articles say- 

 ing bees do not thin down and lengthen out 

 cells in foundation comb. I disagree with 

 the gentlemen, as I have specimens in mv 

 hives, where, on a single strip 3 in. wide, 1 

 have natural foundation as inserted, cells 

 complete and capped cells parti v built, and 

 cells thinned doivn, so that they resemble 

 tissue paper for thinness, and' it plainly 

 shows where th« bees quit thinning and 

 lengthening out cells. This is from foun- 

 dation you sent me last summer. 



The only fault I find is, it sags down in 

 hot weather, making oval cells;' and on 

 the upper edge bees refuse to work on it 

 where it has so stretched, except on one 

 side, making crooked, irregular combs. I 

 do not think it is pure beeswax. 



This is a hard winter here for bees, and I 

 think many will lose their stocks. Mine 

 are all right yet, and throw off a great deal 

 of moisture. 1 do not believe in cellar win- 

 tering, unless especially fitted up for the 

 purpose. I am wintering in my workshop, 

 packing hives in straw and chaff, without a 

 fire in the building. C. F. Gkeening. 



* There is an opposition to the old queen 

 and they will sometimes kill her; she will 

 not lay much better; take her away. 



+ In"a full harvest they generally allow 

 the first hatched queen to kill the others. 



For the American Bee Journal. 



Guide Combs. 



" Which are the best guides in the brood 

 chamber?" is a question often asked. Bees 

 will build on sharp edges of wood, well 

 enough; and will build straight enough, 

 but that is not all there is of it; we want 

 straight worker comb. Bees, if left to 

 themselves, build store combs at the top, in 

 the corners and on the sides of square 

 frames, no matter what guides are used: 

 and it may be small or worker cells, and 

 still not be fit to breed in on account of not 

 being horizontal. What we want is regular 

 brood combs throughout the frame, at will: 

 in fact in all of the frames in the brood 

 chamber. I will state how 1 get it. 



