THE AMERICAN BEE 



JOURNAL. 349 



storing surplus honey; in fact it was only 

 stopping for an hour or two. 



Gathering from basswood lasted only 

 about a week; white clover failed soon 

 after; since that time tliey have gathered 

 but little more than they have used. We 

 have increased to 130, and also have about 

 20 nucleus stocks for keeping extra queens. 

 We have taken about 1800 lbs., and have 

 racks on about 70 stocks, yet to come off. 

 Our racks hold from 32 to 35 lbs. Many of 

 our stocks have filled the second rack, and 

 one filled the third. This is not as much as 

 some have obtained in other localities, but 

 it is much more than any of our neighboring 

 bee-keepers have got, and is a large yield 

 for the amount of gathering we have had 

 this season. 



Wishing to get our honey in the best pos- 

 sible shape for market, I set about devising 

 a plan, and I send you a rack and set of 

 frames, and you can describe them if you 

 think best. They have proved higiily satis- 

 factory to us. Our honey has been stored 

 in IK to 1% lb. cards; the frame weighing 

 less than 3^ oz.; the cards straight and tine 

 as a rule. The racks will last as long as a 

 hive; the frames cost about two mills each, 

 before they are made up; any one can make 

 a large number in a day. There are some 

 of the manipulations in working them 



For the American liee Journal> 



Feeding Bees and Feeders. '■ i 



But little has been ptrblished of late in:'' 

 the Journal about feeding bees. In oiff 

 cold climate bees should be fed before the 

 20th of Sept. I commenced to feed mine as 

 early as August 20th. Of course, it takes 

 more food to winter a stock fed so early, but 

 then it is better in the end as the hives will 

 be more populous when winter sets in. 

 Late feeding should not be practiced to anj'^ 

 great extent. Stocks begin to grow less in 

 numbers after the middle of Sept. Con- 

 sequently, they do not cover so many combs 

 and unless the food given them is sealed be- 

 fore cool weather sets in, it must remain un- 

 sealed all winter and will sour before spring. 

 The bees will make no attempt to clean it 

 up before warm weather in April. I am 

 satistied that unsealed honey is the direct 

 cause of the death of many stocks of bees 

 every winter. I don't like to use the ex- 

 tractor so late in the season as the month of 

 October. Here oiu- bees gather a very in- 

 ferior quality of honey late in Sept. and 

 every particle of it should be removed. I 

 don't know that it causes dysentery, but 

 then the bees must fly out as often as once 

 a month, or die. My bees are now gather- 

 ing this kind of honey. 



KACK AND FRAMES FOR COMB HONEY. 



which we will describe at a future time, if 

 others should wish to use them. The sur- 

 plus room is so directly in connection with 

 the brood chamber that they seem to store 

 them in preference. Our hives are Langs- 

 troth size, 9 inches deep; the rack sits on 

 the frames, a super sets over it. 



Southard J. Ramsy. 

 Kalamazoo, Mich., Sept. 11, 1877. 



[The rack and set of frames are at hand, 

 and we will ^ive a description, that our 

 readers may judge con-ectly of them. 



The rack, A, is % thick, WJ^xlSK in. 

 outside. B. represents two strips of glass 

 at either side, 3 in. wide. G, strips 1 in. 

 wide and % in. thick, to hold the glass in 

 place, as well as to hold the frame together. 

 C and D, shows the frames or sections, each 

 holding one comb; they are made of thin, 

 berry-box material, and are 5x.5J^ in. and 

 m in. wide. F, shows comb foundation 

 starters. H, shows sheet-iron rests for the 

 "sections;" the edges being turned up as 

 shown, form rests for the rack when on 

 the frames over the brood chamber.— Ed.] 



I have lately used a feeder that is cheap, 

 durable and very convenient, and answers 

 the purpose to a charm. They can be 

 adapted to any kind of a hive in use, and it 

 requires but little ingenuity in any person to 

 doit. I use the " Improved Mason" glass 

 fruit jar which has a glass top. In place of 

 this glass top or cap I use a piece of tin the 

 same size of the top. A few holes are made 

 in it with a brad awl. For slow, gradual 

 feeding, make a few holes in the tin, but for 

 rapid feeding make about 20 holes and a 

 moderately large stock of bees will empty 

 one in two hours. I use the pint size and 

 find them as convenient as any. For the 

 Langstroth hive they can be placed over one 

 of the holes that connect the surplus boxes. 

 The jars cost about 12 cents each by the 

 single one, and probably not over 10 

 cents each, by the dozen. The principle is 

 the same as in any nucleus feeder. I find 

 that six pounds of coffee or granulated 

 sugar and five pints of water maKe the 

 syrup about the right consistency for fall 

 feeding, and I think it should be boiled a 

 few minutes for winter use. If half a pound 

 of honey is added, the bees will like it all 

 the better, as it will give the syrup a good 

 flavor. Bees will winter as well on food 

 prepared as above, as they will on the very 



