54 



THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER. 



altogether, as they make hiding places 

 for rats and mice also. 



Roseville, Ills. 



[We think it is better to have the 

 alighting board reach to the ground, 

 as we have often seen heavily laden 

 bees drop to the ground in front of a 

 hive and rim up the alighting board 

 into the hive. Coal tar is doubtless 

 the best thing with which to paint the 

 bottom boards, as it not only protects 

 it from the ants but makes it water- 

 proof and consequently dryer and 

 more durable. It is well to paint the 

 sides of hives up about two or three 

 inches also. — Ed.] 



The Wood-Zinc Queen Ex- 

 cluder.— How to Con- 

 struct and use it. 



BY DR. G. L. TINKER. 

 (Continued from March Number.) 



It is not claimed that all burr-combs 

 are prevented by the new system of 

 management with the queen excluder, 

 but that so few are built that the bee- 

 keeper has no trouble in taking apart 

 hives, taking out brood frames, etc. 

 And it is rare to find honey in the 

 burr-combs so built. We however 

 place the queen excluder down within 

 J inch of the top bars of the brood 

 frames. Still this does not prevent 

 burr-combs when we manage in the 

 old way. 



It will be seen, therefore, that the 

 excluder has uses aside from its queen 

 excluding functions that all the bee- 

 keepers must value. The saving of 

 labor in the cleaning up of section 

 cast s, brood frames, etc., will pay for 

 every queen excluder used in a short 

 time and save any amount of vexation 

 besides. The annoyance from burr- 

 combs is perhaps greater to the novice, 



but it is noticeable that even experts 

 in the art of bee-keeping have gone 

 into the thick and wide top bar rem- 

 edy with an enthusiasm worthy of a 

 better cause if they really care noth- 

 ing about burr-combs. As for myself 

 I labored for years to find a practical 

 remedy and it was discovered where 

 least expected in the use of storyfying 

 hives. Thick and wide top bars are 

 only a partial remedy, as bee-keepers 

 will rind out the first good flow of 

 honey that comes, while the new sys- 

 tem of managing with the queen ex- 

 cluder will be found so satisfactory 

 that it is safe to say that the time is 

 not distant when the hive that cannot 

 be successfully used with it will not 

 be used at all. In fact, the bee-keep- 

 ing of the future will be reduced to a 

 science, and economy will become one 

 of its first principles. And that econ- 

 omy will not only prevent the build- 

 ing of burr-combs but will be extend- 

 ed to the control of brood rearing 

 against the wasteful and needless con- 

 sumption of stores that takes place in 

 most of the hives in general use. The 

 queen excluder, in all probability, 

 will be found the only means by which 

 these desirable ends can be met. 



( To be concluded.) 



If the moisture is handled as it 

 should be in a modern hive, cold 

 weather will not injure the bees in the 

 least. If they are well provided with 

 wholesome food, a long duration of 

 extremely.cold weather will not harm 

 them. The slickest manner of ridding 

 the cluster of moisture that I know of 

 is a thin outside case without packing, 

 and a thin, unpainted brood-chamber 

 covered with a cushion. — Alley. 



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