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Fortne American Bee Journal. 



Apiary Work for August. 



G. M. DOOLITTLE. 



If possible, we want our honey room 

 in the warmest part of the building oc- 

 cupied, so as to evaporate the honey 

 that is in the few unsealed cells around 

 the edges of the boxes next to the wood, 

 so that when we come to glass it or get 

 it ready for market the honey will not 

 run out and soil the combs or boxes. 

 To this end we painted our shop a dark 

 color, and located our honey room in the 

 southwest corner so that the rays of the 

 afternoon sun would make it very warm. 

 When we get a ton or so of honey in it, 

 the temperature stands at nearly 90° 

 day and night, as the honey holds the 

 heat generated during the day through 

 the night. By leaving it thus for a 

 month we have our honey so we can tip 

 it over just as we wish without leakage, 

 and if after it gets to market it is stood 

 in a damp cool room, it will be some 

 time before it will take on moisture 

 enough to affect the looks of the comb 

 to any extent. 



We are often asked by correspondents 

 what is the cause of their honey being 

 transparent and oozing out of the cells. 

 The cause is dampness. While in New 

 York city in 1877, 1 saw honey that had 

 been kept in a damp, underground 

 room so long that the sealing of the 

 cells was bursted and the honey had 

 soured so it smelled very badly and was 

 leaking fearfully. While speaking to 

 the parties about it, they said they be- 

 lieved a cellar the best place to keep 

 honey, but it needed little argument to 

 convince them that they were wrong. 

 Of course, this high temperature will 

 cause the moths to hatch soon, but I 

 told you last month how to head them 

 off. 



In this locality the crop of white 

 honey will all be off by the middle of 

 this month, and then we are ready to 

 go to glassing and crating the first off. 

 Have your crate by your side and your 

 glass near you. First get the propolis 

 out of the corners of the box, if there 

 is any where the glass is to come ; then 

 bend up the little tins put in to hold 

 the glass, drop in your glass, and bend 

 down the tins. Now you can scratch 

 off the propolis on the edges of the box 

 without getting it on the honey. Scrape 

 off clean so the box will look nice and 

 tidy, and set in the crate. In crating 

 honey . it is always proper to put the 



best side of the honey out, the same as 

 wool is done up. We once knew a man 

 to do up his wool with the dark or out- 

 side ends out, and he could hardly sell 

 it at any price. Why V Not because 

 the wool was not just as good, but be- 

 cause it did not look so well. Just so 

 with a crate of honey. Market men 

 want the best side out, but don't mis- 

 take and fill up the center of the crate 

 with dark honey. Grade your honey 

 as given last month, and then put the 

 best side of each lot out, but let your 

 white honey be all No. 1 white. 



When the crate is full put on the 

 cover with bright round-headed screws. 

 This gives the crate a nice appearance, 

 does not tend to break the honey by 

 driving nails, and the cost is but a 

 trifle. When crated sandpaper off the 

 sharp corners and top of the crate, and 

 pack nicely away till ready to ship to 

 market. 



We have had much trouble in getting 

 glass cut accurate enough to suit me, as 

 they do not expect to cut very close at 

 the factories, and if a glass is a little 

 large it springs the box from the honey 

 and sets it to leaking. For the past 

 few years we have bought our glass cut 

 6x30 in. and recut it the 5-inch way 

 ourselves. We cut the same as in a 

 miter box ; that is, have a box fixed 

 with regulating screws, so that you can 

 cut the glass just exactly 5 in. every 

 time. Have your cutting stick fastened 

 to the box so the glass will go under it, 

 shove up the screws and cut; leave a 

 drop of 2 in. under, and touch the glass 

 so as to break off where cut and drop 

 down ; shove up and cut again, break- 

 ing off as before. Thus you can cut 

 very fast and be sure every glass is 

 right. 



Sell your honey, if possible, rather 

 than ship on commission, for the re- 

 turns rendered by the commission men 

 are not always satisfactory. Always 

 ship your honey in warm weather (the 

 first half of September), if possible, as 

 it will go much more safely than in cold 

 weather. If you can sell your honey at 

 home do so, but the most of us cannot 

 so dispose of a large quantity. If we 

 prefer to have our buckwheat and fall 

 noney stored in boxes, we leave them 

 on the hive, otherwise it is best to take 

 them off, for the bees daub them with 

 propolis badly at this season of the 

 year. A good way is to take off the 

 boxes and put in frames in place of the 

 side boxes, having them filled to store 

 away for feeding purposes, or get your 

 starters for the bees for next season 

 built now. Bees will build comb very 

 fast in the body of the hive during a 

 good buckwheat yield. 



