24 



' THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



[July. 



[For the Americaa Bee Journal.] 



Eemarks on Wintering, &c. 



Mk. Editor : — Having been so pressed with 

 work in connection with honey extractors, hive 

 making, and the care of an increasing apiary, I 

 have not contributed anything, good, bad, or in- 

 different, to our valuable Journal, for some time. 

 In the June number I find that many lost their 

 bees the past winter. Let me give you my ex- 

 perience in wintering. As I stated in the Janu- 

 ary number, 1 wintered over seven swarms to 

 start with in the spring of 1860, and increased 

 them to twenty-five that season. They had 

 nearly all twelve frames of comb each. 



In Ihe fall I emptied the honey from enough 

 combs with the honey extractor, to place three 

 empty ones (combs) in the centre of each hive, 

 and though they were rather weak in numbers, 

 I did not lose a single swarm. They stood out 

 all winter on tlieir summer stands. Two-thirds 

 of them had double cased hives ; and those were 

 in better condition than the sinirle inch hives. 

 One hive had three apartments, with tbree to four 

 frames only in each, divided with one inch divi- 

 sion boards. They came tli rough in fine condi- 

 tion with three queens each. Having plenty of 

 empty comb, and no more honey than they 

 needed, they were stronger than I ever knew 

 them to be at swarming time. 1 went over them 

 often, inserting an empty comb between two full 

 ones (of brood) which kept the queen laying 

 eggs to her full capacity. 



I neve rsaw bees store honey at this season 

 of the year, as they do at present. Inserting 

 empty frames between full ones, the bees build 

 a large part drone comb and fill it with honey di- 

 rectly. But by emptying the best Avorker comb 

 with the extractor, gives the queen room to lay 

 her full quota. The Honey Extractor has been 

 proved to be indispensable to successful bee- 

 culture. 



I am sorry to hear of Novice's repeated misfor- 

 tunes; but hope he will take friend Argo's hint 

 as to the day he writes on, and perhaps he will 

 be more successful in future. 



I have now twenty new swarms, up to June 

 10th, and some of my first new swarms are 

 strong enough to divide again. 



J. L. Pkabodt. 



Virden, Ills. 



[For tlie .\mcrlcan Bee Journal.] 



Quinby's Queen-Yard and Hive. 



Mu. Editor: — Your correspondent "Tyro," 

 seems not to understand how to make or use 

 " Quinby's queen-yard" For his benefit let me 

 say the "yard" is simply a box eighteen (18) 

 inches square, (or less if you wish,) and three 

 (3) inches high, made as follows : Take half- 

 inch board or strij), three inches wide, and saw 

 two pieces eighteen indies long, and two seven- 

 teen inclies long. Nail the longer ones on the 

 ends of the short ones, to form the sides of a 

 box ; and nail on a bottom board of thin lumber. 

 Tack strips of tin two inches wide and eighteen 



inches long around the top, projecting inward. 

 Cut a hole or holes in one end of the box, corres- 

 ponding with the entrance hole or holes to your 

 hive, so that the top of the bottom board of the 

 box will come even with the bottom of the en- 

 trance to your hive. Place the box in front of 

 the hive, tight to it — may hold it with a screw — 

 so that no bee can leave or enter the hive with- 

 out passing through the box. If your queen's 

 wings are clipped she cannot leave, to lead off a 

 swarm. She will run out into the yard, but will 

 be compelled to return to the hive. Though 

 the bees have clustered somewhei'e, they will re- 

 turn. 



It worked so well last year that I have them 

 on all my hives this year. Novice's plan of let- 

 ting the queen run out, and finding her, will do, 

 if he always knows when they swarm ; but with 

 the yard I need not hunt her up, and she must 

 return whether I am at home or not. 



And now, Mr. Editor, I wish I could say as 

 much in favor of 



Tfic Quinhy Hive. 



If Novice suffered no greater loss than that of 

 his Quinby hive, he need not feel much regret. 

 I am sorry to say that I have one that I should 

 be right glad to dispose of for twenty per cent, 

 of first cost. 



I do not profess to know all about bees or bee- 

 hives, and that may account for my not aj^pre- 

 ciating this hive. The only redeeming feature 

 that I can see in this hive, is the surplus box 

 room ; and that is no better than, if as good as, 

 Hazen's. 



As to its being a movable comb or frame hive, 

 that is quite a joke ! True the frames are there ; 

 and as it now stands — empty — I can take them 

 out and put them back, tins and all, in from fif- 

 teen to twenty-five minutes. But if it were full 

 of combs and bees, and each crack and crevice 

 glued, as they will be after one season's use, 

 what then ? ' ' Oh, who could the mighty task per- 

 form?" 



Let me see, there are twenty-eight (28) strips 

 of tin to be removed, every time you handle the 

 frames ; one-half of those from grooves between 

 the ends of the frames, and the others on top. 

 And all this merely to avoid Langstroth's 

 patent ! I don't wonder that Mr. Quinby refuses 

 to publish a full description, measurement and 

 all, of his hive': 



There mine stands, in the barn. What shall 

 I do with it. Ah, I am resolved what to do — 

 put a swarm in it, and then cultivate 'patience in 

 manipulating it. Happy though.t ! 



A. C. Manwell. 

 Whitewater, June 10, 1870. 



Hive Bees Devoured by Hornets. — The 

 Paper Hornet ( Vc^ia Maculata often enters my 

 nucleus hives, when I am rearing Italian queen 

 bees, and captures the young queen in the midst 

 of her little colony ; usually just after she has 

 commenced her first laying. I have seen this 

 depredator enter the small hive, drag out the 

 queen, and ^y away with her to the woods. — 

 Jared p. Kirtland, in American Naturalist. 



