19S 



rUE AMERICAN BEE KEEPER. 



July 



are used iu the supers. Just before 

 the surplus-houey season opens we 

 look over all these supers and see 

 that no spider-webs or any thing ob- 

 jectionable is present. The bits of 

 comb, if auy, are removed, frames are 

 put back iu place, and these are 

 ready for the bess. Our queen-ex- 

 cluders are brought from the store- 

 room. The smoker is lighted; the 

 bees are given a little smoke, the ex- 

 cluders placed over the brood cham- 

 bers, and oue super or story is put on 

 over an excluder on all colonies to be 

 run for extracted honey that are 

 strong enough to need extra room. 

 Later, as other colonies become more 

 numerous they are given a super each. 

 Many years ago we practiced equal- 

 ing brood to some extent in the spring, 

 with a view to uniformity in strength, 

 but have not done so for about twenty 

 years. We do not believe in pulling 

 down a good colony to help a weaker 

 one, only to save a queen that we 

 may prize. After the houey-tlow 

 fairly opens we make it a rule to see 

 what is beiug done iu the supers or 

 colonies not yet having extra room, 

 so that, if more room is needed, it may 

 be given at once, never allowing a 

 shortage of room for storing. In doing 

 so, two objects are desired. One is to 

 discourage swarming from overcrowd- 

 ing; the other to secure the greatest 

 amount of surplus honey. We run 

 all colonies two aud three stories high, 

 or one or two supers on each hive of 

 full-depth combs during good honey 

 flows. When the shakiug-ott" plan is 

 is practiced we have two men in the 

 bee yard. Extra empty combs are at 

 hand. Man No. 1 opeus the top su- 

 per or the one with the well-ripened 

 honey; removes the combs and hands 



them to No. 2, who shakes off the 

 bees at the hive-entrance, brushing 

 off a few remaining ones with a brush 

 made of asparagus-tops; places the 

 honey in an empty hive-body on the 

 cart. The one who opens the hive re- 

 moves the filled combs and places 

 empty ones on the hives, and stands 

 behind the hives, the other in front. 

 As soon as the bees are shaken off at 

 hive-entrance he steps back a few 

 feet and puts the cOmbs in the empty 

 story. When the honey from the first 

 hive is on the cart it is run to the 

 honey-room door, and the honey — 

 carried in. Man No. 1, after filling 

 the first super with empty combs, 

 shuts up the hive and opens the next 

 hive. This man keeps the bees under 

 control by using a little smoke as 

 needed. The cart is run back to hive 

 No, 2, with a set of empty combs, and 

 so the work proceeds in the yard. The 

 one in the honey-room removes the 

 combs from the filled supers, which 

 was placed when brought in on a 

 bench about 18 inches high, with two 

 one inch strips running lengthwise at 

 each side on top, ou which the supers 

 are placed, giving room for the 

 fingers in placing and removing un- 

 der the sides of supers. Three supers 

 singletier, or six double-tier, can be 

 so placed if it is desired. 



The one in the honey-room does 

 the uncapping, extracting, and pours 

 the honey into the large cans or bar- 

 rels, using a cloth strainer at all times, 

 which excludes all except the honey. 

 We use an uncapping can in principle 

 like the Dadant, When the apiary 

 has been gone over, third stories are 

 placed on all the stronger colonies. 

 As stated in a former article, I now 

 prefer to use the escapes as there 



