34 SOUTHERN BEE CULTURE 



tng the honey-flow, and at the close of them. Work to get the bees in readi- 

 ness for the honey-flow. Work to give them the proper room to store honey 

 during the flow, and work to remove and market it at the close of the flow. 

 Of course, the amount of work is governed by the size of the apiary and the 

 extent of the honey-flow. 



There are three essential things to know in successfiil apiary work, and 

 they are: i. To know what to do. 



2. When to do it. 



3. How to go about it to accomplish it best. First, let us consider our 

 duty to our bees, if we owe one, and we surely do for they are very useful 

 and necessary insects in the vegetable or plant kingdom upon which we so 

 depend. Then, too, their products are very valuable and necessary. Our 

 appetite calls for honey, and our frail bodies need it to nourish them ; and the 

 mission of the honey-bee and its field of work, and the usefulness of its 

 products, show conclusively that it was not sent among us as a pest to be 

 brimstoned, or its culture ignored. Notwithstanding, thousands of colonies 

 have been killed in various ways, as all they had to subsist on was taken 

 away from them, which soon resulted in their death. Yet a few are left 

 awaiting cultivation and to do this we must read, study, think, and apply 

 ourselves' to apiary work, so that we may know the needs of our bees. 



Second, while we are applying ourselves to know apiary work we must 

 not forget there is a time to do all things ; and to do it properly it must be 

 done at the right time or loss will be the result. It is necessary that we 

 walk about the woods and know about when to expect the honey-plants, that 

 yield a surplus of honey, to bloom. 



The time to do apiary work in the South varies considerably; and the 

 time to prepare bees for the honey-flow varies greatly in different sections 

 and locations; and even the honey-plants are by no means the same every- 

 where. Different plants here and there yield honey at different times of 

 the year all over the South, so there is much for every bee-keeper to solve 

 in his own immediate location, especially as to the time of apiary work. 



Third, next is applying the work properly. With the needs of the bees 

 clear in mind, and the time of supplying them known, the apiary work ought 

 to glide along smoothly, and the bees make great progress under the guiding^ 

 hand of their keeper; but the work should be done considerately, watching 

 the bees closely that the work may bring progress to them. 



With these ideas in mind, what to do, when to do, and how to do apiary 

 work, and with a feeling that, if we keep bees, it is our duty to give them 

 a small portion of our time at least, let us take up apiary work for one year 

 in as simple and condensed a form as possible. 



APIARY WORK FOR JANUARY. 



This is usually our coldest month, and about all that can be done is to 

 paint the hives if the weather is dry and not too cold to work. Also honey- 

 houses might be erected and supplies ordered for the season, and some of 

 them set up during "the latter part of the month, if they arrive in time. 



