SOUTHERN BEE CULTURE yg 



be somewhat too many for the best yield per colony. That number is usually 

 given at one hundred. I think it is rather too much than too little. 



We will now consider what might be called the situation — that is, the par- 

 ticular place in the location selected, in which you will plant your apiary. 

 In the first place you must select good people as far as possible— those who 

 own the land that they cultivate. Renters are, as a rule, not a very desirable 

 class of people to deal with. Besides that, they move often,, and the next one 

 might not care to have your bees. 



How much should be paid for the land occupied? I do not know. All 

 the people with whom I have had bees, or those to whom I have spoken on 

 the subject, have positively refused any pay. Needless to say, that, if you 

 don't pay any cash, you must see that they should be compensated in honey 

 or otherwise. Even if you pay, don't be too stingy, and be sure to be on 

 good terms with the people who have your bees, and also with the neighbors. 

 You don't know when your bees will sting somebody or somebody's horse ; 

 and should it happen, the good will of the people will go a long way toward 

 fixing up the matter. 



Put the apiary as close to the house as po-ssible without interfering with 

 the people and the stock. This is to prevent too much stealing. If too far 

 from the house, you may find some of the honey gone and some of the bees 

 destroyed. But they should be where they can not give trouble or be in 

 the way. 



I prefer a grove of trees to any other place. The shade is a considerable 

 help to the bees and to the apiarist during the day; and, what is usually 

 overlooked, they are a protection against the cold and the dampness of the 

 night — at least in the early spring and in the fall. 



Water should be close by. A running creek or spring is not exactly what 

 is wanted. The bees sip the water from the mud or damp earth, and pre- 

 ferably in a warm place well exposed to the sun. Even in the hottest days 

 they will go where the sun shines if they have the choice. 



In the early spring the bees need a considerable amount of water, and 

 they will go out in quite cold weather to get it; and if the water is not 

 warmed up by the sun, the bees may get chilled and perish. 



I put my hives on benches about eighteen inches high, with the legs driven 

 into the ground to some depth. The bottoms and hives are fastened to the 

 benches so that they will hold well, and yet can be unfastened when desir- 

 able, which with my method of management very rarely happens. This 

 enables me to work standing instead of stooping down. It helps against the 

 depredations of ants, toads, lizards, etc. But the greatest advantage is that 

 the hives can not be upset. I have not yet obtained a location where the 

 owner did not want to turn in occasionally some hogs, or calves at least, 

 and sometimes even the cows. With the hives thus placed, there is no 

 danger of a disaster — only an occasional sting. It is the upsetting of a hive 

 loosely placed on the ground that causes serious trouble. 



As to the management, there is no difference between the home apiary 

 and the out-apiaries except in regard to swarming. To pay somebody to watch 



