56 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



.Ian. 1.'). 



spacing-sticks that slide down between the end- 

 bars of frames, which hold them as firmly as 

 tight-fitting or fixed-distance frames. I prefer 

 to have my frames always loose, and resting on 

 hemmed tin rabbets, for about 363 days in the 

 year. In case I want them all tight for moving 

 the other one or two days, I put them in that 

 condition in a short time. Finally, Dr. M., you 

 had better make your frames to suit yourself: 

 but above all things, have them made better 

 than yonr frames have been made heretofore. 

 When he gets every thing in shape, and has 

 used this new-departure hive, I hope he will 

 tell us all what it is like and how it works. 

 Santa Paula, Cal., Dec. 7. Jno. G. Cokey. 



[There is one point that you seem to have 

 overlooked on the rabbet question No matter 

 how accurately they are cut, if of wood, or how 

 accurately made if of metal, little lumps of pro- 

 polis will collect on the under side of the bear- 

 ing surface of the top-bars, so that the frames 

 will hang more or less out of true; and, again, 

 there is not one man in a hundred who will 

 nail the ordinary swinging frame (no matter 

 how accurately cut) so that, when the same is 

 laid on a smooth and true surface, like a mar- 

 ble slab, it (the frame) will touch the slab at all 

 points. But suppose he does put them up as 

 true as a die; subsequent wiring, or moisture of 

 the colony, will be apt to throw them out a lit- 

 tle. We have looked into the hives of many 

 apiarists, and find that the bottom - bars of 

 swinging frames vary in spacing, as Dr. Mil- 

 ler says. We will venture to say, that we can 

 find the bottom-bars of your frames in like con- 

 dition. If we can't, it will be the first apiary of 

 loose swinging frames of the kind we ever came 

 across. The only way to get correct spacing is 

 by having shoulders of some kind.— Ed.] 



•ANSWERS TO c-—^ 



Seasonable QiiESTiwI 



BY G.M.DOOLITTLE.BORODINO.N.Y. 



S^^^^ 



Question. — As I am about preparing for the 

 coming season, I should like to ask if it is prac- 

 ticable to produce comb honey in marketable 

 shape without the use of separators. If such 

 is the case, it will cost me less in getting up my 

 surplus arrangements. 



yl?j.sircr.— This matter of separators or no 

 separators was a " bone of contention " from six 

 to ten years ago; but of late we hear little 

 about it. At that time many of our prominent 

 bee-keepers, such as Heddon, Hutchinson, 

 Demaree, Tinker, and others, thought that, 

 with proper width of sections, and with black 

 or hybrid bees, where a good honey-flow was 

 the rule, separators might be dispensed with, 

 and the crop of honey ilt edged " for mar- 



ket. Others, who were more reserved in their 

 opinions, like Dr. Miller, thought it best to go 

 slow, as they were not making a success in try- 

 ing to get along without separators. Still oth- 

 ers, like myself, yvho generally glassed their 

 honey (as the eastern markets called for a cer- 

 tain amount of glassed honey), claimed that it 

 was impossible to do away with separators and 

 yet have the faces of the comb even enough so 

 they could be glassed, without damaging them 

 to a greater or less extent. I have several times 

 tried to do away with separators, but each trial 

 has resulted in loss, so with me I can say it is 

 not practical to try to produce honey without 

 separators, even did the cost of separators be- 

 come double and treble what they now are. If 

 any person is now raising comb honey largely 

 for market, and not using separators, I am not 

 aware of the fact, and would advise no one, es- 

 pecially a beginner, to try to raise comb honey 

 without their use. 



Question. — How about reversible frames ? Do 

 you use them, and is there enough gained by 

 their use to pay for their extra cost and the ex- 

 tra manipulation required? 



Ansiver. — Here again we have one of the dis- 

 puted questions of the past. Reversible frames 

 had a more extended " airing " than did the no- 

 separator matter, multitudes of plans for good 

 reversible frames and their manipulation being 

 placed before the readers of the bee - papers 

 some eight or ten years ago; but, if my memo- j 

 ry serves me rightly. I saw the names of many 

 of our most prominent apiarists, in the query 

 department of one of our bee- papers, on the 

 negative side of this matter not long ago; and 

 if any are now making a business of using and 

 manipulating reversible frames I am not aware 

 of the fact. The main object for which they 

 were brought into existence was that of com- 

 pelling the bees to store all their honey in the 

 sections by reversing the frames as often as thej 

 bees lengthened out the cells along the top-bars 

 of the frames and filled them with honey, thus 

 placing this honey in an unnatural position 

 and causing the bees to remove it; and as then 

 was now brood in the upper part of the frames 

 this removed honey could not be stored there, 

 hence must be stored in the sections. This the 

 ory looks fine; but when I came to put it ir 

 practice I found the bees did not think it jus! 

 the thing, and colonies so worked accumulatecj 

 no more in the sections than did others lei 

 alone, while at the end of the season the coloi 

 nies left alone showed a decided advantage, in- 

 asmuch as they had honey enough to winter on; 

 with little or no honey in those whose frames! 

 had been reversed several times. The c ain' 

 was also made, that the reversing of frame!] 

 would do away with swarming, as the queen: 

 occupying the reversed queen -cells would al' 

 die. Many queens in the embryo form wouh' 

 thus die; but as swarms were sure to issue fron 



