276 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Apr. 15. 



of my super. Being 5 inches deep, my super 

 must be 5^ inches deep. Eight 1%-thick sec- 

 tions equal 14 inches. I am going to recom- 

 mend separators J^^' inch thick; and where the 

 section uprights join the separator I will cleat 

 It across with >8 -inch cleats, so my separator 

 will be % inch thick where the section joins it. 

 having a half bee-space in each face, between 

 cleats. See illustration of wood separator in 

 Fig. 5. Since I allow a half bee-space — count- 



ing ^ inch as a bee-space— in each face of the 

 separator, I will cut down the thickness of my 

 sections just that much. This will make my 

 sections just ly, instead of 1%. My super will 

 then be 8 sections l^o', plus 7 separators %, plus 

 3^-inch strip on each super side, a total inside 

 width of 14% inches. The super is to have ad- 

 justability in its width, so I have it 5J^xl5xl6. 

 Fig. 3 shows rim or body. 



If one uses t'he tin separators, the sections 

 should be J^ inch thicker than with the cleated 

 wooden one. If the cleated one be used with 

 the thin section, when the sections are cased 

 for market there will be only X inch space 

 between comb faces, whereas with the plain 

 separator there is y inch space. These thin 

 sections will not require the case to be so wide 

 by 1}4 inches in the 24-section size. 



with surplus fixtures, except when extracting. 

 I purpose having brood-chambers, extracting- 

 supers, and section-supers completely inter- 

 changeable, that the same body may be used 

 for either. To accomplish this I make the 

 brood and extracting frames just the depth of 

 sections, and just as long as 4 sections, and 

 close-fitting wide end-bar. See frame in Fig. 4. 

 The sections are supported in the super by 

 the separators, the little spurs shown at A and 

 B— see Fig. 5— being imbedded in the uprights 

 of the sections, and all held there by compres- 

 sion, the compression being applied when the 

 super is filled, and sustained while on the hive 

 by the bolts, shown in Fig. 1, or by rods as in 

 Fig. 4. The rod method, as in Fig. 4, is the 

 original form as patented in the Aikin-Knight 

 "K. D." hive. The bolt method, as in Fig. 3, 

 is equally good, is neater, allows greater lati- 

 tude in adjustability, and places the nuts and 

 threaded parts away from wet and rust. The 

 separators are longer than the net inside 

 measure of the super, and reach past the sec- 



Our old hives have been so constructed that 

 the brood-chamber could not be interchanged 



tions into the inset or gain in the super ends, 

 hence the compression has simply to hold the 

 mass together, the weight being carried by the 

 separator ends on the shoulder in the inset. 

 The brood-frames are held in the same way, 

 except that the tin support (see Fig. 5) hangs 

 on the inset shoulder and under the frame end 

 at the bottom. 



This hive is a divisible-brood-chamber one, 

 hive-bodies to be used as brood, extracting, or 

 sections, at will. Taking out frames and tin 

 supports, and putting in sections and separators, 

 converts it from one to the other. Both comb 

 and extracted can be produced at the same 

 time. 



SWARMING CONTROLLED. 



My method of controlling swarming is by 

 unqueening. This, with ordinary hives, re- 

 quires removing queens, then nine days later 

 emoving all cells but one, or even all, and giv- 



