1904 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



337 



I have been wondf ring- for some time if it 

 were not pc ssible or practicable to use straw 

 in the building' of our hives, and thus save 

 in part the expensive lumber. Perhaps 

 straw in combination with paper might do. 



greiner's home-made winter-case. 



Straw can be raised quickly on demand, 

 and it would seem that the American ger ius 

 could contrive a practical method of utiliz- 

 ing this material. It is most excel'ent ma- 

 terial for hives, and, as is well known, has 

 been used for centuries in this construction 

 by European bee-keepers. It seems to me 

 that it is well worth the while to devote some 

 study to this subjed. 



I have no doubt that hive bodies, covers, 

 flocr-boards, elc, could be made from pulp 

 — all in one piece, without a^eam; but they 

 might be more expensive than even pine 

 lumber. Who can tell us about it? 



Naples, N. Y. 



[So far straw board is very much more 

 expensive than pine lumber. The time may 

 come, however, when we can use some ma- 

 terial made of straw. This article was 

 written during the early part of winter. It 

 will be interesting to know how the bees 

 come cut. — Ed.] 



A CHEAP, SERVICEABLE, HOME-MADE UNCAP- 

 PINGCAN. 



Moving Bees in Box Hives; Honte-made Hive-covers. 



BY E. F. ATWATER. 



Take a large-sized galvanized-iron tub; 

 cut out the bottom to within an inch of the 

 circumference, and solder in its place a 

 large circular piece of heavy galvanized- 

 wire screen. This makes the upper part of 

 the capping-can. Now take another tub, 

 slightly smaller, f jr the lower part, to re- 

 ceive the honey which drains from the cap- 

 pings. Make four hooks of iron >8X1X4 



inches, bent in the shape shown in the cut 

 at B. Hang these on the rim of the lower 

 tub so that they will support the upper one. 

 Now get out a piece of clear pine, 1X2 inch- 

 es, and about 3 inches longer than the 

 width of the top of the upper tub. Drive a 

 large long screw through the center of this 

 piece, and file the point until it is sharp. 

 Raise the handles of the tub, and slip the 

 strips under them. If desired, a honey- 

 gate iniy be soldered in the lower tub. 

 Such a capping-can is cheap and efficient, 

 especially in moderate-sized apiaries. 



HOW TO MOVE BEES WITH OPEN ENTRANCES. 



I move bees over rather rough roads, in 

 spring or fall, without springs or hay, and 

 with no loss. I have just finished moving 

 an outyard of 115 colonies a distance of 

 seven miles. Some of the colonies were in 

 old box hives recently purchased; and as it 

 was almost impossible to f isten the bees in, 

 owing to cracks and crevices, we threw a 

 large wagon-sheet over the load and tied it 

 down at the corners. By occasionall3' pour- 

 ing a good volume of smoke under the wagon- 

 sheet, which retains more or less of it for 

 some time, the bees are subdued and kept 

 so. This has proved a very useful "kink" 

 to me when moving old hives. 



HIVE-COVERS. 



About a year ago I described the McClel- 

 lan hive-cover, which you illustrated in 

 Gleanings; using the same principle, I am 

 now making double covers which are light, 

 cheap, and durable. Get out y% or yi inch 

 stuff, in one or more pieces, to be as wide 

 as the hive, and an inch or more longer. 

 Nail cleats about Yz X2 across at each end, 



TUB CAPPING-CAN AND PARTS. 



and one in the middle. On these cleats 

 nail the best cedar shingles, as shown in 

 cut. If you wish a dead-air space, cleats 

 must also be nailed in the openings at the 

 sides of the cover. Give the shingles two 

 or three coats of good white paint, and 

 your lids will last for years. The material 



