1904 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



395 



wax was removed. This speaks well for 

 the method here described. A plan similar 

 in principle is to put the old combs in a 

 bag-, and then in a boiler of hot water, 

 where it is weighted down. After it has 

 "cooked" it is punched and punched re- 

 peatedly with a stick. As fast as the wax 

 rises to the surface it is dipped oflf. When 

 no more rises after the punching-, the work 

 is done. Any one who can't get more than 

 SO or 75 per cent of the wax must be a very 

 careless operator. — Ed.] 



TO SPREAD BROOD WITHOUT THE USUAL 

 ATTENDANT DANGER. 



The time of year is now coming on when 

 a good many bee keepers will begin to their 

 sorrow to spread their brood, and in other 

 ways try to force their colonies. 



I wish to suggest a simple way by which 

 this may be done without the loss so often 

 attending the operation. This is by simply 

 changing ends with one frame of brood out 

 of three, the middle one of course; or, if a 

 very strong colony, two out of five. By this 

 means the honey in one end of the frame is 

 removed by the bees, and eggs laid by the 

 queen in its place, and in a few days the 

 same thing is done on the two outside 

 frames of brood; or, again, outside of the 

 brood cluster may usually be found a frame 

 of honey with the side nearest the bees till- 

 ed with pollen. Reverse this, bringing the 

 honey close to the patch of brood. This 

 plan answers two purposes — stimu'ative 

 feeding, in that the bees themselves remove 

 the honey from close to the brood, and also 

 stimulates the queen to lay in the whole 

 sheet of comb rather than in small patches 

 in several combs. 



I have found it better, at this time of the 

 year, where colonies are weak, and have 

 two or three combs with small patches of 

 brood, to remove the two outside combs and 

 give them to a stronger colony, and, later, 

 return them whole frames of hatching 

 brood. H. Fitz Hart. 



Wetumpka, Ala., March 1. 



A KINK IN CLEANING BEES OFF FROM EX- 

 TRACTING COMBS. 



I will give you what I call a valuable 

 kink in cleaning off the bees from extract- 

 ing-combs. It may be old, but I haven't 

 seen it in print. I go to the hive, take out 

 two combs, set them down, then I move over 

 the next one so I can get at each side with 

 a Coggshall brush. I smoke a little, and 

 rub the sides of the comb with the brush. 

 The bees will tumble oiJ and disappear in 

 the lower part of the hive. Take out this 

 comb, do the next the same, until all are 

 cleaned ofif and taken out. Take out as 

 fast as cleaned off. Thea put the two 

 combs first taken out back in, and brush. 

 The combs in a ten frame hive can be 

 cleaned in two minutes, and not a bee out- 

 side of the hive to crawl round — no queen 

 lost, or robbers to bother. Before I adopted 

 this method, when I shook them ofP some- 



times they would come bick with a ven- 

 geance; besides, the grass is full of bees 

 for some time. The new way, the bees 

 seem to be so much surprised that hardly 

 one will take wing. W. D. Soper. 



Jackson, Mich. 



[I believe your plan to be good. It is 

 worth the trying. It is very annoying to 

 have the bees in the grass, and possibly 

 under foot, and crawling up pants. — Ed.] 



SHALLOW HIVFS; HOW THE USER OF THEM 



MAY HAVE THE ADVANTAGE OVKR HIS 



FELLOW BEE KEEPER WHO DOES 



NOT USE THEM. 



Since my article appeared, March 15, I 

 have received several letters inquiring about 

 this high- pressure comb honey- production 

 system There seems to be a demand 

 among honey-producers, especially those in 

 rather poor loca ions, for a system of very 

 shallow frames and divisible brood-cham- 

 bers that will enable them to produce comb 

 honey where now they are compelled to 

 extract. By this system I h ve b^en able 

 to produce paying crops of comb honey 

 right along- when my neighbors with deep 

 frames have been compelled to quit produc- 

 ing comb honey. Any one can produce ex- 

 tracted honey; but it takes an expert to pro- 

 duce comb honey here; but if he cm do it 

 he has the market all right. J. E. Hand. 



Birmingham, Ohio, Mar. 29. 



FRAME-TONGS FOR " SHOOK " SWARMS. 



I send a description of a little tool which 

 I think will be found a great convenience 

 to most bee-keepers. I call it a brood frame 

 tong. The cut shows plainly how it is 

 made; but the reader will have to get his 



blacksmith to make it unless he is fortunate 

 enough to have a forge of his own. It is 

 made of two pieces of ?s-inch steel or iron 

 rod, each about 12 inches long, and bent as 

 shown in cut about four inches from each 

 end. The jaws should be long enough to 

 reach to the bottom of the top bar, and the 

 tips should be bent in a trifle so as to go 

 under the top-bar just'enough to prevent its 

 slipping out. The parts are made just 



