438 



Gleanings in Bee Culture 



the lower speed and greater range of vision 

 possible. 



Finally, on the sixth day. when I reached 

 my destination at Hatzie, about forty miles 

 from Vancouver, I was unlucky for the first 

 time. It chanced to be a very warm day, 

 and bees from all over the neighborhood 

 swarmed around the empty supers in the 

 car. This excited my bees, and, I think, 

 caused what loss 1 suffered. I could not get 

 a teamster to unload the car until the follow- 

 ing' day; and by the time the bees were ac- 

 tually released, they had been confined in 

 the hive for nine days. In one colony prac- 

 tically all the bees were dead. Two others I 

 united with weak stocks. In all three of 

 these colonies, heavy combs had broken, 

 and the entrances were choked with dead 

 bees and honey. On the whole, I think it 

 was a very successful trip for a man entirely 

 inexperienced in handling bees on a car. 



Hatzie, B. C, Canada. 



[During cold weather (cold enough to 

 freeze) it is not necessary to use screens on 

 top of the hives, providing you give sufficient 

 bottom ventilation. But if the bees are lia- 

 ble to be unloaded on a warm day, as in your 

 case, it is a wise precaution to have screen 

 tops. These can be covered on the trip if a 

 man is along and it is cold. — Ed.] 



THE DANZENBAKER HIVE. 



Some Changes Suggested in It; the Hand Switch 

 Bottom-board. 



BY REV. F. G. BAILEY, 



I ajn uncomi)romisingly in favor of the 

 ten-frame hive, whatever may be the depth 

 of frame. I^et us have this as a basis for 

 uniformity of dimensions. Of the ten-frame 

 hives, after some years of exjjerience, I have 

 become ])artial to the Danzenbaker. I pre- 

 fer a closed-enil, reversible, and shallow 

 frame. These features we have at least in 

 the broo<l-chaml3er of this hive. And now 

 let me say that my i)urpose in writing this 

 is to suggest some changes in the suj^er of 

 this hive, and in the divisible or sectional- 

 brood-chamber form of it which will give us 

 the valuable advantages of the reversible 

 feature in connection with both the shallow 

 frames and the section-holders. With its 

 exi)ansible and adjustible features, so well 

 adapted to all conditions of climate and the 

 varial)le circumstances of each intUvidual 

 colony, so easily manipulated Ijy any one 

 who will give it a little care and study. I can 

 not but believe that it is destined to become 

 a widely used hive. It has certainly grown 

 upon me. and that, too. when I was origi- 

 nally i)rejudiced against it. My suggestions 

 for changes are the following, which I have 

 put into i)ractice now for some years. 



First, make the Danzenbaker super and 

 divisible or sectional brood-chamber just % 

 inch deeper. This will give space for a top 

 slat on the section-holder. Then ])ut the 

 pivots in the center of the end-pieces of the 



section-holders, and cut the cleats on which 

 they rest down to 1% inches, thus making the 

 section-holders reversible, which will give us 

 sections of honey well finished at top and 

 bottom, while the sections themselves will 

 be kept clean from all stains and propolis. 



Secondly, make the shallow frames % inch 

 deeper, put their pivots also in the center of 

 the end-pieces, thus making the frames re- 

 versible, and so giving the solid slabs of 

 Ijrood or extracting combs which can be got- 

 ten only with reversible frames. 



I have just looked over one of these sec- 

 tional-brood-chamber hives constructed as 

 above described; and, though it is only the 

 first day of May, there are beautifully finish- 

 ed sections of "comb honey and solid slabs 

 of brood in the four stories of that divisible 

 hive, jammed full of beautiful Italian bees. 



One other suggestion which only those 

 who desire need follow. It is for those who 

 would handle these hives by the sectional 

 parts rather than by single frames or section- 

 holders. 



Instead of the wedge-shaped strip used at 

 the ends of the frames and section-holders, 

 1 use another cleat 2^4 inches wide. I force 

 this down, as was done with the strip, until 

 it is even with the ujjper edge of the end of 

 the super, or sectional brood-chamber. This 

 brings the lower edge of this cleat within }^ 

 inch of the upper edge of the cleat below, 

 allowing the pivots this much play. Then 

 with two metal thumbscrews yi^\'}i inches, 

 put through the sides of the super near the 

 end into the ends of this cleat, it is secured 

 fast in its i)lace; and now when the combs 

 in the frames or section-holders are ready to 

 be reversed, the entire section can be invert- 

 ed end for end. A slight jnessure on the 

 frames or section-holders will cause them — 

 division-board, springs, and all — to slip 

 down, leaving the %-u\(th. bee-space above, 

 as it should be. Thus you see the frames 

 can be handled in entire sections if desired. 

 The thuml>scre\vs need be removed only 

 when the frames or section-holders are to be 

 taken out. 



With this hive — brood-chambers, supers, 

 all parts alike, all expansible and adjustable, 

 each part fitting everywhere, it seems to me 

 we shall come very near having an ideal 

 and practical hive. 



Information has been asked for as to the 

 Hand switch double bottom -board. On 

 March 6 I put on one side of this switch bot- 

 tom-board a good strong colony headed by 

 one of Doolittle's fine queens. There were 

 two stories to the brood-chamber. The col- 

 ony increased rapidly under a little stimu- 

 lative feeding and the early fruit-bloom. 

 April 20, on examination I found it very 

 strong, and queen-cells started. I at once 

 placed the top brood-chamber, containing 

 some drawn-out combs and foundation with 

 some eggs, larvse. and sealed l^rood, down on 

 the other side of the bottom-board, exchang- 

 ing a comb for one from the other hive-body 

 with the queen and brood on it. I then 

 threw the switch. I put on a super of shal- 

 low frames first, then a sui)er of sections. 



