NOVEMBER 1, 1914 



861 



ing- problem, and the wintering' problem. 

 It is a deplorable fact that the hives of to- 

 day are powerless to solve these important 

 problems without resorting to expensive 

 equipment and excessive labor without due 

 compensation, for reasons that will be ap- 

 pai-ent to those who follow the trend of this 

 discussion. 



TITE FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES OP BEEHIVE 

 ARCHITECTURE. 



The habit of expansion and contraction 

 of the brood-nest is so highly developed in 

 bees that due allowance must be made for 

 this principle in beehive architecture; hence 

 expansion and contraction are the funda- 

 mental principles of economical beehive 

 architecture. There are two distinct princi- 

 ples involved, known as " horizontal expan- 

 sion " and " vertical expansion," and there 

 is a wide difference in the scope of their 

 efficiency. Vertical expansion is chiefly 

 employed to increase the capacity of small 

 hives by tiering up with another hive-body 

 — a relic of defunct sectional hivism that 

 necessitates extra equipment and excessive 

 hive-handling without offenng an economi- 

 cal solution of any of the problems men- 

 tioned ; hence a flat failure from an econom- 

 ical point of view. On the contrary, " hor- 

 izontal expansion " is the embodiment of 

 principles in beehive architecture that solves 

 every important problem with the utmost 

 economy. 



THE HYPOTHETICAL QUESTION. 



What is the orthodox limit of expansion 

 of brood-chambers aside from the solution 

 of problems'? And how much extra room is 

 required for the solution of said problems? 

 Owing to different conditions existing in 

 different colonies and seasons relative to the 

 amount of honey and pollen stored in 

 advance of present needs, and the amount 

 of drone comb, it is impossible to estimate 

 correctly the number of available breeding 

 cells a hive will contain without seeing it. 

 Tt is better, however, to have a frame to 

 spare than to restrict an extra-prolific 

 queen, hence in my location the orthodox 

 limit of exi^ansion is approximately 14 L. 

 frames, and an extra capacity of two more 

 frames is required for the solution of the 

 problems mentioned. Viewing it thus, the 

 10 and 12 frame hives are too large for 

 vertical expansion, and too small for hori- 

 zontal expansion and the solution of prob- 

 lems; hence they occupy an inferior posi- 

 tion in the ranks of economical beehive 

 architecture, for it is the purpose of this 

 discussion to demonstrate clearly that hor- 

 izontal expansion to a limit of 16 L. frames 

 is the minimum capacity for the more eco- 

 nomical solution of the problems mentioned. 



TPIE SWARMING PROBLEM. 



Having completed the circle of my expe- 

 rience covering a period of 40 years, dur- 

 ing which time I have practiced many dif- 

 ferent methods of swarm prevention, I am 

 in position to say with a tolerable degi-ee 

 of certainty that economical swarm preven- 

 tion is not a matter of hives or excessive 

 manipulation in shake swarming, removing 

 brood, etc., but, rather, of correct methods 

 of requeening that practically eliminate 

 manipulation, and here is the method : At 

 the approach of clover bloom place all colo- 

 nies in condition to enter supers by uniting 

 and equalizing, and at the beginning of 

 harvest remove the queen and two frames 

 of brood from a sixteen-frame colony, plac- 

 ing them in an eight-frame hive made of 

 half-inch material, and 12 inches deep. 

 Place a ripe queen-cell in a cell-protector, 

 between the combs of a queenless colony, 

 removing any queen-cells that may be found 

 while looking for the queen. This will pro- 

 hibit swarms while keeping the brood in 

 tact, and maintain a normal queen-right 

 condition — a psychological condition of 

 contentment and satisfaction that encour- 

 ages bees to do their best work and lay the 

 foundation for a simple solution of the in- 

 crease problem. 



THE INCREASE PROBLEM. 



Unlike the swarming problem, the in- 

 crease problem is purely a matter of bee- 

 hive architecture relative to size, for extra 

 large hives are imperative, and here is the 

 method : At the close of basswood harvest, 

 after securing the honey croj), cage the 

 queens in the nuclei just mentioned, and 

 take six frames of brood with adhering 

 bees, from each sixteen-frame colony and 

 place them in each nucleus hive, which will 

 now contain eight frames and the parent 

 colonies ten, and both have laying queens, 

 and will be in condition to do good work 

 on buckwheat and fall flowers. This meth- 

 od gives 100 per cent increase in connection 

 with a full crop of honey with little man- 

 ipulation, and in turn facilitates an equally 

 economical solution of the wintering prob- 

 lem. 



THE WINTERING PROBLEM. 



The economical solution of the wintering 

 problem is also a matter of correct princi- 

 ples of beehive architecture relative to hive 

 capacity and correct methods of expansion 

 and contraction; hence 16 frames is the 

 minimum capacity for the more perfect and 

 economical solution of the wintering prob- 

 lem. Here is the method : About September 

 20 is the time to place bees in winter quar- 

 ters. Choose a wai-m day when bees fly 

 freely, and place each eight-frame division 



