JUNE 15, 1916' 



4fg 



GENERAL CORRESPONDENCE 



PAINT YOUR HIVES EVERY FIVE OR TEN YEARS 



BY E. S. MILES 



" There are two sides to every question," 

 altlio the other side to some questions is 

 ratlier small. To paint or not to paint is one 

 of these ; and not to paint is, in my opinion, 

 decidedly the small side. It is almost uni- 

 versally believed by enterprising and pro- 

 gressive people that painting wooden build- 

 ings pays, not only because it adds to the 

 life of the building, but it keeps it in good 

 condition. A well-painted building will 

 shed water in a wet time, and not warp 

 apart in a dry time. Then well-painted, 

 nice-looking buildings are an asset to any 

 place, please the eye, give satisfaction, and 

 are an incentive to enterprise and thrift. 

 But, somebody says, we are talking of paint- 

 ing hives, not buildings. However, the 

 above applies just as well to hives; and, in 

 addition, the hive, standing as it does near 

 the ground, usually with grass around it, in 

 a vm-y damp place in wet weather, is even 

 more in need of protection from the ele- 

 ments. Before we leave the subject of the 

 desirability of painting, whether buildings 

 or hives, let the reader take a trip, in imag- 

 ination, thru any settled community. Is it 

 not universally true that the buildings of 

 the prosperous, enterprising people are in- 

 variably kept well painted? Which is the 

 place containing a tenant, or a poor man 

 struggling to make a start, perliaps, or the 

 booze-fighter or loafer? If it is not the 

 place with old unpainted buildings, porches 

 partly down, perhaps several window-lights 

 replaced with a bunch of rags, then the con- 

 ditions are different from any I have trav- 

 eled thru. 



Some one says that a hive is different — 

 there is moisture in a hive, which paint will 

 not allow to escape, and that will be bad for 

 the bees. I am not ignorant of the fact that 

 we have two eminent authorities who think 

 bees do enough better in unpainted hives to 

 offset all the advantages of painting and 

 more. With all due respect for them, how- 

 ever, I do not agree. There is a chance 

 that, further east, as the climate is more 

 moist, there might be a difference in favor 

 of unpainted hives; but it would seem that 

 the need for protection would be also great- 

 er. But, speaking from my own observa- 

 tion and experience, I know that unpainted 

 hives here deteriorate very rapidly. The 

 covers warp badly, the body and floor joints 

 spread and rot. I have had a good many 

 colonies in unpainted hives, having pur- 



chased many such, and keeping them from 

 a month or two up to a year in some eases. 

 In addition I kept one colony in an un- 

 painted hive for many yeai's, for the sole 

 purpose of seeing what advantage it was to 

 the bees. I can say positively that I was 

 unable to see any advantage whatever in the 

 unpainted hive. I believe the moisture can 

 be allowed to escape from the hive in more 

 effective ways than thru the walls. I should 

 not want to be confined to that way alone, 

 I am sure ; and if I can let it escape in oth- 

 er ways I do not need that way. 



If we have made the desirability of paint- 

 ing apparent, let us consider a few points 

 in painting. Painting a hive is similar to 

 painting any woodwork. The hive must be 

 dry, and free from dust and dirt. This is 

 necessary for a lasting job of painting, and 

 especially so on a hive, 'as they are rather 

 hard on paint. If there are knots or pitchy 

 places they must be painted over with 

 shellac first, and allowed to dry. Any cracks 

 or joints not tight should be filled with 

 putty after the first coat before applying 

 the second. Three coats are necessary on 

 new work for a first-class job, and the paint 

 should be thinned with pure linseed oil for 

 the first coat. I don't save on " elbow 

 grease " in applying it. Rub it in thoroly. 

 Let it dry several days between coats, and 

 be sure it is fairly warm when putting on 

 the second and third coats. I prefer a good 

 grade of ready-mixed paint rather than 

 white lead and oil. I think it sticks better, 

 becomes harder, and, according to my ex- 

 perience, is more lasting. There is a dif- 

 ference in ready-mixed paints, however, and 

 it is advisable to go slow until you know 

 you have a good one. 



In repainting hives after being in use five 

 to ten years, more skill is required to get 

 satisfactory results. Some have said that 

 hives may be repainted while in use. The 

 giver of such advice is unskilled in painting. 

 You cannot repaint a hive while it is in use, 

 and yet do a good job. Old hives must be 

 thoroly scraped or sandpapered. Any old 

 paint that is loose enough to come off with a 

 good scraper in both hands of a vigorous 

 man must come off. Any propolis _ must 

 either be burned off with a torch or, if not 

 badly daubed, after thoroly scraping, a coat 

 of shellac put on before painting. The 

 bottom-board must be thoroly cleaned and 

 painted on the bottom as well as the top. 



