1881. 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



75 



thus employed— then we would have 

 something analogous to the tearing open 

 of grapes. From the fact that bees are 

 able to cut away strong paper, andeven 

 factory cloth, inclines me to reverse my 

 former opinion that bees, because of 

 their weak jaws, were unable to tear 

 open the tough grape skins. The fact 

 that bees are among the most intelli- 

 gent of insects, and that by visiting 

 punctured grapes they learn of the 

 presence of the coveted liquid, makes 

 it easy to see how they may have 

 acquired this unwelcome habit, if they 

 do possess it. and may well make apiar- 

 ists slow to contradict their brother po- 

 mologists, who assert positively that 

 bees do puncture sound grapes. 



What are we going to do about it f If it 

 be found that" our bees do attack and 

 ruin the property of our neighbors, or 

 even of their swarming about the grapes 

 at harvest time becomes an " insuffera- 

 ble nuisance, - ' or even sorely annoying, 

 we should remove our bees to such a 

 distance as will prevent the trespass, or 

 carry them, for the few weeks of the 

 vintage, to a dark cool cellar, from 

 which they are to be removed as soon as 

 the grape harvest is over. As in many 

 places— probably nearly all where grapes 

 are grown— there is a dearth in Septem- 

 ber, of nectar-secreting bloom, this ac- 

 tion may be taken with no loss to the 

 bee-keeper, except that of moving the 

 bees. If the bees can be moved into a 

 more desirable locality for nectar, then 

 the bee-keeper may " kill two birds with 

 one cast of the stone." It is a glad fact 

 that bees only attack such liquids in the 

 absence of the more acceptable Mower 

 nectar, so usually there will be no loss 

 from removing to cellar at times when 

 grapes are visited by them. The great 

 drouth the past season in some sections, 

 the excessive rain in others, and the 

 consequent dearth of nectar in the 

 (lowers, quite probably led to the very 

 numerous complaints the past season. 



For the American Bee Journal. 



How the Bees are Wintering. 



SI. MAHIN, D. D. 



The present winter has been one of 

 the most disastrous to bee culture "with- 

 in the memory of the oldest inhabi- 

 tant." In this section of Indiana api- 

 culture has not made as much advance- 

 ment as in many other localities, and 

 nearly all winter on the summer stands. 

 and without any special preparation. I 

 am of opinion that two thirds of the 

 bees in Huntington County are already 

 dead, and the end is not yet. 



Mine have fared better than the ma- 

 jority. I had 47 colonies in the fall, and 

 up to this time I have lost 16. The win- 

 ter has confirmed my previous views in 

 some things, and not in others. 



I have heretofore advocated placing 

 hives that are to be wintered out of 

 doors in full sunshine, and with the en- 

 trance to the south. The results of this 

 winter have strikingly confirmed the 

 correctness of my theory. I had 23 col- 

 onies that were slightly shaded by a 

 high paling tense and some fruit trees; 

 they were also partially protected from 

 the west and north winds. I had 24 

 others standing where they were en- 

 tirely unprotected from either wind or 

 sun, and facing the south. The aver- 

 age condition of the two lots was the 

 same as nearly as could be determined. 

 They were prepared for winter in the 

 same way, and except in the matter of 

 exposure to the sunshine there was no 

 reason why one should winter better 

 than the other. And now for the result. 

 Of the 23 that faced the north and were 

 partially shaded 11 are dead; and of the 

 24 exposed to the full sunshine only 5 

 are dead, and the present average con- 

 dition of those facing the north is not 

 as good as the others. There were a 

 few days in the months of December 

 and January when the temperature was 

 below 40°, and sometimes when it was 

 scarcely above freezing, that the bright 

 sunshine tempted the bee to fly. Some 

 of them were lost, but the greater part 

 returned in safety to the hives. Those 

 that perished on the snow would have 

 perished in the hives if they had not 

 come out, as would many of those that 

 returned. 



There was another advantage of hav- 



ing the sun shine on the front of the 

 hive; the sun warmed the hive so that 

 the bees could get to their stores in the 

 long cold weather. I am sure that some 

 of my colonies died of starvation with 

 plenty of honey in the hives, and with 

 from three to five winter passages 

 through every comb. The cold was so 

 intense and so long continued that the 

 bees could not even go through a single 

 comb to get to their honey. 



The question of absorbents or no ab- 

 sorbents is frequently discussed. My 

 experience this winter does not throw 

 much light on it. The mostof myhives 

 were covered with four thicknesses of 

 heavy brown paper on the frames, with 

 an inch honey board over the paper. 

 Two had the caps filled with carpet, 

 straw, etc. Of these two, one is dead 

 and the other is in no better condition 

 than those that had no other absorbent 

 than the brown paper. I usually con- 

 fine my bees in winter below the top bar 

 of the frames by filling the space be- 

 tween the frames with strips of wood, 

 but not so tight but that a little air can 

 escape. I am careful to make passages 

 for them just below the top bar. 



Huntington, Ind., March 1, 1880. 



For the American Bee Journal. 



Using Tin Separators. 



JAMES HEDDON. 



In reply to Mr. Carl Tuttle, In the Bee 

 Journal of Feb. 23, 1 will say that I 

 succeeded in crating every 5x6 section, 

 except 16, that I produced in 1879, which 

 number amounted to 2,760. I also 

 glassed a large share of the brightest 

 combs, and no separators were used. 



You will remember, Mr. Editor, that 

 the season previous I sold you, at my 

 Glenwood apiary, 80 cases of 5x6 sec- 

 tions, a small part of which were glassed. 

 You could hardly believe my statement, 

 when I told yon that no separators were 

 used next the combs that were not 

 glassed, and that we had only about 20 

 that were too crooked to crate. We did 

 use a few separators that season, that 

 were left over from the many that we 

 used the two seasons previous. I agree 

 with Mr. Tuttle. that tin is the best for 

 separators, and that all separators are a 

 great drawback to the production of 

 comb honey. 



But to our method : I believe that the 

 honey-board I use, and the clamp meth- 

 od of placing the sections thereon, have 

 something to do with it. Of course, no 

 one would expect to get straight combs 

 without separators, by putting sections 

 within frames, and placing those frames 

 in a super or upper story. 



Now to the 414x414 sections. I apply 

 these to the hives in a case cut up by 

 divisions, thus — 



using no honey-board and no glass. 1 

 get 99 combs out of 100 straight enough 

 to crate nicely by this method, and I do 

 it by filling each section full of comb 

 foundation. I use foundation which is 

 so nicely made that when drawn out and 

 filled, there is no " fish-bone" or other 

 peculiarity to cause one to believe that 

 foundation was employed in its con- 

 struction. These sections are so small, 

 that when filled with foundation, accu- 

 rately adjusted, there is almost no 

 chance for the growth of a crooked 

 comb therein. The cover to the case 

 rests bee-space above the narrow tops 

 of the sections, and, as the bees can 

 pass freely around the top-piece of the 

 section, I think that tends to show them 

 where to stop the length of each cell. 

 Again, I use a 2 inch end piece, and only 

 a \% (instead of 1%) top and bottom 

 piece to my sections. That, too, tends 

 toward straight combs. It also admits 

 of double capacity for bee passage be- 

 tween the tops of the sections, because 

 it is just wide enough (%) for two bees 

 to pass at once, exactly opposite each 

 other ; 14 inch is not. 



I have no fears as to safe transporta- 

 tion and ready sale of honey put up in 

 these 1 lb. sections, and crated in 12- 



comb crates. They come the nearest 

 to being " wheat" of anything. I have 

 ever owned in the bee line, unless it be 

 wax; I mean " spot cash." I do not 

 think there will be a very great demand 

 for glassed honey after these packages 

 are well introduced. Besides, the nicest 

 method of glassing is on the outside of 

 the section, with paper caps, a la Moore. 



In regard to the " proper care of sec- 

 tions, after adjusted," I must confess I 

 have lost the thought that was in my 

 mind when I wrote the article, for when 

 applied as I have directed, the results 

 are such that no further care is needed, 

 as a rule. 



Dowagiac, Mich., Feb. 25, 1881. 



For the American Bee Journal. 



The Wintering of Bees. 



J. S. HEAD. 



How to winter bees is important to 

 everyone interested in apiculture, but 

 we have much to learn about handling 

 and wintering bees. Seemingly, to 

 read some works on bee-culture, one 

 would only have to purchase the hive, 

 and then sail (as it were) smoothly 

 along to success— but in reality it is only 

 to encounter " blasted hopes. 



It requires ability as well as practice 

 to be successful in any pursuit. But do 

 not think that I object to any good bee 

 book. For those just embarking, as 

 well as for practical bee men, such are 

 essential; without such, one would soon 

 fail to realize any compensation, for ex- 

 pense and time; of all periodicals my 

 preference is for the Weekly Bee Jour- 

 nal; and I wish it much prosperity. 



I will give a more explicit description 

 of the hive I use than that given in Vol. 

 16, page 473. Have your lumber well 

 seasoned, and nail the hive together; 

 make some mortar from yellow clay 

 soil, with lime water, adding 1-5 plaster 

 of Paris, and then plaster the inside of 

 the hive i inch thick, and in three days 

 the hives will be ready for any reason- 

 able degree of heat or cold, as it is a 

 non-conductor when thus plastered. 



If my bees have not sufficient honey 

 in the brood chamber for wintering, I 

 let the upper boxes or frames of honey 

 remain, giving them time to carry it be- 

 low and cap it over, for their winter 

 stores. When cold weather begins, re- 

 move the frames from the upper story, 

 placing the cloth over the brood frames; 

 pack over them cotton seed, which ab- 

 sorbs all heavy or damp air that may 

 pass through the main entrance or arise 

 from the bees; this keeps them warm 

 and healthy. I have never been troubled 

 with foul brood or dysentery in my 

 apiary; and I have only'lost one colony 

 this winter, in that I neglected to pack 

 the seed tightly, and that gave the air 

 too free a circulation through the hive, 

 causing them to chill. I never allow 

 bees to be disturbed, if possible, while 

 in winter quarters. 



Benton, Mo. 



For the American Bee Journal. 



Spring Dwindling. 



E. A. THOMAS. 



With many, spring dwindling has be- 

 come a serious drawback to uncessful 

 bee-culture, arid how to prevent it is a 

 problem they would like to have solved. 

 Many are prejudiced against cellar win- 

 tering on account of the greaterliability 

 to dwindle in spring, and I think, 

 myself, that bees confined through the 

 long winter will have more ambition 

 when they get out in the spring, than 

 those that have had an occasional fly 

 during the winter. But if we can con- 

 trol and direct this ambition, it will 

 turn to our advantage, and this great 

 objection to cellar wintering will be 

 done away with. 



Now, I have never been troubled 

 with spring dwindling, and I do not 

 believe anyone need be if they will only 

 watch their bees carefully in early 

 spring, and take every precaution to 

 guard against it. It is of no use to deny 

 that it requires care and trouble to pre- 

 vent it, and those that cannot give their 

 bees the necessary care and attention 

 must not grumble or complain if their 

 bees do dwindle. 



Perhaps it will be of interest to the 



many readers of the Bee Journal to 

 hear how I manage Orchard Apiary 

 during the early spring months. In the 

 Journal for February !), I told how I 

 gave my bees water hi the cellar and 

 the good results I obtained by doing so. 

 Now, I consider it still more important 

 to give the water after they are taken 

 out in the spring. Bees generally have 

 a sufficient supply of old pollen pre- 

 served in honey to last until late in the 

 spring, so their greatest want, in order 

 to carry on brood rearing, is water, and 

 by giving it to them I manage to keep 

 them quiet, when they would other- 

 wise be obliged to go out for it on cold, 

 windy days and so perish in their zeal 

 for the welfare of the colony. There are 

 a great many cold, windy days when 

 the sun, shining warm on the hive, will 

 cause the bees to come out in large num- 

 bers, and the harsh winds soon chilling 

 them, they are unable to return again. 

 On such days I keep them at home by 

 closing the entrance, and shading the 

 hive from the rays of the sun. It will 

 not do to keep bees confined too long out 

 of doors, and just how long is a question 

 that requires good judgment and ex- 

 perience to determine. I have kept 

 them shut up in this way for nearly a 

 week by giving them plenty of water in 

 the hive, but it is seldom that I am 

 obliged to confine them so long. 



I would advise every one to go care- 

 fully into this matter, and unless they 

 have a good memory, not to attempt it, 

 as a neglect to watch and liberate the 

 bees when it is time may cause their 

 ruin. My hives have glass in the back, 

 by means of which 1 can tell just when 

 the bees begin to show signs of uneasi- 

 ness and so liberate them about as 

 soon as they find out that they would 

 like a fly. 



Coleraine, Mass., Feb. 1881. 



For the American Bee Journal. 



New Metal Corners for Brood Frames. 



W. B. ANDERSON, M. D. 



I have devised a plan by which I can 

 convert my summer hives into winter 

 or chaff hives, which is quite satisfactory 

 to me, and I think much cheaper and 

 more convenient than any chaff hive I 

 have ever seen. I use a frame the same 

 depth as the Langstroth, and only % as 

 long; they hold 6 lib. sections. 



Instead of hanging a frame on a rab- 

 bet, as is usually done, I have devised 

 a corner-piece made of sheet tin, and 

 bent at right angles to fit the corner of 

 the frame, and on each end of the angles 

 of the corner-piece are projections % 

 of an inch iong, which serve as feet for 

 the frame to rest on, and to give the 

 requisite space at the bottom and ends 

 of the frame. The corner-pieces are 

 1% inches long, % longer than the frame 

 is wide, and when the frames are set 

 together the ends of the corner-pieces 

 come in contact, and thus leave % inch 

 space between the frames. When the 

 corner-pieces are fastened to the frames, 

 the frames can be turned upside down, 

 stood on end, or sides reversed at pleas- 

 ure. When the honey season is over 

 and I wish to pack for winter, I have 

 simply to set my frames on end, and 

 pack the spaces thus left between frames 

 and hive with chaff cushions. My hives 

 being high enough for two sets of frames 

 give, when frames are set on end, over 

 6 inches on top, and over 2% on the 

 sides for packing. Now, I thus get a 

 shallow frame for summer use, and a 

 deep oue for winter. Frames are rarely 

 ever glued together with propolis, and 

 when lifted out of the hive can be stood 

 upright on a board without danger of 

 falling, and but little of being blown 

 over. They are convenient for shipping 

 purposes, and, in general, I think a very 

 convenient frame. 



I send by mail a sample set of the 

 corner-pieces, and will send any reader 

 of the Bee Journal a sample set who 

 will pay the postage, etc., and think 

 those who try my plan will like it. 



Bloomingdale, Mich. 



[The corner-pieces have been received 

 and placed in the Bee Journal Muse- 

 um, for the inspection of those who 

 take an interest in the later inven- 

 tions.— Ed.] 



