250 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



April 21. 



get good results, is to make a ••drive." and put the new hive on the 

 old siand, and turn the other and shift it a few times; but that will 

 not turn all the bees into the new hive, so the process will have to 

 be repeated, and if I repeated it after the new queen was hatcht. [ 

 think the swarm would he too poor to do any good. 



3. If they turn to queen-rearing and swarm, which hive would 

 you leave on the old stand, and which will give the best returns in 

 comb honey ? Colorado. 



Answers. — 1. Your plan might work and it might not. In 

 several instances I have put an excluder over the hive with brood, 

 having the queen in the empty story above, and they sulbt a long 

 while — in one case the queen just wouldn't lay at all, altho ktpt 

 there tor weeks. If you put a frame of brood from some other hive 

 in the upper story, you may make the queen lay all right. There 

 is danger that the bees will fill the combs below with honey, but 

 you can help the matter by closing the lower entrance. Then you 

 can gradually increase the opening between the two hives, say 

 after about a week, and when the opening becomes too large to 

 suit the bees, they'll not be likely to want to store anything below. 

 but you must be sure they have abundance of room above. They'll 

 not be very likely to start queen-cells below. 



3. Leave the new hive on the old stand and you'll probably get 

 more comb honey, tor if you leave the old hive there, they'll be 

 likely to swarm again. 



IVIaiiagiiis; S\varm§. 



I will tell you how I would like to manage my bees (all that 

 will swarm) and see what you think of it. That is, when a swarm 

 comes out I intend to kill the queen (all dipt) and have the bees 

 come back again to stay. Is this a good way, or not. for comb 

 honey? If so, at what date would you cut .queen-cells ? In this 

 way of managing, say a queen is extra prolific, I would cage her 

 instead of pinching her head off. Where is it best to keep the 

 caged queen in the hive, and how long '. Penn. 



Answer. — Your plan is a good one (/'. And a good deal hangs 

 on that if. If you cut out all cells but one before the first one 

 hatches out, and if you miss no cells, and if you select the best one 

 of the lot, and if there is no brood in the hive young enough to be 

 grown into something in the semblance of a queen, you're all right. 

 Perhaps seven days after the issue of the swarm will hit the first 

 and the last conditions, and you'll have to run the risk of leaving 

 the best cell and not missing any. Possibly it might be still better 

 to listen at night for the first piping, which may be in seven or 

 eight days, then in the morning before the bees have time to 

 swarm, cut out all queen-cells. That's safer than to make your 

 choice of cells, so far as the quality of the queen is concerned." and 

 you are not likely at that time to have any unsealed brood. The 

 chief danger is that you may miss a cell. 



At that time of year you can keep a caged queen almost any- 

 where where the bees can get to her to feed her. A handy place is 

 to stick her in the entrance of the hive. She may be kept caged 

 for weeks, but after being caged too long she may not be worth 

 much. Perhaps caging a week or two will not hurt her. 



BesI Size of Hive— Spacing Franies- 

 aiiil Separator. 



-Best Section 



1. What size of hives do you consider best, and which is the 

 best brood-frame ? 



2. How would you space the brood-frames so as to make them 

 self-spacing ? Would you advise closed-end frames, or would you 

 space them with small staples put into the end-bars ? If the latter, 

 where should the staples be put ? 



3. What is the best honey-section to use, and best separator, 

 the fence, board or tin ? Wisconsin. 



Answers.— 1. It's a very difficult thing to say what size of 

 hive is best. For one who expects to give much attention to his 

 bees. I'm inclined to favor S-lrame bives. as they can be increast 

 anywhere up to 16 frames by having two stories. If little attention 

 is to be given to the bees, probably a 10 or 12 frame hive is better, 

 for there's more danger that with the S-trame hive the bees would 

 be left in one story with not enough stores tor winter. It isn't any 

 where nearly so important to have hives of the same kind as it is 

 to have only one size of frames. You can have S-frame, 10-frame 

 and 12-frame hives in the same apiary, and find little trouble from 

 it, and you may have different kindx of frames, but when you have 

 different aisex of frames, then the trouble begins. The nearest of 

 anything to a standard frame is ITj, long and 9^« inches deep, out- 

 side measure. I hal frames by the thousand that were -'^-inch 

 shorter and i, -inch shallower, and the difference doesn't amount 

 to anything only that it isn't the standard size, and as fast as I get 

 new frames they are the standard size. 



3. I believe closed-end frames are best for the bees, because 

 warmer; but they are troublesome about killing bees, and about 

 being glued together. For spacing, staples are good, and yet I pre- 

 fer a common wire-nail with a head about Slfl inch across, the nail 

 being driven in all but I4 inch. That spaces the frames I'V inches 

 from center to center, top-bars and end-bars as well as bottom-bars 

 being IJj inches wide. Staples or nails can be driven in the top- 

 bar near the end-bar. and in the end-bar perhaps 2I3 inches from 

 the lower end. Only four spacers are needed on a frame, two on 

 one side at one end, and two on the other side at the other end. 

 When you hold up a frame before you, there are no spacers at the 

 right hand end on the side next you, but on the side away from 



you, at the left end, the spacers are on the near side. An objection 

 to nails for spacers, and even to the frames I have described, is that 

 they are not regular goods, and have to be made specially to order. 

 But if you start with a frame of the right size, it isn't such a hard 

 matter to change the kind any time. 



3. The standard section at present is the 4'4x4'4Xl% with in- 

 sets cut tor bee-passages, to be used with plain separators — wood 

 separators if they are to be used loose as in the T super — tin if to 

 be nailed fast as in wide-frames or section-holders. The plain sec- 

 tion and fence are now on trial, and only that trial will determine 

 whether they should be adopted exclusively or not. 



Makius Increase l>y Division. 



Of 14 colonies, three died during winter. How would this do, 

 to get three built up to take their places ? About May 1 (or would 

 it be safe sooner) if we have an early spring, take a well-popula- 

 ted colony and divide, leaving the queen and two frames in the 

 old hive; of the balance of the frames in this hive (sis in number), 

 put two each in three hives, with adhering bees; at the end of ten 

 days cut all queen-cells and introduce queens. I want to get some 

 new blood in. anyway, and would get queens from outside. Of the 

 old combs left by the dead colonies, I have IS. fairly well-filled with 

 honey, to give to the nuclei, as they need it. What would you do 

 different from above ? Omaha. 



Answer. — Sorry to disagree, but I just wouldn't do anything 

 of the kind. Let me explain a little, and then I'll be obliging 

 enough to let you do as you please. It's the number of bees that 

 count in a honey harvest rather than the number of colonies. 

 When the honey harvest comes. I'd rather have an apiary contain- 

 ing 300.000 bees than one containing 400.000, if the 300.000 are in five 

 colonies and the 400.000 in twenty. That's a proposition by itself. 

 Here's another: If you make four colonies out of one May 1. the 

 probability is that three weeks later you'll not have as many bees 

 in the four colonies as you would have had in the one, it you had 

 left it undisturbed. Until the queen gets up to about her limit of 

 laying, it will be a losing game to divide. For 40.000 can takecare 

 of more brood in one hive than they can in two. and so long as the 

 queen can lay more eggs than they can care for, what would you 

 gain by dividing ? So I believe I'd rather wait till the queens got 

 to about their limit of laying — perhaps about swarming-time — then 

 take a frame of brood and bees from each hive, making three fairly 

 good colonies at the start, and not materially depleting any one of 

 then. 



■■ ii» 



Raisins Blives Trom tiic Bottom-Board — Zinc Sep- 



aratortt — Corn Syrup for Stimulative Feeding — 



jraakins Wax Slicets — Introducing 



Foul Brood Avitli Queens. 



1. I read so much about raising hives from the bottom-boards 

 by means of blocks under the corners for ventilation and to dis- 

 courage swarming. Is there no danger of robbers by having so 

 much opening ? and are there not a great many bees lost when the 

 blocks are taken out, as the bees have been accustomed to enter 

 from the sides and rear of the hive ? 



2. How would separators made of queen-excluding zinc do ? 

 They would be nicer and more durable than the fence-separator, 

 and would take up less room. 



3. I can buy nice, clear, almost tasteless corn syrup for 18 cents 

 per gallon. How would that be for spring stimulative feeding, by 

 adding part sugar or honey ? 



4. Is there any other method by which I can make wax sheets 

 for foundation, than by using dipping-boards ? 



5. Is there any danger of introducing foul brood by sending 

 for queens from any of the advertisers in the Bee Journal ? I am 

 wintering 43 colonies in the cellar; so far they seem to be all right, 

 and I am anxiously awaiting spring when I can give them their 

 liberty, for I love to see them at their work and hear their merry 

 hum. I am very fond of reading the Bee Journal, and all bee- 

 literature, of which I have stacks. Wisconsin. 



Answers. — 1. The hives are not raised till colonies are very 

 strong, and I never knew of any trouble from robbers on account 

 of the blocks. Theoretically I should be more afraid of bees being 

 troubled to find the entrance when the hive is let down, but practi- 

 cally I've had no trouble. It isn't far. at most, to the front 

 entrance, the call is there, and it's nearer than to any other hive. 

 Besides, you may have noticed that wherever bees start to use the 

 entrance at the beginning of the season, that's the part they'll con- 

 tinue to use, even when other entrances are given. By the time 

 the hive is raised, the bees have establisht the habit of using 

 the front. 



2. They wouldn't be bad, but rather expensive, and colder 

 than wood. 



3. Some years ago it was tried, but I think it was finally con- 

 demned by all. 



4. Perhaps none practicable, unless it be sotnething like the 

 Weed process, which is patented. 



5. No honest man would advertise queens whose bees had foul 

 brood, and I'm sure the Bee Journal would not knowingly accept 

 such an advertisement, but of course there's no way by which it 

 can be absolutely certain of all its advertisers. 



^" See "Bee-Keeper's Guide" offer on page 205. 



