260 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



For the American Bee Joiimai. 



See-Space above Brood-Frames, etc. 



G. M. DOOLITTLE. 



On page .58, I see a desire mani- 

 fested that tlie Bee Journal call 

 forth the expression of the honey- 

 producers of the world relative to the 

 bee-space above the brood-frames, 

 now used in most of the hives in the 

 country. 



Years ago, when I first began to 

 keep bees, I used a few box hives for 

 two years, which had, as a top, a 

 board J^ inch thick. In this top were 

 slots cut, 1 inch wide by b}4. inches 

 long, running across the combs, for 

 entrances to the 6-pound boxes, which 

 were then used. The combs in the 

 brood-chamber were expected to be 

 built in a certain direction ; guides of 

 thin wood, brought to a sharp edge on 

 the under side, were used to secure 

 this object, and these slots in the top 

 were so spaced that three openings 

 between the combs below were to 

 come into the slot ; thus giving the 

 bee a passage way of about 3 inches 

 by % of an inch from the brood- 

 chamber to the boxes. The boxes 

 had slots in the bottom to correspond 

 with the slots in the top of the hive, 

 and were set directly on top of the 

 thin slotted board. 



This gave a space of but fi of an 

 inch, which separated the mam combs 

 in the hive from the boxes, as the 

 bottom to the box was but % inch 

 thick. At the same time I was using 

 the Langstroth hive, which had 5-16 

 inch bee-space between the frames 

 and honey-board, which was % of an 

 inch thick. Over the slots in the 

 honey-board were placed the boxes, 

 the bottoms of which were y^ of an 

 inch thick, which gave a space of a 3-16 

 of an inch through, which the bees 

 must pass before entering the boxes 

 when coming from the combs below. 

 As a consequence, the bees would 

 enter the boxes in the box-hives much 

 the quicker; the result of which was, 

 that all things being equal, I could 

 get the most surplus honey from the 

 box-hives. But as I could not keep 

 the bees equal as to numbers in the 

 box-hives with those in the others, 

 and for otlier reasons too numerous 

 to mention, which makes the movable 

 frame hive so much preferable, I de- 

 cided to do away with the box-hives, 

 after which 1 began to study how I 

 could do away with the honey-board 

 and bee-space in the Langstroth hive ; 

 thus making the top similar to the 

 box-hive. At hrst I left the bottom 

 of the box entirely off except a thin 

 strip at each edge to hold the box in 

 shape, setting the boxes directly on 

 top of the frames ; but as the combs 

 in the tilled boxes would be attached 

 to the frames below, so as to nearly 

 spoil them by removing, I soon gave 

 it up. 



Next I set the boxes directly on the 

 frames, using them with full bottom. 



as they were used on the box-hives. 

 This plan gave good satisfaction as to 

 the product of honey, but it was slow 

 work putting on the boxes, as the 

 bees must all be driven from the top 

 of the frames before the boxes were 

 put on, as many would be crushed 

 and killed underneath them. At 

 about this time I adopted the wide- 

 frame system, or case-and-separator 

 system, as I prefer to call it, which 

 did away with the honey-board en- 

 tirely ; so that I have not had a honey- 

 board in my apiary for nearly 12 years. 



To prevent the killing of bees, I 

 gave a scant y inch space between 

 the bottom of the cases and the tops 

 of the frames. This worked so well 

 that I have used it mainly till the 

 present time, with the exception of 

 some few hives where the cases rested 

 on tacks to keep them }i of an inch 

 above the frames. These tacks got 

 pulled out of a part of the hives, 

 which let the cases down on the 

 frames, in which shape I have used 

 them with good results, except that 

 some bees would be killed in handling 

 them. The past season I used several 

 hives with only six brood-combs, as 

 has been explained elsewhere, in 

 which case it became necessary to set 

 the cases directly on top of the frames. 



To prevent the killing of the bees, 

 was the question which now came up. 

 To accomplish this, all I had to do 

 was to raise the frames so that the 

 tops of them came even with the top of 

 the hive, when I could slide the cases 

 along on the top bars of the frames ; 

 thus pushing the bees out of the way 

 as the case was put on. In this way, 

 I was master of the situation, and 

 had the difficulty solved, regarding 

 how I could use my sections to the 

 best advantage. It will be under- 

 stood that on these hives my cases 

 and entrance to the sections go cross- 

 wise of the frames, and not parallel 

 with them, as do the sections in most 

 hives. I expected that these cases 

 would be so glued down with propolis, 

 that it would be hard work to remove 

 them ; but in this I was mistaken, for 

 I can remove them much easier than 

 I can those cases which have comb 

 and honey put between the bottom of 

 them and the frames of the hive ; and 

 also much easier than I could a honey- 

 ! board fastened in the same way, where 

 I it is desirous to use sections IJ^ inches 

 ' in width, without separators rimning 

 parallel with the brood-frames. 



Dr. Tinker's plan of continuous 

 passage ways, is an excellent one. In 

 this way a number of very thin slots, 

 a little wider than the top of the 

 frames, are so fastened together that 

 each slot comes over the top-bar of 

 each frame ; thus making a rack cov- 

 ering the top of the hive. This rack 

 is to be slid on top of the frames at 

 the beginning of the honey harvest ; 

 and so left till fall, unless tlie brood- 

 chamber is to be opened. Imme- 

 diately on top of this is placed (by 

 sliding on) an intermediate rack 

 which is very nearly like the first. 

 Upon this the rack of sections is 

 placed so that to remove the sections 

 or replace them, all there is to do is to 

 slide this intermediate rack back and 

 forth on the first ; or the rack of sec- 



tions can be slid on the first rack if 

 desired, and the intermediate rack be 

 used in tiering up. By either of these 

 plans the objectionable shallow bee- 

 space is overcome, and the sections 

 placed as near the brood as possible, 

 without danger of killing bees ; thus 

 securing a greater yield of honey, 

 which yield is what we are all after. 

 If a greater yield of honey can be ob- 

 tained by the above plan (which I 

 have been studying on for over 12 

 years), and that with the same amount 

 of labor or expense to the apiarist, I 

 cannot see how it can " retard pro- 

 gress." 



Will Mr. Heddon please tell us what 

 his reasons are for preferring the 

 shallow space ; and also his objections 

 to the above plans for doing away 

 with it, if he has any such objections 'i 



I also notice on page 58, an allusion 

 to Italian bees objecting to this shal- 

 low space. In all my experience I 

 have failed to note any reluctance on 

 the part of Italian bees to enter the 

 sections, whether this shallow space 

 was used or not. I have often seen it 

 stated that the hybrids and black bees 

 would enter the sections much more 

 readily than the Italians ; but from 

 close watching since 1871, 1 could not 

 see . but what colonies of different 

 strains of bees would enter the sec- 

 tions at about the same time ; provid- 

 ing that the brood-chamber was con- 

 tracted so that little or no empty comb 

 was therein at the time the honey 

 harvest opened. 



The greatest advantage, in my opin- 

 ion,which the Italian bees possess over 

 other strains, is in their producing a 

 large amount of brood in May and 

 June ; thus getting plenty of workers 

 to gather the harvest.and then slacken- 

 ing up in brood-rearing during the 

 harvest ; thus avoiding a needless con- 

 sumption of honey during the honey 

 harvest, and after it is passed. 



That an Italian queen mated with 

 a black drone will produce workers of 

 the best type to produce comb honey, 

 I am well aware ; for a direct cross 

 always produces vigor ; but how shall 

 we get such workers without the Ital- 

 ians to startwith ? I really hope none 

 are talking of breeding from hybrid 

 stock, for the purpose of being able 

 to sell all the queens they rear with 

 no fear that any one can have any 

 claims on them for purity. 



To the honey-producers of this conn- 

 try, the Italian bee is an indispensa 

 ble thing as a starting point ; and 

 those who ignore this point, are " off 

 the track," according to my views, 

 after an experience of 12 years with 

 both Italians and hybrids in my yard. 

 The result of trying to build up a 

 stock of bees by breeding from a hy- 

 brid mother, has proved in all cases, 

 which I have tried, that every genera- 

 tion grows poorer and poorer, instead 

 of proving any better. 



Borodino, N. Y. 



^ The bee-keepers of Tuscarawas 

 County will meet in the Town Hall at 

 Port Washington, O., on Thursday, 

 May 15, 1884,to organize a bee-keepers' 

 association. All are earnestly invited 

 to attend. 



A. A. Fkadenburg. 



