1907 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



1309 



DIMENSIONS. 



About the year 1890 I did much thinking 

 and studying on a hive and system by which 

 to apply the ideas I had gained. In all the 

 years since, I have not ceased to study the 

 subject and to experiment and read. My 

 interest has been so great that, in looking 

 over the joui'nals, when any thing on the 

 subject appeared it soon took my attention 

 and was sure to be read. For the past fif- 

 teen years I have never been without such 

 hives, and probably not a year that 1 did 

 not handle nearly if not quite 50 colonies, 

 and sometimes as many as 100 or more. 

 This experience has been with frames 6X13 

 inches, 5x10, and 4JX17, the lirst named 

 predominating until lately, when I adopted 

 the 5X10 as my standard. 



As for the number of frames to the hive, I 

 have tried 8, 9, and 10, settling on the 8 as 

 standard — reasons later. So far as my ex- 

 perience has gone, the main part of it has 

 been with the 8 and 9 frame widths. I have 

 used both the 8 and 10 f(jr comb honey, and 

 the 9 for extracted. All these have been 

 closed-end standing fi'ames, and all so made 

 that it made not one whit of difference 

 which side was up, and to day I have great 

 numbers of these frames that it would take 

 close inspecting to tell which was originally 

 the top side. 



REVERSIBLE FRAMES. 



These were much discussed some years 

 ago, and a multitude of devices invented to 

 facilitate the reversing act. Even hives wei'e 

 made to be reversed chamber by chamber, 

 thus turning upside down the whole body, 

 and I also took a hand in devising reversi- 

 ble hives, but in only a very limited way, 

 carrying the idea to the super with the view 

 to having the sections built solid to the wootl 

 all around. In brood-chambers, when once 

 a set of combs has been built complete it 

 can be reversed thereafter as much as one 

 desires; but with the divisible chamber hive 

 there is nothing to be gained in reversing a 

 whole set of combs — at least, nothing of im- 

 portance except to get the combs built out 

 solid to both top and bottom bars; and this 

 can be so easily done by alternating, and by 

 turning frames upside down when manipu- 

 lating them singly, that there is no necessity 

 whatever to have the hive-body reversible. 

 As for the super, when the sections have 

 reached the stage where they can be revers- 

 ed with safety it is about time to take them 

 oil". Only a small per cent of the sections 

 will be at the point desirable to invert at 

 the same time. Reversible hives and supers 

 are not feasible, nor are they needed. 



To get combs well attached to bottom- 

 bars, if they are placed in an upper chamber 

 it will soon be done. The divisible-chamber 

 hive is frequently alternated. What was for a 

 time the bottom one will become the top, and 

 the top one at the bottom, so it comes to 

 pass that soon all combs are built to the 

 bottom-bars — at least a large part of them 

 are. But as we want to manipulate frames 

 sometimes, when one has a frame in his hand 



it is a very easy matter to return it to the 

 hive the other side up, and then it is sure to 

 be Ijuilt up solid to the bottom-bar, which 

 now becomes the top. Frames completely 

 filled with comb are desirable for several 

 reasons. In deep or Langstroth frames it is 

 desirable to have the all-around attachments 

 to give greater strength to guard against 

 breakage; Ijut unless the combs are used in 

 an upper chamber, or full sheets of founda- 

 tion used, the great majority are not attach- 

 ed below, or but partially so. With the di- 

 visible-chaml)er hive with its shallow frames 

 there is not so much danger from weak 

 combs dropping out or breaking down from 

 any cause, yet they are almost certain to be 

 almost completely attached, and no founda- 

 tion used either. 



LOOKING FOR QUEEN-CELLS IN A SECTIONAL 

 HIVE. 



It is commonly understood that, in the va- 

 cant space between the comb and bottom- 

 bar, is where to expect many queen-cells 

 when such are being built. The choice 

 place for building cells is in breaks or rough 

 places near the center of the brood-nest or 

 well among the brood; but if such places are 

 not to be found, the edges and ends of the 

 combs are the next choice. With sectional 

 hives the great bulk of queen-cells will be 

 from the lower edge of the upper-chamber 

 combs (that is, a chamber higher than the 

 bottom-board), with their points sticking 

 down between the bottom •l)ars of the upper 

 set of frames, and many of them with their 

 points iDetween the top-bars of the body be- 

 low. When a sectional brood-chamber is 

 opened at the midlle, if queen-cells can not 

 be seen protruding, or at least not visible 

 from beneath this upper chamber when the 

 bees are smoked up, it is usually safe to con- 

 clude they have none. This readiness with 

 which cells may be observed is one of the 

 favorable points. You can quickly deter- 

 mine whether you will need to hunt f\)r cells. 

 It is not safe to cut ott' such cells as may be 

 found between the liodies, thinking that will 

 be all, for there may be (and usually ate) 

 others not oliservable from this point; but if 

 cell-building is going on we are almost cei*- 

 tain to find some as indicated aV)ove by sim- 

 ply opening the hive horizontally at its cen-, 

 ter. This enables one to examine for cells 

 rapidly. If none are found we pass on to 

 the next, and so may do several hives where 

 we would be doing one of the deep- frame 

 style where frames had to be handled to find 

 out. 



THE COST AS COMPARED WITH DEEP HIVES. 



Many object to shallow-frame divisible 

 hives on the ground of increased cost, be- 

 cause there are two parts to the brot)d-cham- 

 ber where there would be but one with the 

 deep frame. Well, there is probably a very 

 little additional amount of lumber used; be- 

 cause, if cut from two boards, there will be 

 a little more waste; but a cheaper grade of 

 lumber can be used which will offset the 

 trifle of a few square im-hes more used. 



As for the two sets of frames as against the 



