246 



TMM m'SmmHtCM'H ®®1^ JOtJKKMt'. 





OmmES W Replies. 



kvuber and position of 

 brood-fraihes. 



Written for the American Bee Journal 



ftnery 531.— 1. Are 12 frames lO'AxlOy. 

 Incbes, ineiiie measure, sufSclent for the 

 brood-chamber ? 2. For wintering on the 

 summer stands, buildinc up weak colonies In 

 the spring, etc., would it not be preferable to 

 have the Irames the short way of the hive, 

 say a hive the shape of the Langstroth ?— 

 Indiana. 



1. No. 2. No. — Mrs. L. Harrison. 



1. Yes. 2. Not for me.— H. D. 

 Cutting. 



1. Yes. 2. No.— G. L. Tinker. 



1. I think so. 2. No.— R. L. Taylor. 



1. Yes, piobablj-. 2. I do not know. 

 ^C. C. Miller. 



1. Yes. I prefer the regular Lang- 

 stroth frame. — C. H. Dibbern. 



1. Yes, amply so. 2. It does not 

 make any difference in this climate. — 



P. L. VlALLON. 



1. They are. 2. I do not think that 

 it would matter muclt witli your 

 frames. — J. P. H. Brown. 



1. We prefer larger frames. 2. Not 

 unless you can enlarge them after- 

 wards. — Dadant & Son. 



1. It would do very well. 2. Theory 

 says yes ; but I never have tried it. — 

 A. B. Mason. 



1. Yes. I use only 9 such frames, 

 and consider them ample. 2. Such 

 frames as -the above must run the 

 short way of the hive, for they can run 

 no other way where 12 frames to the 

 hive are used. — G M. Doolittle. 



1. Yes. 2. No. The size and shape 

 .(9J deep, and 17f or 17f long) of the 

 Langstroth frame, is probably the best 

 known. — J. M. Shook. 



1. Yes, I would never use more than 

 ten such frames for summer, and seven 

 would be better for winter. I do not 

 like that shape of fi'ame at all. 2. I 

 should prefer the frames of tliat depth 

 to run the short way of the hive. The 

 depth is objectionable. — James Hed- 



DON. 



1. Yes. 2. I use 11 frames 11] x9J 

 inches, inside measure, and of course 

 the frames run the short way of the 

 hive. The entrance is in the side of 

 the hive, so that the frames run from 

 front to rear. — M. Mahin. 



1. Yes, but I prefer 10 Langstroth 

 frames, which is about equal in comb 

 to 12 such frames as you mention. 2. 

 I have some experience in tlie difi'er- 

 ent ways of adjusting frames, and I 

 think that you will gain nothing by 

 placing the frames crosswise of the 

 entrance. — G. W. Demaree. 



1. Yes. 2. Having tried the short 

 frame and the Langstroth, I have never 

 been able to see any difference — win- 

 tering always in the cellar, however. 

 Successful bee-keeping depends more 

 upon the man, than on tlie hive or 

 frame he uses. — Eugene Secor. 



1. It might be, but the best results I 

 have ever obtained were from hives 

 with a brood-chamber capacity of 3,600 

 cubic inches. Location might make a 

 difference. 2. It is generally conceded 

 tliat the combs sliould hang straight 

 with the entrance. — J. M. Hambaugh. 



1. Yes, I tliink that they are about 

 right, altliough I prefer the Langstroth 

 frame, and 10 to a hive. 2. Not by 

 anj' means, in my own experience. 

 The Langstroth frame has stood the 

 test of years, and never has been 

 found wanting yet. Why not, then, 

 let well enough alone ?• — J. E. Pond. 



1. I use just such a hive, lljxllj 

 inches, and I like it mucli. I think 

 that lOJ inches would be about the 

 same — no essential difference. For 

 several reasons I would sa}% yes. If 

 all used such hives, I should prefer 

 them to the Langstroth. As so manj' 

 more use the Langstroth style, I think 

 that is most desirable. This is a case 

 where it pays to be with the majority. 

 — A. J. Cook. 



1. It is proliable that 12 frames of 

 that size would suffice for the breeding 

 apartment, but I niucli prefer 10 Lang- 

 stroth frames. 2. By no means ; the 

 entrance to the hive should be at the 

 ends of the frames. — The Editor. 



MANAOEItlElVT TO PREVENT 

 INCREASE. 



Written for the American Bee Journal 



Query 532. Havlnsr as many bees as I 



care to handle, and working for comb honey, 

 when the bees do swarm, ou^ht I to take the 

 queen away and return the bees, or cut out 

 the queen-cells and return the old queen with 

 the bets ?— Outarlo. 



See answer to Querj' 527. — P. L. 

 Viallon. 



See Querj- 527, for an answer. — A. 

 B. Mason. 



Neither way would be good practice. 

 — Mrs. L. Harrison. 



You will find neither practice prac- 

 tical, as a rule. — James Heddon. 



See Query 527, with answer J. M. 



Hambaugh. 



It depends upon the age of the 

 queen. If too old, kill her. — C. C. 

 Miller. 



I think that the first plan will work, 

 if after live days all the queen-cells 

 but one are destroyed. Tlie latter 

 plan w<nild not do at all — it would 

 lead to inactivity, and to more swarm- 

 ing. — R. L. Taylor. 



There are objections to both of your 

 methods, but probably the least to the 

 plan of cutting out all the queen-cells. 

 —J. P. H. Brown. 



I would return the old queen with 

 the bees ; cut out all the queen-cells 

 first. — H. D. Cutting. 



Your method would not always suc- 

 ceed. Using large hives will make 

 less swarming. — Dadant & Son. 



See answer to Query 527. The 

 swarming fever shoidd be subdued to 

 get the best results. — G. L. Tinker. 



I would prefer to hive the swarms 

 and double up colonies in the fall ; or, 

 better still, double down one-half in 

 the spring, so as to make all strong, 

 and then increase to the original num- 

 ber by swarming when the season 

 arrives. — G. M. Doolittle. 



Let them swarm, as Mr. Heddon 

 does, and then reduce in the fall, will. 

 I think, pay the best. Else remove the 

 old queen and cut out all the cells bnt 

 one ; otherwise they will usually keep 

 on attempting to swarm. — A. J. Cook. 



Return the bees, taking away the 

 old queen, and be sure to destroy all 

 queen-cells but one. With plenty of 

 room and ventilation, you will have no 

 more trouble. But look out for too 

 much honey in the brood-combs. — M. 

 Mahin. 



This is a mooted question. I prefer 

 to use the so-called artificial method of 

 swarming, and thus control the matter 

 of increase. I should prefer cutting 

 out queen-cells and returning the 

 queen, but ample room for surplus 

 must be given, else a great risk is run 

 of having the queen killed. — J. E. 

 Pond. 



How to prevent increase when 

 working for comb hoiiej' is one of the 

 unsolved problems in bee-cidture. I 

 do not know of any one who can cer- 

 tainly control swarming. Many 

 methods are used ; sometimes one will 

 give satisfaction for a season, and then 

 the charm is broken. Most of the rules 

 are subject to exceptions. I should 

 not practice either of the methods 

 mentioned in the query. I should not 

 expect to control swarming by either 

 of them. — Eugene Secor. 



This will not work. If the old queen 

 is killed and the bees returned, they 

 will swarm when the first queen 

 hatches out. If the queen-cells are all 

 cut out, and tlie swarm is returned 

 with the old queen, thej' will at once 

 rear other queen-cells, and with a large 

 apiary on your hands, you would soon 

 be in a "peck of trouble."— C. H. Dib- 

 bern. 



Neither way you suggest will pre- 

 vent swarming. If you should remove 

 the queen and return the bees, the 

 bees would swarm as soon as the 



