264 



THE BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW. 



OUT-APIARIES FOR GOMB HONEY. 



BY W. L. PORTER. 



With the Right kind of Management they make Continu- 

 ous Work the Whole Year. 



Read at the Denver Convention. 



^QHE out-apiary is the invention of the 

 T^ specialist, i. e., the beekeeper who 

 devotes his whole time to bee culture, de- 

 pending upon it for his income. In a 

 country where the honey producing plants 

 are scattered, he finds it necessary to keep 

 more bees than one locality will furnish 

 flowers for. In order that he may have a 

 full crop of honey he seeks a new and 

 more favorable location. 



THINGS TO BE CONSIDERED IN ESTAB- 

 I^ISHING AN OUT-APIARY. 



In an out-apiarj- three things must be 

 considered: First, the location; second, 

 the stock of bees; and, third, the method 

 of manipulation. 



In seeking a location it is important 

 that the beekeeper keep in mind that, 

 first, there nmst be an abundance of honey 

 producing plants; second, his location 

 must not be already stocked by other bee- 

 keepers, and, third, a favorable place to 

 set the hives mu.st be found. The land 

 should slope gently to the south, with 

 shade on the north, and protection from 

 the wind. 



After a suitable location has been found, 

 it should be stocked with bees which have 

 been bred with special reference to hardi- 

 ness, to insure good wintering; strong 

 wing power for long flights and to resist 

 the wind. They should have energy and 

 good comb-building qualities. There 

 should be colonies enough in a place to 

 make work for a whole day in one j'ard, 

 for the beekeeper and his assistants. Say, 

 from one hundred to one hundred and 

 fifty colonies. It is necessary to have a 

 bee- and mouse-proof building large 



enough to hold supplies for a year's crop 

 of honey and increase. 



In winter the beekeeper should make 

 visits from time to time to prevent the rob- 

 bing of weak and queenless colonies; es- 

 pecially those weak or dead of foul brood. 

 In spring the out-yards need watching 

 for colonies that need feeding, and, later, 

 all need stimulative feeding that they may 

 be in full strength for the honey flow. 

 Before plants or trees bloom, wheat 

 flour may be fed to be used in the place 

 of pollen, and the honey in the hive may 

 be uncapped and combs of honey be given. 



COKTROI, OF SWARMING. 



A very important problem which pre- 

 sents itself is the control of swarming. 

 Many methods are used by different bee- 

 keepers. Some make a practice of clip- 

 ping the queens' wings, and allow natural 

 swarming. Others dequeen the hives. 

 Whatever methods are emploj-ed, two 

 things may be profitably considered: 

 First, that shaded colonies having plenty 

 of storage room are less apt to swarm than 

 those under opposite conditions. Second, 

 that a stock of bees may be carefully bred 

 which is not predisposed to swarm. 



At the home of the beekeeper there 

 should be a commodious workshop, well- 

 lighted and heated for winter work. 

 Here all hives and supers should be pre- 

 pared and sections filled with foundation. 

 As fast as these are ready they should be 

 moved to the buildings at the out-yards. 

 Thus every thing is made ready for the 

 rush of the season. As fast as the honey 

 is finished it should be taken off the hives 

 and stored in a warm dry room. There 



