TUt: BEE-KEEPERS' REVIEW. 



65 



.ipart where the entrances of the hives will 

 come. Place a board tliree or four inches 

 wide at the entrance of each hive, so that it 

 will hold the chaff above the entrance, thus 

 allowing the bees to pass out and in. 



The hives are then set in on the scantling, 

 placing tiiem about four inches apart, with 

 their entrances adjusted to the openings left 

 in the boards. Dry clover chaff is to be 

 snugly packed all around the hives, cover- 

 ing them about three inches deep. This 

 iiives a space of four inches in front and six 

 inches back of the hives tliat is filled with 

 c-haff. 



Another tier of hives can now be set on 

 top of these, and packed as the first, only 

 above the last tier use about eight inches of 

 the chaff. 



The stakes are kept from spreading by 

 nailing cleats across on tof) of them. On 

 these cleats place good sound boards for a 

 roof, allowing good lap and sufficient pitch 

 to turn storms readily. 



If the bees have been supplied with an 

 abundance of stores to last them until honey 

 comes the following spring, they can be left 

 in the clamps until nearly swarming time 

 and will need but little attention. I have 

 been able to winter bees quite succsssfully 

 in this way, more so than I could in the cel- 

 lar, or than I have ever seen them wintered 

 in the cellar. They should be put in the 

 clamps about October 10th to 25th. 



I expect to try some packed cu hions 

 around the hives this spring, covering them 

 with painted manilla paper, tied down close 

 around the sides. 



AiNGEK, Ohio. Feb. 27, 18'.)1. 



A Cheap Outside Wintering Case. 



H. L. HUTCHINSON. 



)AKE the bottom board 2>^ inches 

 larger all around tlian the body of 

 the hive. Make a box, of V^ inch 

 lumber, without top or bottom, of the same 

 dimensions of the bottom-board, for the 

 outside case. There will be a two inch space 

 between walls for chaff. The cover is made 

 like a chaff hive cover with gable ends. 



This style of packing cases costs but a 

 trifle more than those made of shingles, 

 looks neat and tasty, besides being handier 

 and stronger. 



( )f course, there should be a bridge at the 

 entrance, and an alighting board nailed to 

 tlie front edge of the bottom board. 



Matville, Mich. Feb. 23, 1891. 



Spring Protection Needed, but Chaff Hives 

 are Unhandy. 



A. li. KILDOW. 



IROTECTION for single- wall hives vs. 

 chaff hives is the March subject. 

 Eut you have so thoroughly gone over 

 the subject, there is very little to say, ex- 

 cept to tell whether you prefer chaff hives or 

 single wall hives, with or without protection. 



For the past two years I have successfully 

 wintered a part of my bees on the summer 

 stands, without protection, farther than a 

 quilt or burlap over the frames. 



And those in the cellar are not taken out 

 until the last of March or first of April, 

 when pollen can be gathered, and are then 

 placed on the summer stands. On removing 

 from the cellar, contract the frames so the 

 bees will quite well cover them, placing a 

 section case tilled with burlap or other ma- 

 terial over them, which should be left on 

 until time for sections. This I prefer to any 

 chaff hive of which I have knowledge. 



My objections to the chaff hives are, first, 

 you cannot move them ; second, they are too 

 hot for summer. I have had my bees, in a 

 two-story chaff hive (Roofs make), melt 

 down and kill the entire swarm, before I 

 could help them ; while in the single- wall 

 hives I would seldom have a comb melt. 

 Ttiird, they are a very unhandy hive to get 

 to the lower frames, especially if the bees 

 are blacks or hybrids, and it is very difficult 

 to work over a hive where you are obliged to 

 either stand astride one corner or get your 

 knees against the side and your heels braced 

 on the ground to keep your balance. 



And as to bees in a chaff hive breeding 

 earlier, my experience does not confirm it. 

 For time and again on taking my bees from 

 the cellar, the hives have seemed to be bet- 

 ter filled with bees than when put away in 

 the fall, and they would swarm just as early 

 as those in the chaff hive. 



But I do prefer some kind of spring pro- 

 tection for single-wall hives. If the spring 

 should be early, your protection will do no 

 damage, but if a cold, backward spring, it 

 will be dollars in your pocket. 



A good cheap protection can be made from 

 banana boxes, which cost little, or often 

 nothing. They are about the right width, 

 but too long, saw them off to the right 

 length, place the end back, make a cover 

 for it, and you have a good, yet cheap, 

 protection. These will last several years if 

 taken care of when removed from the hive. 



