96 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Ape. 



before said that nice combs can be sold to al- 

 most any progressive bee-keeper — and we 

 think one may how be found in almost every 

 neighborhood — for at least 35c. each. A fair 

 colony would build 10 such easily in a sea- 

 son. Would not !|!2.50 pay for the extra ex- 

 pense of frames? It is true that the comb in 

 a box hive might be sold for something, but 

 for how much, think you, compared witli the 

 same combs built in L. frames V Suppose yon 

 have one box hive containing much more 

 than they need, and another that is starving; 

 your only plan is to go and buy sugar or can- 

 dy, while if the stores were in frames, you 

 could, iu a twinkling, equalize the two. In 

 our opinion, the very best way in the world to 

 feed bees, is to have some heavy combs laid 

 Mway for such emergencies, and then you can 

 take care that they do not starve, any day in 

 the year. Can this ever be done with box 

 hives? Our opinion of having bees in boxes 

 without frames, under any circumstances, is 

 that it is about equivalent to pouring the grain 

 that you feed your horses and cattle, into the 

 mud, because you, by so doing, save the ex- 

 pense of feed troughs. 



J}YSEN'5"E!£Y. 



CAUSE ANU PKEVKNTIOJf. 



l^Tlr^' bees have wintered well. Cut if they had re- 

 ;|^'/|j{[ mained until April, perhaps I would have seen 



' none living. They had a fly Feb. 12th, and all 

 the hives had nearly a beginning ol' dysentery. The 

 honey is ol' the worst kind, all fall honey and moat of 

 it unsealed. It is like cells of water mingleil with 

 \yhite grains; the bees eat tlie watery honey and 

 !e:i\'e the white particles. So'^»e of the hives were 

 badly smeared with a tarry black stinking mass. All 

 have brood in froniiS to 4 combs. I am going to set 

 ilieni all in buckwheat chafl'. 1 have yet 300 lbs. of 

 i;ill honey; I want to sell it for 12c. 



J. Dm TELEK, Wc(!\iiock, Wis., Feb. 14th, 11:77. 



Although it may be difficult to tell what to 

 ilo with bees when in the predicament above 

 mentioned, without warm weather to allow 

 ihem to fly, or preserved combs of nice, sealed 

 -:iioney with which to replace the bad stores, 

 we may suggest a very easy means of prevent- 

 ing such a result in the future. Had the hives 

 been close and warm, like the chali' hives, 

 when this fall honey was gathered, we really 

 believe they would have sealed up the boney, 

 in.'^tead of leaving it in this uutiaislied state. 

 Our experiments v/ith honey boxes, covered 

 and uncovered, have pretty strongly confirmed 

 our opinion in this matter. Again, had they 

 been allowed to keep their combs of sealed 

 Iioney that they gathered and sealed up in the 

 fore part of the season, we think there would 

 have been no trouble. If it be urged that 

 1 hey would swarm incessantly if this honey 

 wi'i-e not extracted, we would advise setting 

 sucJi heavy combs away until they are to be 

 })rei)ared if>r winter. Bix well tilled L. combs 

 will winter nv.y colony, we do verily believe, 

 and they can with only tiu-so (5 combs, be put 

 in close and warm (juavters, and with the chaff 

 <'ushions around and over Ihem, it would be 

 strange indeed to iiud any traces of dysentery; 

 v>'hilo thi- entr;inees of many of our common 

 hives are 'toiled, and lil'.hy i,o look at, those of 



the chaff hives areas clean and white as they 

 were when first painted. This one fact alone, 

 is enough to pay for the chalV covering, to any 

 one who i^ annoyed by unsightly spots and 

 daubs ou the fronts of their neatly painted 

 hives in the spring time. 



FKKEa:if7>fG BEES. 



^j? IIA^■E seen some eutiuiry as to how much cold a 

 Jjl stock of bees could stand out of doors and live. 

 I experimented with one stand, it was a weak 

 stock, wirh about two-thirds ot a pint of young bees 

 and young fjueen, in old style tjuinby liive, with 

 honey board on, also G inch cap on, with inch hole 

 through honey board in front. I left the entrance 

 open so tiiat they could come out wlienever they 

 chose, and set the hive by the door of the house so 

 that I could look in often. We have had some cold 

 weather, the thermometer being 20^ below zero, and 

 the bees had not a fly for over a month. On the 28th 

 of Jan. it was warm cnougii for all my bees to have a 

 good ll3^ and I took a look at my experiment. Found 

 them alive and lively, got a sting from ' them ; they 

 had eaten a good-sized lump of A coffee sugar, and 

 changed from front to rear of hive, to escape draft of 

 cold air 1 suppose. The ne.\t day was also warnj, and 

 I again looked in but not a live bee was in the hive. 

 Where were they? My opinion is th.at they become 

 disgustcil with their treatment and lelt to better their 

 condition. Wc liave had line weather since the 27th 

 of last month, and there have been but two days that 

 the bees were not out. I have been feeding flour, 

 but I am a little afraid that it is crowding the seat on 

 somewhat, for our Marches aie some here, but not 

 f:um7)ier. 



Well, friend Root, as you cannot get bee-l;cep.=rs to 

 agree upon a sta.idard frame and honey bov, that will 

 tit any hive, suppose you levcrsc tlie thing and make 

 a hive tiiat will tit any franu- or honey box, or any 

 number of them- India rubber hives would fit any 

 sized colony ; you would not liave to go to the trouble 

 of extra upper stories ; you could always tell the size 



j of your colony l)y the way the hive was stretched, 

 and the entrance— well, ot course, as the colony in- 

 creased and g&t larger, the entrance would stretch to 

 suit, and as the colony dwindled ilie entrance woulcl 

 draw up to just suit. I think that it would knock 

 your hoop iiivc into cold, oblivioi\s shade. 

 Es). Wellington, liivcrton, la.. Feu. llith, 1S77. 

 We agree with you, that the bees probably 

 left their hive because they were disgusted 

 with such a cold place, and we have known 

 quite a number to desert under quite similar 

 circumstances. Is it not possible that much 

 of the swarming out in the spring is caused 

 by just such poorly made hives, or by having 

 too tsw bees to make the large open hives com- 

 fortable? Perhaps tlie rubber hive would 

 remedy all the troubles, l)ut a cliatl" hive and 

 chaflT cushion division boards, will answer the 

 same purpose so well, that we think we will 

 have to be satisfied, especially as everybody 

 now seems disposed to adopt the L. frame. We 

 would most emphatically urge beginners to 

 adopt what seenis to bid fair now, to be the 

 national frame. You are certainly with the 

 great majority on that, and it has been so 

 well tested, that it cannot be very far out of 

 the way. 'i^'woslory hives, since the advent 

 of fdn., are certainly the ones that will be used, 

 and deep frames are beginning already to be 



discarded. 



