1S7S 



GLEAXIXGS IX BEE CULTURE. 



265 



bees can get out and in comfortjibly, but do 

 not make the entrance larger, unless the 

 weather is extremely warm. Your next 

 work i.s to learn to handle the frames, and 

 to get acquainted with the bees. If you 

 should take the frames out and look at the 

 queen, and see how they get along with 



brood rearing, etc.. every day, I should be 

 much more sanguine of their prosperity, 

 tlian if you only looked at them once a week. 

 After they are accustomed to your daily and 

 careful handling; you will find that you can 

 get along without smoke, veil, or any thing 

 of the kind. 



PLUM GROVE APIARY, J. 

 P£.UM GKO\^ AP2ARY. 



f^ RIEND ROOT: Thinking you would like to see 

 -' how we look out this way, F send you a photo. 

 i^ of our bee yard for inspection. All those large 

 hives you see are chalT packed. In size they are 22 

 inches in the clear. We use 10 frames, 13x13 inches. 

 The packiiig on the two sides is 3V4 inches thick, and 

 on the rear end five inches. We use for packiug 

 clear wheat chaff, all sifted to remove all the straw. 

 Oat chair does not answer, as it gathers dampness. 

 It also has a portico .5 inches deep and broad. For 

 winter, we use a false front with 2 inch space. We 

 also use on the frames a bag that will hold about 



BUTLER & SOX, ^VOODVILLE, MICH. 



.' Ilis first work on the picture was the barn, 

 Avhich you see he has done pretty well. The 

 hives I am afraid he hurried over a little too 

 much. Also, by a mistake in copying the 

 photo, he has turned it about ; for the barn 

 is really on the south side. As I once vis- 

 ited the place, the surroundings look quite 

 familiar to me. Friend Butler is the person- 

 age who is holding up a frame, doubtless, 

 looking for the queen through his spectacles. 

 His stalwart son, who is larger than liis fath- 



bushei of chaff; this we put on after the weather er considerably, is holding a — well, I guess 

 ,.„_.-_...__. __,^ ._ .^. ^-,, X.--..-. _._. ._ _ , j^ jg ^ Bingham smoker. He has wisely 



tucked his trousers in liis boots, that he may 

 not have to stop his work every little while, 

 to stamp off bees, that, either by mistake or 

 '•'malice afore thought," have got where they 

 ought not to be. Friend Butler has his 

 hives elevated rather more than we do, -and 

 then has a broad alighting board, as you see, 

 to conduct the bees in doors. When I was 

 there, a hive was kept on a platform scale, 

 but I do not see it now ; i)erhaps it is there, 

 for all that. An excellent place, is friend 

 Butler's to visit, and I sliould dearly love to 

 spend a whole day there (especially, in plum 

 time). 



begins to get cold in the fall. First we put on 

 piece of old clean carpet, then the chaff, and flnallj- 

 put in the false front and they are in winter trim. 



The cover is made of ''a inch lumber, matched and 

 put together with white lead; then a batten is put 

 over each joint, and they will shed any amount of 

 rain, if kept painted. The surplus capacity of these 

 hives is about .50 pounds, with one tier of sections. 



In the rear end we drop a 6 inch door hung with 

 butts down, so we can raise up and remove the ease 

 holding the sections. After using these hives the 

 second season we like them very much. We have 

 in use 00 of them. The entrance is 1+ inches long by 

 •'a deep. In these the bees do not lay out near so 

 much as in hives not packed. We shall make 

 enough of them for our winter stock, but no more, 

 as they are too costly. We are indebted to No\-ice 

 more or less, for many of our improvements in the 

 appearance of our apiary, such as keeping grass and 

 weeds and all kinds of rubbish out of the apiary, be- 

 sides other things too numerous to mention.' We 

 have been removing cases of 50 lbs. from those large 

 hives. Our prospect for surplus very good to date, 

 June 28th. J. BuTiiER. 



Jackson, July 2d, 1S78. 



P. S. -The reason we call our apiary Plum Grove 

 is because most of the trees are of that sort, and 

 yield an annual harvest to a considerable amount. 

 We have alx)ut 103 trees, but they are not all bear- 

 ing yet. 



Perhaps I should make some apology for 

 the picture of friend Butler's plu^i grove 

 APIARY, inasmuch as it is the first landscape 

 our young engraver has ever attempted. 



The a. B. J. for June, charges me with having un- 

 generously misstated the amount, that Winder had 

 received i'rom Mr. Parker, and had refused to re- 

 fund. As soon as the No. was received, I at once 

 mailed friend Newman, Winder's letter in whieli he 

 himself acknowledges the receipt of the ^-lO. The 

 letter was returned to me, with a most humble apol- 

 og.y for having been so hasty in taking Winder's lat- 

 ter statement for granted. Of course, I looked ;for 

 some retraction in the July No; as it contained none. 

 I expostulated; the expostulation was received and 

 answered, but not a word was said in regard to a 

 public apology. When 1 am publicly charged with 

 falsifying, I rather prefer a public, in place of a pri 



