38 



ARRANGEMENT OF THE APIARY 



even destroyed. This sometimes happens even in the shade, 

 especially if the hive be not well ventilated. The writer recalls 

 an instance where several colonies in new and nicely painted 

 hives met with this misfortune, while others in old hives full 

 of cracks suffered no injury even though they were in the open 

 sun and the unfortunate ones in the shade. It is desirable that 

 the bees be so situated that there is always free circulation of 

 air among the hives in warm weather. Large entrances greatly 



Fig. 20. — A well-arranged apiary in California. 



assist, and in very warm weather lifting the cover an inch 

 and placing a block under it will also be of much help. When 

 the bees begin to cluster on the outside, it is usiially from lack 

 of room to store or from lack of ventilation. In either case the 

 need should be supplied to prevent loafing or untimely swarming. 

 Spacing the Hives. — It is a common practice to set the hives 

 close together in long rows. This plan is not to be commended, 

 because of the danger of queens entering the wrong hive and 

 being destroyed. Neither is this plan satisfactory to the attend- 



