26 



WHEN AND HOW TO FEED. 



Experienced beekeepers can judge in a moment by the weight of the 

 hive, without opening it, whether the supply of food is running short 

 or not, and every beekeeper should learn to do this. By putting one 

 foot on the back of the bottom board to keep it steady, and with one 

 hand raising the back of the hive, one can get the weight at once, and 

 after a little practice can judge to within 1 lb. the amount of honey 

 inside. In this way a large number of hives can be examined in ten or 

 fifteen minutes, and those needing food should be marked. 



The safest and best food to give, unless frames of honey from known 

 clean hives are available, is sugar-syrup. Make it as described in 

 Chapter IV, under the heading of " Feeding and Disinfecting." Never 

 purchase honey or accept it as a gift to feed your bees with — it is too 

 risky, and to steiilise it would require two or three hours' boiling, which 

 would be more trouble than the honey would be worth. 



FEEDERS. 



There are several kinds of feeders advertised by those who cater for 

 beekeepers. Clean, empty combs make excellent feeders, and they can 

 be filled by placing them on an inclined board in a large milk-dish or 

 other similar vessel, and pouring the syrup through a fine strainer held 

 a foot or so above them. The force of the falling syrup expels the air 

 from the cells, and the syrup takes its place. After filling, the combs 

 should be suspended over a vessel (to catch the drip) before placing them 

 in the hives. 



There are " division-board " feeders to hang in the hive like frames, 

 and others to place over the frames, such as the " Miller " and " Sim- 

 plicity " feeders; also the " Alexander " feeder under the bottom board, 

 either of which will answer the purpose, provided attention is given to 

 replenishing the food when needed. The inexperienced should always 

 feed ivithin the hive, and in the evening. 



Finally, remember that a little food given in the spring to tide the 

 bees over a spell of bad weather will save them to give you a large return 

 in honey later on, whereas neglect in this respect will result in their 

 Joss. 



