10 THE COTTAGE AUD FARM BEE KEEPER. 



3. Every hive should have its own stand and single pedestal ;. that 

 is, a pedestal and board on the top, firmly nailed to it, distinct from 

 the bottom board, of the hive. The pedestal itself may be of pine, 

 slightly charred where it enters the ground, and its top of stout inch 

 oak. I advise the use of a separate bottom board for each hive, for 

 facility of weighing, cleansing, &c. Mr. Taylor has given a useful hint 

 for those who would dispense with this second board at page 30 of his 

 Bee Keeper's Manual. He recommends a square-topped pedestal, and 

 advises the construction of a sort of cap, made of pieces of wood 

 nailed to the under side of the bottom board, so as to fit on the top 

 of the pedestal. A screw, passing through one of the sides of this 

 cap into the pedestal, secures the board with the hive upon it. If this 

 plan be adopted of securing the hive, let every cap or socket of every 

 board, as well as every pedestal, be of exactly the same size, so as to 

 allow of the boards being shifted, as occasion may require, from one 

 pedestal to another. To those, however, who may be disposed to fol- 

 low the plan of management detailed in the following pages, I doubt 

 not the use of a second board to every hive will appear more advan- 

 tageous. A friend of mine has constructed a very neat, and indeed 



ornamental, stand in his garden, consisting 

 of a post let into the ground, having two 

 pieces of wood arranged crosswise on the 

 top, in the manner, as seen in the adjoining 

 sketch. A couple of screws would secure 

 the hive from accident, if passed through 

 the board into the bars. While on the 

 subject of hive boards, let me urge the advantage of carefully ascer- 

 taining the weight of every articfe of bee furniture, (as hives, boards, 

 &c.,) and marking the weight legibly on ea'ch, so a§ to be able at any 

 moment to ascertain the weight of the contents of every hive. This 

 will save much trouble. 



4. As a general rule, there ought to be a space of three feet, at least, 

 between the hives as they stand together in a row ; or, to suit the 

 plan of management hereafter to be described, each prime swarm of 

 the year had better stand within a foot and a half of its parent- hive, 

 at its side ; every two hives so placed standing as a duett, (if I may so 

 call it,) at a distance of four feet from the neighboring hives. Hives 

 bo managed would occupy about the same space in an apiary as if they 



