40 BEES FOE PLEASURE AND PEOFIT. 



(fig. 26, b), whicli allows the bees to pass very readily from 

 one section to another, has now become very popular, as indeed 

 it deserves to be. Some apiarists, who use sections IJ inch 

 wide, and fit them with full sheets of foundation, claim that 

 dividers are unnecessary under such circumstances. 



The " W. B. Carr " crate — lately invented, and fully 

 described in the British Bee Journal for June 18th, 1891 — 

 has the sections placed in frames, thus preventing the bees from 

 soiling the wood with propolis or " bee glue," a substance with 

 which they fill up cracks and crevices in their hive, often smear- 

 ing it on the quilts, etc. This crate, which seems to possess 

 many great advantages over all those previously invented, is 

 probably destined to supersede those now in general use. It is 

 manufactured and sold by nearly all the dealers in bee 

 appliances. 



When to Super. 



A very important point — perhaps the most important — in 

 the production of comb honey is, when to put the super on the 

 hive : if it is put on too early, the bees will not enter it ; if too 

 late, much valuable time is lost. It is impossible to fix any 

 date for supering, as everything depends on the locality and 

 the weather. In places where fruit bloom is abundant the 

 bees will sometimes require supers in April. As soon as the 

 bees begin to elongate the cells near the top of the frames and 

 fill them with honey is the time to put on the super ; so we 

 only have to turn back the quUt of the hive, and if we see that 

 the bees have elongated the cells at the top of the frames with 

 beautiful white wax — forming a strong contrast to the rest of 

 the old discoloured combs — we may take out one of the frames, 

 and, if the new cells are being filled with honey, the hive is 

 ready to be supered. 



In placing the crates on the hives it is immaterial whether 

 the sections run parallel or at right angles to the frames. The 

 spaces between the sides of the crate and the ends of the frames 

 must be covered with several thicknesses of quilting, so as not 

 to let the heat escape. This is a most important matter in in- 

 ducing the bees to enter the super, as, if the heat escape, they 

 will all be required below to keep the brood warm ; for this 

 reason the top of the crate must also be covered with plenty of 

 quilts, 



