44 - Idi'unccd Bcc Culture 



.^ecn at one glance from the honey-house. In watching for swarms it is 

 necessary to look in four different directions in order to ascertain if a 

 swarm is out. A\'hen the house is at one side of the yard, the whole 

 :i;)iary can be taken in at a glance. Other things being equal, the south 

 side of the apiar\' is preferable for the house. In looking for swarms the 

 bee-keeper does not look toward the sun, but has the clear northern sky 

 Inr a background, while the shady side of the building, which will be 

 naturally sought by the tired bee-keeper as the best spot in which to 

 take a breathing-spell, is toward the apiary. 



!Most bee-keepers are in favor of having" the building two stories 

 high, using the upper story as a store-room for hives and fi.xtures, the 

 liiwer story for work-shop and honey-room, the latter being partitioned 

 oil: by itself, and the cellar under the building for wintering the bees. 

 The usual mistake in making such buildings is in not having them large 

 enough. The honey-room ought to be located in a southern corner of 

 the building, and the walls made of some non-conductor of heat. Some 

 even paint the side of the building a dark color where it comes over the 

 honey-room, in order that as much as possible of the sun's heat may be 

 al)sorbed. The idea is that the hone_\' must be kept as warm as possible. 

 If there is any unsealed or unripe honey, this high temperature causes 

 evaporation and improvement. By keeping such a room warm with a 

 stnve in winter, comb honey has been kept over until another year, 

 and actually improved l^)- the keeping. 



But, to return to the arrangement of hives. AVhen the honey-house 

 i^ at one side of the apiary, the hives may still be arranged upon the 

 radiating plan, b)' having the rows radiate from the honey-house door, 

 thus forming one-half of a large wheel, instead of the whole of a 

 smaller one, as in the case (if having the honey-house in the center. 

 A\'hen the radiating rows are ^•ery long, they become far apart at the 

 outer ends, or else ver\- close together at the inner ends. To remed\- this, 

 shorter rows, rir "si)urs," may be put in between the long ro\\-s at their 

 oulcr ends. 



Another arrangement is that of placing the hives in a hexagonal 

 manner, each lii\e being the center of six others. This is a pleasing 

 arrangement to the c\e, but it has been reported that the massing of 

 the hives in such a regular manner has a tendency to lead the bees to 

 enter the hives standing on the outside of (or edge of) the apiary, thereby 

 weakening the colonies in the center of the vard. 



Placing the lii\-es in small groups is a most excellent arrangement. 

 Mr. J. E. Crane, of Middlebury, A'ermont, arranges his hives in groups 

 of ten each, each group being arranged as follows : Two hives facing 

 the north, three facing east, two the south, and three the west. Nine such 

 grou|)s, arranged in a S(|uare. three groui^s each way, furnish room for 



