bee-kegfer's manual. 205 



are suitable fm* bee-hives. Some recommend inch and 

 a quarter plank ; but such are not necessary. In south- 

 ern latitudes, the hives will require being better secured 

 from the heat of the sun, than at the north ; but no dif- 

 ference in the material for their manufacture is required. 

 It is true, that plank will make a better hive than boards ; 

 yet, as a general rule, boards must be used, since plank 

 do not come of a proper width in all cases ; and, besides 

 that^ objection, they are dearer than boards. Plank 

 makes a heavy, clumsy hive, and they are objectionable 

 on that point. Nothing less than boards full one inch 

 thick, will answer ; or rather, boards of a less thickness 

 should never be used, because the different changes of 

 heat and cold would affect the bees much more in hives 

 made of thiner ones. 



There has been some controversy in regard to the 

 best material for the construction of hives. Some apia- 

 rians have recommended one kind and some another 

 kind of boards for their manufacture ; but after all, the 

 grand secret of success in bee-culture lies not in the 

 wood of which the hives are made. Dr. Smith, of Bos- 

 ton, an apiarian of considerable celebrity, strongly 

 recommends red cedar for the especial purpose of keep- 

 ing out the bee-moth. I have no doubt of red cedar 

 being an excellent material to make hives of; and were 

 it as plenty and as cheap as white pine lumber, I should 

 say, use it by all means. In regard to its keeping out 

 the moths, I do not believe any such thing. I believe, 

 that if any wood possess an odor so offensive as to pre- 



