May 1907] 



327 



LIVE STOCK. 



Apiculture in Ceylon. 



By an Amateur. 



There is as much difference between the terms apiculture and bee-keeping as 

 between horticulture and gardening. We are all of us gardeners ; but very* few are 

 horticulturists. And it is in the hope that I may induce a few bee-keepers to join 

 the ranks of apiculturists that I write this. The bee-keeper merely keeps bees and 

 robs them for the sake of their honey— of which he gets very little. The apicul- 

 turist, by adopting scientific methods, looks after the welfare of his stock, and, with 

 far less trouble to himself, and without injuring the bees, secures probably ten times 

 the amount of honey. And in addition to this, he has the pleasure of studying some 

 wonderful facts of natural history. 



I think there are three reasons why people do not go in more widely for 

 apiculture. They fear the danger of being stung ; they imagine the science to entail 

 a great amount of trouble ; and they think it must be an expensive hobby. Well, 

 let me take these objections in their order. If a strong hive of bees made up its 

 mind to attack its owner in a body, he would most likely be killed. In the same 

 way, I would point out that, if you meet a rogue elephant at close quarters in a 

 narrow jungle path, you will probably be killed ; but this does not prevent you from 

 walking along a jungle path whenever vou are so disposed ! And yet, no small 

 number of persons have been killed by rogue elephants, whereas no bee-keeper has 

 yet been killed by his bees. 



The fact is, bees do not sting unless they are forced to— for the simple 

 reason that, if they do, they die. You will, of course, if you keep bees, inevitably 

 be stung now and then by an odd bee here and there ; but the blood very soon 

 becomes so inured to the poison, that you no longer feel any ill-effects beyond 

 the prick. 



As to the trouble involved in scientific apiculture, it depends on oneself. 

 If bees are kept in a " chatty," there is, of course, nothing that one can do to help 

 them on. But if a substantial crop of honey is looked for from a frame-hive, then 

 the bees must be examined and fed now and then. But on the other hand, do not 

 overdo it. Bees have been known to kill their own queen out of sheer anger 

 (apparently) at being messed about too frequently. It is sufficient for a novice 

 if he examines all the frames of each of his hives once a week. He can then see if 

 the queen is alive, and whether she is laying properly ; and he can guard against 

 £he wax-moth. 



And finally, as to expense. A frame-hive naturally costs more than a 

 " chatty " ; but its yield in honey is more than proportionately greater. And in 

 order to save you the expense of getting a hive shipped to you from abrpad, I will 

 proceed to give you instructions for constructing one yourself. 



The Hive. (Fig. 2.) 



Take some old packing-cases of half-inch deal and pull them to pieces. Make 

 four boards, two of them 18j.4 in. by S'i in., and the other two 12£ in. by 8f iu^, and 

 nail them together to form the sides of a box, being careful that the top edges 

 of the boards lie flush, and that the ends of the two shorter ones overlie the ends 

 of the two longer. If you have done this properly, you will now find that the 

 internal dimensions of your box are 18| in. by 111 in. by 8| in, 



