Bee-keeping for Small Farmers. 



47i 



fenced off, if situate on land where cattle are accustomed to 

 feed. They should also be not so far away as to prevent those 

 engaged about the dwelling-house from seeing when swarms 

 are in the air. If the hives can be so placed as to afford a free 

 bee-flight towards the open country, while the bee-keeper has 

 room to work at the side or in rear of them without interfering 

 with the flight of the bees, it is mutually advantageous to them 

 and to the bee-keeper. 



One of the most reliable arguments in favour of combining 

 apiculture with small farming lies in the fact that the bee-keeper 

 can time his work so as not to interfere unduly with the 

 attention needed for harvesting his ordinary agricultural 

 produce. Moreover, much valuable help can be rendered by a 

 farmer's wife who is so disposed, and many instances are 

 recorded in which women make most successful bee-keepers, 

 when helped by their husbands in the merely mechanical labour 

 of hive-making and such manual work as is suitable for men only. 



Another item for serious thought is the outlay involved in 

 providing the necessary appliances and stock required for the 

 work of a small apiary. Certain of these things must, perforce, 

 be purchased ; among them, in addition to hives, we may include 

 sections, frames, comb-foundation, honey-extractor, bee-smoker, 

 super-clearers, and possibly a few syrup-feeders. But the main 

 point is whether or not our small farmer possesses sufficient 

 mechanical skill, combined with the needful inclination, to 

 make his own hives during the long winter evenings when out- 

 door work is out of the question. That many men — gardeners, 

 artisans, and others who can handle joiners' tools fairly well— do 

 this is certain, and if we may include among them the farmer who 

 starts with bees, the initial outlay will be of course considerably 

 reduced. But he must always bear in mind the importance of 

 accuracy in measurements, seeing that it is absolutely essential 

 for efficiency in working that roofs, lifts, floor-boards, surplus 

 chambers, and all the various loose parts of hives be inter- 

 changeable with each other. 



It is certain, however, that many will, for some reason, either 

 be unable to make their hives or prefer to purchase, and to 

 these we say, do not on any account be persuaded to adopt a 



