BACKLOT BEEKEEPING 
8ti 
View of D. J. Bloeher’s apiary, Pearl City, Ill. The grass is kept mowed all summer with a lawn-mower. 
by seeing- some good beekeeper open up a 
hive than he can get from a book in several 
days. In fact, it would pay Mr. Backlotter 
well to take a trolley trip off into the coun¬ 
try, hunt up some person who is keeping 
bees, and, if he approaches his man with 
the idea of purchasing a colony or two, he 
will be able to get all the information he 
desires; and in this connection it may be 
said that it is usually cheaper for one to 
make a start by buying a few colonies than 
to send away to some dealer, unless he buys 
them in pound-package form. See Be¬ 
ginning with Bees. 
Besides the allurements of a restful hob¬ 
by, of diversion from the cares of the office, 
shop, factory, and of the home for the 
wife, backlot beekeeping affords in addi¬ 
tion a profit, provided, of course, that one 
follows directions, and provided further 
that there is something-in the locality on 
which bees can work. In most of our cities 
white clover thrives on lawns. No matter 
how dry the season, the constant sprinkling 
and mowing keep white clover in bloom 
for a much longer period than the average 
pasture lot. Besides white clover, sweet 
clover is being grown extensively along 
APIARY OF E. S. BR1NTON, WEST CHESTER, PA. 
The apiary is well protected in the back lot by apple trees and shrubbery. It appears to be an ideal 
place for wintering bees; but the colonies should, of course, be packed in winter cases in order to get the 
best results. 
