BEE-spoke-data/bees-v0 huggingface dataset:
Lift the hive cover and quilt with a slight introduction of smoke, then lift off completely. Smoke from above for a moment, being very careful not to burn the bees, always remembering that smoke is meant to scare and not to punish. Then loosen the super with a screw-driver if the bees have fastened it down with bee glue, lift it and place it on a bottom-board near at hand. Put on an unfilled super if it is needed and cover the hive. Lift the honey-sections out of the super, brushing off the adhering bees with a bee-brush, so that they will fall on the doorstep of the hive, and place each section as it is cleaned in a basket or box in which it is to be carried to the store-room. This is our usual way of procedure when our apiary is small, and we do this work during spare moments which are not predictable the night before. However, there is one best way to do this work, and that is to put on a Porter bee-escape the night before the super is to be removed. Wise from experience, we advise beginners to study this device and become imbued with a knowledge of its workings to the extent of being able to tell which is the upper and which the under side, lest disastrous results ensue and all of the bees escape into the super instead of out of it. If the bee-escape is placed on the night before, there will be no bees in the super when it is removed next day. To introduce a bee-escape one does not need to lift off the super; simply lift it up at one side, send a little smoke into the crack, push in the bee-escape, and then set it straight upon the hive and the super straight upon it. (Plates III, XVIII.)
The novice might conclude that a good plan would be simply to set off the super near the hive, and let the bees find their own way back to their brood and kindred. But bee-nature has to be reckoned with in this instance, and the bees, conscious that the honey is their own, are likely to uncap the cells and carry the honey into the hive; or worse still, the bees from other lives will be attracted to these open stores and will begin to rob. And in the bee courts of equity, when bees begin to rob, then the "devil is to pay."
There have been various bee-tents devised under which the supers are placed after being removed from the hive. These tents are arranged with a little hole at the top by which the bees may escape, but may not return. Doctor Miller invented a simple plan of piling several supers filled with honey on top of each other, leaving no crevices between them; over these was spread a cloth with a hole in the middle, over which was placed a wire cone with a hole in the top large enough to let a bee pass out. Thus the bees from all of the sections escaped, one by one, and robbing was avoided. However, the beo-escapes introduced between the super and the hives are used to-day by most enterprising bee-men.
egin{tabular}{l l} observation-itives & (Promisphere) \ \end{tabular}
Anyone who has worked long with bees, cannot fail to become filled with curiosity concerning the way their work is carried on in the mysterious darkness of the hive; to such a person, the observation-live is a source of perennial delight, as well as of interesting and useful knowledge.
Observation-hives have been used by bec-keepers from the time of Huber to the present, and naturally many forms of them have been devised. The type in most common use now is a small hive, containing one, two or three frames, and furnished with glass sides, through which the bees can be observed. The glass sides are covered with a door or curtain, except when observations are being made; for, if not, the bees will cover the glass with a coat of propolis, rendering it opaque.
It is somewhat difficult to keep a colony in good condition upon a single frame; and if two or more frames are used side by side the observer is unable to see what goes on between the frames. Professor Kellogg, of Stanford University, has devised a perfectly satisfactory two-frame observation-hive for his laboratory. It consists of a glass-sided box, large enough to hold two Langstroth frames, one above the other; as both sides of the comb are exposed, any individual bee may be kept constantly in sight while she is working. The passage which leads from the hive to the opening in the window has a glass top, so the actions of the bees as they enter the hive may be watched. A hood of thick black cloth is pulled down over the hive when the observations are finished. Similar observation lives may be purchased of dealers in apiarists' supplies.
Such an observation-hive would be of great value to the enterprising bee-keeper, as it would be the means of helping him to understand conditions which were puzzling, and thus aid him in dealing with crises that are sure to occur. The advantage of this hive over any other is that frames from any hive may be kept under closest observation. But if the hive were a means of interest merely, it would still be worth while, for the bee-keeper cannot know too much about the ways of bees, _supposing all he knows is true_.
maxims for opening the hive
Have the smoker ready to give forth a good volume of smoke.
Use the smoker to scare the bees rather than to punish them.
Do not stand in front of the hive lest the bees passing out and in take umbrage.
Be careful not to drop any implements with which you are working; take hold of all things firmly.
Move steadily, and not nervously.
Do not run if frightened, for the bees understand what running away means as well as you do.
HIVE, AND How to handle it 105.
If the bees attack you, move slowly away, smoking them off as you go.
If a bee annoys you by her threatening attitude-for some time, kill her ruthlessly.
If stung by a bee, rub off the sting, instead of pulling it out with the mails of the thumb and forefinger and thus forcing more venom into the wound.
Ammonia applied to the wound made by a besting will usually afford immediate relief.
## Chapter 1 Details concerning honey
How to make comb-honey
Every bee-keeper who sends to the market honey in the comb enfolded in an attractive carton, or with the section neatly glazed, has produced a work of art; for comb-honey as now marketed is an esthetic production, and the bee-keeper is an artist as much as if he had painted a picture or had fashioned a jewel. To most people who have an apiary as a pleasurable adjunct to life in the country, the production of comb-honey is most attractive, while the production of extracted honey does not appeal to them at all. Just the word "'honey" calls to the mind of most people a vision of amber sweetness set in white-walled, waxen cells.
The production of comb-honey is attended by more difficulties than is the production of extracted honey. The reason for this is largely because the bees work more readily in cells already made from which the honey has been extracted, than they do in sections where they must undertake all of the expense and labour of producing wax for the comb. More than this, honey may be extracted from the comb
of the brood-chambers, a harvest which is lost to the producer of comb-honey.
For the production of comb-honey it is necessary that the colony winter in excellent condition and develop much well-fed brood early in the season, so that there shall be a great number of active young workers in the hive just before the chief honey-harvest of the summer begins. In New York State we have two large honey harvests, that of the basswood in July and the buckwheat in August, so our colonies are made strong and ready by the last of June. In order to have the bees ready to work, the swarming fever must be subdued or controlled before this period of honey-flow. The colonies are carefully watched early in the season, and if after the first pollen-gathering occurs there is no honey coming in, the bees are fed so that the brood may be developed. We rarely have to feed at this season of the year as the fruit bloom gives our bees plenty of honey for rearing their brood, and we never expect any surplus before the basswood season.
The supers are put on when there is plenty of brood and plenty of honey to feed to it in the hive; and under such conditions our bees, though Italians, usually push up into the sections at once. We prepare the sections with mere strips of wax foundation for starters. (Plate XIV.)
Supers thus equipped put on at this time and under such conditions seem to take away all desire to swarm on the part of the bees, if the queen cells have been previously removed.
If the brood-chambers are crowded when the super is put on, the queen may go up into it and start brood. This rarely occurs with us, but in case it does a queen-excluding honey-board may be introduced between the super and the brood-chamber. Sometimes a colony seems unwilling to go into the super after it has been added, and the bees will hang on the outside of the hive and threaten to swarm, and through doubt and vacillation lose two or three of the precious days of the basswood harvest.
The usual reason why the bees will not go into the super is that they are not sufficiently crowded below; if they have room they prefer to store their honey in the brood cells rather than carry it to the upper story.
If a colony is strong and has plenty of brood and honey and is still obstinate, men of experience advise the taking of a frame of sections from a colony which is storing in the supers and putting bees and all in the midst of the unused super of the reluctant colony. We have never tried this because we were never obliged to. It sounds very practical and sensible, and it is practised by Mr. Root, and that is sufficient recommendation.
Our way of coaxing the bees into a super which they have sedulously ignored is to place in it some of the imperfect sections, which are not worth much in the market and which contain some capped honey and many empty cells. One section-holder filled in this way seems to encourage the reluctant colony to climb and to store as rapidly as possible.
In large a honey-flow is great, even another super may be placed next the hive and below the other two. However, in our practice we rarely put on more than two, usually taking off the top one when we need to interpolate another. This process is called "sorifying" in the English books, which is a most graphic term and should be introduced into our nomenclature.
Taking off sections. (Plate XX.)
In taking off the sections we do not need to wait for the completion of every one in the super. The outside rows are rarely perfect, and we usually put these unfinished sections back on some other hive to be finished.
These unfinished sections, if not too empty, serve very well to sweeten the daily bread of the home table. If sent to the market they bring low prices, and the bee-keeper who is working for comb-honey should plan to have as few of them as possible. While the honey left long in the super has a much finer flavour than that which is removed early, yet care should be taken not to leave the sections on the hive so long that the comb becomes soiled. It is an interesting fact that honey ripened in the hive gains special richness, as if it were somehow imbued with the spirit of the little socialists that make it.
Toward the end of the season it is best not to tier up, but to place an empty super on top. The bees will not use it unless necessary, but will devote their energies to the sections below. The great danger
to be avoided in tiering up is a surplus of partly filled sections, and the way we avoid this is not to interpolate a super until the one on the hive is at least three-fourths filled.
## stained sections
A regular part of bee exercise consists of promenading up and down and across the sealed honey; the bee has not as yet, unfortunately, attained the fasidiousness which leads her to wipe any of her six feet carefully before entering her domicile, consequently the sections of honey thus walked over may be stained and unmarketable. There is no remedy for this except to look after the supers carefully, and take out the sections before they are soiled.
Some sections may look dirty because old wax is used in making the caps. If such is the case, and it is simply yellow, the wax may be bleached by standing it in the sun or by subjecting it to sulphur fumes. Some apiarists have special rooms and others tight boxes for the sulphur bleaching. Only two things are necessary to accomplish this successfully; first, that the room or box be tight; second, that the sulphur placed in an iron dish be heated so that the fumes are strong and all-pervading. Some say that the sulphur should be heated so that if a match be touched to it it will flame. The combs need not be subjected to such fumes more than a half-hour to become as white as they can be bleached.
as white, amber, buckwheat and dark, and these need no explanation. Thus honey is listed perhaps as "fancy white," or "fancy buckwheat"; in each case it is the best of its kind.
## shipping-cases
These should be ordered rather than made, as a good-looking shipping-case adds materially to the value of the honey. These cases come in different sizes, and have one side made of glass so that the handlers may see that the contents are fragile, and therefore may possibly be persuaded to deal with them gently; the cases come in flats and are easily put together. For anything that looks so well put up as honey sealed in its perfect cells, it has a most amazing capacity for leaking. Once, in the enthusiasm of girlhood and inexperience, I carried some honey carefully packed in a box in my trunk, hoping to give a friend a treat. Needless to say that honey was "linked sweetness long drawn out," by the time I arrived at my destination; and all the clothes that I carried in my trunk were literally "too sweet for any use."
Shipping comb-honey to market is likely to be a disastrous performance at best, since it is almost impossible to guard against careless handling. Some ship in glass-covered sections which protect the comb, and make a very attractive appearing product.
Shipping the sections in cartons is winning its way now for fancy grades. A carton is a pasteboard
though he produces a reasonable amount of honey he very inadequately supplies the demand for it in this little village, and he receives city prices.
The second and least desirable method of marketing comb-honey is to ship it to a commission merchant. If this is done, it is well to select a mid-dleman in whom we have absolute confidence, or we are likely soon to become pessimistic regarding his honesty; so frequently is the price of honey reduced on account of breakage and leaking and other accidents which this very frail delicacy is heir to, that we rarely realise the prices quoted in the newspapers. If a good middleman can be found, then our advice is to stick to him, and send him the very best product possible, fairly graded and in the most attractive form, hoping that he may be able to do for us what we should do for ourselves, and that is, work up a special market.
## storing comb-honey
It is far better to market comb-honey the year it is made. However, if it is to be stored, it must be placed in a room that has a constant temperature above \(60^{\circ}\) F. It is best to fumigate the sections if there is any danger from the bee-moth, for this little rascal will destroy a great amount of comb-honey in a very short time. (See "'Bee-Moth.")
## candied comb-honey
Some kinds of honey will granulate much sooner than others. The longer the honey is left in the hive and the more perfectly it is ripened, the less liable it is to granulate. Extracted honey will candy much sooner than honey left in the comb. We have kept comb-honey more than a year without crystals appearing in it. The only way to prevent comb-honey from candying is to keep it in a temperature that does not fall below 60 degrees. After honey is candied in the comb, nothing can be done with it except to sell it at a lower price, or keep it to feed back to the bees. The latter is probably the most profitable way to dispose of it. Some people like comb-honey after it is granulated and the home-table may use a certain amount of it.
maxims for producing comb-honey
Keep the colonies strong.
The bees should be kept warm and well feel in the spring.
The bees must have wintered well.
The colony must have brood and plenty of honey in the brood-chambers at the beginning of the honey season.
Never let the honey in sections or supers be exposed in the apiary to incite robbery.
Keep the sections in a room in which the temperature never falls below 60\({}^{\circ}\).
Fumigate the sections before they are stored if you are troubled with bee-moth.
Send the honey to market in as attractive form as possible. Make your product individual in appearance, and strive to create for it a special market.
## Chapter 12 Extracted Honey
now to produce it
It is certainly fortunate for bee-keepers that centrifugal force is one of the unalterable laws of the physical world. However, this force might never have been of any use to the apiarist had it not been for a certain Major Francesco de Hruschka of Venice, who is a most interesting figure in the history of bee-keeping. Next in importance to the invention of the movable frames by the venerable Langstroth was the invention of the honey-extractor. We have a picture of Major Hruschka in our minds as not only a brave man of war as indicated by his military rank, but also as a happy man of peace, who loved his hives with their little citizens, and who also possessed notable domestic virtues and loved the companionship of his children and was interested in their doings. For it was when his little son accompanied him to his apiary and, having a comb full of honey set up in a basket, began whirling it boy-like by the rope attached to the handle, that the Major discovered the honey was being thrown out of the comb by this action. Instead of spanking the boy as most fathers would have done,the thoughtful Major cogritated on the fact that such a simple motion should have emptied the comb of honey, and he straightway proceeded to invent the first honey-extractor. This was in 1865; up to that time the liquid honey was extracted by a method which we remember well. The comb was crushed, and with it too often, alas! the dead bees, larvae and any dirt whatsoever that happened to be present; this mixture was suspended in a cloth bag, over a tub or vat in a warm room; and the honey, carrying with it much of the debris, slowly dripped out reeking with an aroma and a flavour quite unknown in these regenerate days, and forming a product that may well be spared from the world's marts.
Since 1865, many honey-extractors have been invented in America, and almost all of them which have survived the test of use are satisfactory. The perfection of the invention is an automatically reversible machine with ball bearings, highly geared in order to attain the maximum of steadiness and rapidity with the appliance of a minimum of power.
The principle of construction underlying all of the best extractors is a cylindrical can containing wire pockets in which the combs are set on edge, and which are revolved by being geared to a crank at the top of the can. There is room for more or less honey below the wire pockets, and at the bottom of the can is a faucet or honey gate, through which the extracted honey may be drawn off into a pair or vat.
The extractor is a very excellent adjunct to any apiary, however small, even if comb-honey is the chief product, for it saves much honey that otherwise would be wasted. When the apiary consists of less than forty hives of bees, one of the small non-reversible extractors may be used. These weigh less and cost less; but every frame of comb has to be taken out after the honey has been extracted on one side and reversed and put back in order to clear the honey from the other side. Though the automatic reversible machine costs more and is heavier, it is far more satisfactory on the whole, if there is much honey to be extracted.
## extracting-frames
The frames used for extracting honey are in form similar to those which hold the brood, except they may not be so deep. However, most bee-keepers use both supers containing the shallow extracting-frames, and also those filled with frames of the full depth. The bees will go into the shallow frames more readily than into the deeper ones, as they are better able to keep the small chambers warm. But if the colony is very strong and the harvest good, the deeper frames are acceptable to the bees and save the time of the bee-keeper. (Plate XVIII.)
## when to extract honey
Some producers practice extracting the honey before it is capped, so as to save the trouble and expense of uncapping. There is one danger attending this method; the green, unripened honey is thus often extracted, and it is the most insipid of sweets. Honey needs to ripen slowly in a warm temperature in order to be palatable. Some, like Quinby, advocate the ripening of honey in vats or evaporators after it has been extracted. But it is the consensus of opinion that honey to be of perfect flavour needs to ripen in the warm, bee-odour-laden atmosphere of the hive. The bees ordinarily leave the honey uncapped for some time as it thus ripens more readily. Therefore, those who produce an especially fine quality of extracted honey usually begin to tier up as soon as the super is fairly filled and before the honey is capped. The bees have ample room to go on storing honey in the interpolated super, and do not bother to cap the honey already stored above. 'Thus these supers, three or four or as many as practicable, are left on the hive until the end of the honey harvest, and thus the honey attains its proper ripeness and flavour.
There a.e others who claim that honey is never properly ripened until capped, and therefore practice tiering after the cells of comb are at least partly covered.
(Plate XIX.)
There are various knives invented for this process, the Bingham uncapping-knife being the favourite. It is used thus: The frame containing the honey standing on one end and leaning over a receptacle for the caps is held with the left hand, the knife in the right hand begins at the bottom of the comb and running backward and forward as it is moved upward shears off very neatly the covering of the cells. The knife must be very sharp, and skill in cutting is shown in just the meets film of wax which is removed. A pan of hot water should be at hand on an oil stove perhaps; every time a sheet of capping is removed, the knife needs to be scraped on a stick, which will not dull it; and quite often it should be dipped in the hot water to clean it. If there is much uncapping to be done, it is best to have two knives, keeping one in the pan; for cleanliness and heat are quite as potent factors as is sharpness in making the uncapping knife effective.
There are on the market uncapping-cans, the Dadant being the most popular. It is a double can with an arrangement on top convenient for holding the end of the frame on a pivot and with wooden cross-pieces on which the knife may be wiped. Below there is a wire screen for holding the cappings, with a space in the bottom of the can for the honey which drains off, and which is always of the most excellent and delicious quality. Of course, the cappings are saved to be made into beeswax.
care of extracted honey
Honey, whether in the comb or out, will crystallise when subjected to low temperature or when left standing for a long time. However, extracted honey crystallises much more readily than that which is in combs; and this crystallisation is one of the problems of putting up and marketing extracted honey. To prevent it extracted honey should be evaporated until it is thick, sealed while hot in air-tight cans, and kept in a room the temperature of which never falls below 65\({}^{\circ}\) F. It should be kept in tin or galvanised iron cans, rather than in wood. Some people seem to have been successful in using wooden vessels for holding the honey after having given them a coating of wax; but the way honey gets through small places is more proverbial among beekeepers than is the ability of the stingy man to do the same; even when a tub or pan seems water-tight the honey will triumphantly work its passage through.