BEE-spoke-data/bees-v0 huggingface dataset:
Figure 3: It is easy to remove honey from the hive by placing a bee-escape under the super.
many dollars in equipment which is never used. While there are other articles which can be conveniently used, and which become necessary in handling a large number of lives, the above neagre list includes all the tools actually necessary to care for three or four lives of bees run for comb honey. Hives and hive parts will be considered in the next chapter, but even with hives, simplicity and economy work for efficiency in honey production.
Nearly every supply catalogue lists swarm catchers, and they are usually about the first thing purchased by the beginner, yet after visiting hundreds of apiaries the author cannot recall one where a swarm catcher such as is described in the supply catalogues is used for taking swarms.
Queen and drone traps are not useless, but they are of little value and are very seldom used by an efficient beekeeper. It is far easier and cheaper to prevent the raising of too many drones in the first place, which is easily done by the use of full sheets of foundation in the brood-frames, as explained later on. Numerous articles of this kind appear from time to time only to be discarded and their manufacture discontinued for lack of demand. The tendency of the supply dealers of late is to eliminate useless equipment from their catalogues, so that the novice is not tempted by things of this kind as much as formerly.
If a number of colonies are kept, a section press for folding the sections and a foundation fastener will be necessary, as too much time will be required in preparing the comb honey supers without them. Since there are several different kinds described in every catalogue of supplies, most all of which are good, it is not necessary for the author to state his personal preference here. To do so might lead the reader to buy the special kind, when another might suit him better after giving both a trial.
Special Equipment for Extracted Honex.--For the production of extracted honey, an extractor, of course, is necessary. A small two-frame hand extractor will be sufficient for the small apiary. A commercial apiary will need at least a four-frame machine, and many of them use eight-frame or larger machines.
To extract the honey the beekeeper takes the frames of honey from the bees and carefully cuts the cappings from both sides of the comb with a warm knife. The frames are then placed in the baskets of the extractor and turned very rapidly (Fig. 4). The motion of the baskets whirling inside the big can throws the honey out of the combs and against the side of the can. It is then drawn off through a faucet in the bottom of the extractor. Extracted honey differs from strained honey in thus being thrown out by centrifugal force, instead of being strained through a cloth after the combs have been broken up. When the honey is extracted the combs are returned, undamaged, to the bees to be filled again, while with strained honey the combs are destroyed, and more or less foreign material is mixed with the honey.
Cost of Starting.--The price of bees varies in different localities. In general it is safe to presume that a full colony of bees can
Figure 4: Honey is extracted by placing the combs in the baskets and revolving them rapidly.
be bought for ten to fifteen dollars where there are any for sale. Often if one can find a beee-keeper who is offering bees for sale, he will ask not more than half that price, unless he has pure stock. Three hives are included, as but little more time will be necessary to cure for three colonies than for less.
For Comp Honey
Two pounds surplus foundation.
Four pounds medium brood foundation.
Three hives with one super each, nailed and painted.
Three extra supers complete.
Smoker.
Hive tool.
Veil.
Two honey boards with escapes.
For Extracted Honey
Three two-story hives.
Three extra supers. full depth.
Eleven and a half pounds medium brood foundation.
Extractor.
Uncapping knife.
If but one colony of bees is purchased the extra hives will probably be sufficient for the natural increase the first year at least.
The man who expects to go into honey production extensively must expect to invest about ten to twenty dollars per colony in hives, bees, equipment, etc. Thus five hundred colonies of bees will represent a working capital of five to ten thousand dollars. In addition to the hives and equipment necessary for a few colonies, the large producer will need honey houses, cellars or wintering cases, and a team or automobile for getting his product to market and going to and from his various apiaries.
## Chapter 5 hives and live parts
In their wild state bees lived in hollow trees or in cavities in the rocks. Instead of being straight, their combs were often built with a curve suited to the particular cavity in which they were built. Since the convenience of the bees in passing from one part of their hive to another was the only thing to be considered, the combs were built in a natural manner. When man first undertook to profit from the labor of the bees by supplying them with suitable shelter, he was content to furnish them with a hollow log, a straw skep, or a rude box and permit them to build their combs in their own way. Such honey as could be secured was taken from them by cutting out a part of the combs from the main cavity or by killing the bees and taking all their store. After a timethey were supplied with boxes with holes in the top and another box was set on top of the other. If the colony became strong and the lower box became crowded they would sometimes fill the upper one also, and that would then be removed with little injury to the bees, since they would usually have sufficient stores below to keep them through the winter.
It is easy to see that beekeeping could never develop into a profitable enterprise under such conditions. There are men still living who remember the time when it was thought that there was no better way in which to keep bees. When Langstroth invented the movable frame hive, it resulted in the revolution of honey production and the development of an industry, which while yet in its infancy, adds millions to the wealth of the commonwealth, and from which many people derive their livelihood.
Mr. Langstroth's invention provided a separate frame for each comb (Fig. 5) and led the bees to build straight, instead of curved combs. This enables the beekeeper to reach any corner of the hive at any time desired and to remove combs which are full of honey and to replace them with empty ones, or if the col disease be present, whether the queen is prolific, or failing, or whether the bees are building queen cells in preparation for swarming.
Kinds or Hives.--There are still several kinds of hives in the market, although not nearly as many as there were a few years ago. The supply dealers are finding it greatly to their advantage to standardize their goods and are making a conscientious effort to offer their customers only such as will give satisfactory results. There are still a few small hives offered for comb honey which should not be manufactured, and which in the writer's opinion will not find a market much longer. In order to give the best results the brood chamber of any hive must be large enough to give a prolific queen plenty of room to lay, for it is only the strong colonies that pile up big crops of honey. Unless there is plenty of room for the queen to lay to the limit of her capacity, the colony can never store as much honey as it would under more favorable conditions.
The author always recommends the ten-frame Langstroth or dove-tailed live for both comb and extracted honey. This hive is preferred for the reason that it is in more general use, and has found favor with more people than any other hive. If the beekeeper proposes to produce only extracted honey, the **D**adant hive with its deeper frame has some advantages which it will pay to consider well before making a final decision. The beginner who expects to keep only a few colonies for pleasure will find the ten-frame dove-tailed hive best for his purpose, for surplus stock can be sold in these hives more readily, and the same hivebody can be adapted to the production of either comb or extracted honey by simply a change of supers.
Parts of Hives--Whether one intends to produce comb or extracted honey the brood chamber of the hive will be the same, as will the top and bottom. The super, which is the store room for the surplus honey, is very different, however.
The empty hivebody is like a box with neither top nor bottom (Fig. 6). Inside this hivebody the frames hang. The bees build a comb in each frame. Fig. 5 shows the empty frame.
The beginner is often confused by the different kinds of frames offered in the catalogue. Hoffman frames are the same size as the regular Langstroth frame, but they are so constructed that they are more nearly self-spacing. Fig. 7 shows a hivebody with frames in place. In late fall when no more honey will come in, there is no need of supers, so with the addition of the top and bottom the hive will be complete as used at that season.
**Comb-Hover Super.--Many beginners will prefer to produce comb honey, especially if they have only a few bees. At Fig. 8 will be seen a hive with comb-honey super in place and a second super showing parts beside it. Comb honey is marketed in the small sections which are designed to hold one pound. When filled entirely and well finished they will weigh sixteen ounces, but the greater part of the sec
Figure 8: Hive for production of honey in sections, or comb honey.
tions marketed full somewhat short of the full weight. A comb-honey super for a ten-frame hive holds twenty-eight of these one-pound sections.
In the figure there is a section holder with four sections laying across the top. There is also a separator lying beside it. The separator is a thin sheet of wood which is placed between the rows of sections to prevent the bees from building the combs too thick or uneven. By placing thin sheets of starter, or foundation in these sections as described elsewhere, the bees
Figure 9: Hive for producing extracted honey.
are induced to build nice straight combs such as we see in the markets.
Extracted-Honey Super. -- Extracted-honey supers are of two kinds, the deep and the shallow. The author prefers the deep super because it is the same size as the hivebody, and serves the same purpose in an emergency. If the hives and supers are of the sane size, it saves much needless duplication which becomes necessary if different sizes are used. Fig. 9 shows an extracted honey live together with empty super by its side. It is in fact a two-story hive.
The shallow super is very similar excepting that the frames are not so deep and the super correspondingly smaller.
pasture for bees
Some of the Plants That Make the Brest Honey in Various Sections.--Since the invention of the movable-frame hive has made commercial honey production possible, it has been the dream of the bekeeping specialist to grow special honey-producing plants in sufficient quantity to insure a honey crop. At one time the Michigan Agricultural College sowed a field to Rocky Mountain bee plant to find out its value for the honey producer, but as yet no plant has been found that will produce nectar in sufficient quantity to justify its cultivation for honey alone.
There are, however, a number of forage plants that are valuable both as sources of nectar and for hay or pasture, and beekeepers have sometimes found it profitable to pay part of thecost of seed sown by neighboring farmers in order that they might profit by the honey. Alsike and white or Dutch clover are especially valuable for this double purpose. When clover is grown for seed an arrangement satisfactory to both farmer and beekeeper may be made, as the presence of large numbers of bees greatly facilitates pollination of the blossoms, with the result that a larger crop of clover seed will be secured.
Sweet clover has long been a favorite with beekeepers, because of its abundant nectar secretion. For many years it was regarded as a weed, and its introduction was regarded with disfavor by farmers. In one locality of my acquaintance a beekeeping farmer so stirred his neighbors by sowing a small field of sweet clover that they sought to have him prosecuted for introducing noxious weeds. Sweet clover has now come into its own in that locality; many farmers are growing it, and the original introducer has 170 acres of it on his 400-acre farm. He also has 300 colonies of bees, and more than a carload of the finest white honey is shipped from his apiary some seasons.
Since it is not profitable to grow crops especially for bee pasturage, the bekeeper must have land enough for a large acreage of some crop valuable for honey production and for forage for livestock, or he must select a location where suitable plants are grown. Unless he is surrounded with suitable flora be will find it difficult to grow a sufficient acreage of any plant to make his apiary profitable.
Bees fly over an area from one to three miles in every direction from the hive. It is evident that considerable territory is required to grow a sufficient amount of bee pasturage to support even a moderate-sized apiary. Five to ten acres of any special crop will help, of course, but no very appreciable increase of honey will be noticed from such a small area, except under unusual circumstances.
Pasture for Bees
Pastureg Early in the Season Necessary.--No single crop will make a satisfactory dependence for the honey producer, although sweet clover will come as near doing it as anything. If the beekeeper wants to make honey production an exclusive business he should seek a location where there is a great variety of honey-producing plants through a long season. Some of the sources that produce the largest yields are uncertain, yielding profitably only once in two to five years. Such a source is basswood. When there is a large acreage of basswood forest within reach the beekeeper should get a splendid crop from it now and then. But if this is his main dependence profitable crops are likely to be several years apart.
Some plant that yields nectar and pollen early in the season, to stimulate brood rearing in advance of the main flow, is of great importance. For this purpose fruit bloom and danderions are much sought for in the NorthernStates. When nectar is coming to the hive the queen will be active and will lay large numbers of eggs. Young bees will shortly appear in large numbers, making strong colonies that are absolutely essential to storing profitable honey crops. After the long winters the colonies will be greatly reduced and some time will be required to enable them to reach normal strength.
When the main honey flow is from white clover, as in most of the Northern States, the bekeeper must lend every aid to get the bees ready for the harvest. Colonies that are weak at the beginning of harvest are seldom profitable, as the honey flow will be over before they are ready for storing in earnest. Big colonies, with the hives fairly running over with bees, are the ones that pile up honey.
To begin the season, as soon as frost is out of the ground and the days are warm enough for the bees to fly, the windows and maples furnish the first taste of nectar. The elms fur
A number of minor crops produce well in limited localities. Wild asters, of many species and of wide distribution, bloom late in the fall and often furnish a crop of honey in seasons when other sources have failed.
The parridge pea of the roadside is visited freely by the bees in the Northern States, but little is thought of it as a honey plant. In parts of Florida large crops are gathered from it. In some localities wild sunflowers are so abundant that the bees profit wonderfully, and a substantial addition is made to the beekeeper's output. Goldenrod is an uncertain yielded in late autumn. In some localities it is valued very highly, and is sufficiently abundant to produce a profitable quantity of nectar; in other sections the bees seldom visit it.
**Heartsease or smartweed, also called lady's thumb, is an important source of honey in many places. In extremely wet years, when fields are too wet to plant to the usual crops or when large areas are overflowed, this plant often comes up over large areas and yields heavily to the bees in mid-summer. Plants like catnip, which are not abundant, but yield large quantities of nectar, add to the sum total of the season's production.
Locality is the beekeeper's big problem. If the locality is poor little can be done to improve it unless some profitable nectar-yielding plant is generally introduced into the neighborhood. The commercial growing of cucumbers and cantaloupes furnishes splendid pasture for the bees during the season of bloom. Buckwheat is one of the main sources of dependence in New York and other Eastern States, yet in Iowa it seldom amounts to much as a honey plant.
It often happens that a season is unfavorable in one place while a fair crop is gathered not more than ten to twenty miles distant, because of rains or some other local condition.
The wide-awake beckeeper often avoids failure by moving his bees to favorable pasturage.
The same general principles will apply to the Pacific Coast and the South, although the list of plants will be different. In mild climates where the bees can fly every week in the year, it is important to have as many plants that bloom during the season between honey flows as possible.
In cities and twxs it is seldom advisable to keep a large number of colonies. Usually there is sufficient pasture from sweet clover and such weeds as motherwort along the canals and railroads, white clover on the lawns and such trees as basswood in the parks and along the residence streets to support the bees. The author often receives letters from city dwellers asking what crops they can plant in order to keep bees. There seems to be a common impression that it might be possible to grow enough of some nectar-producing plant in the back yurd to supply the needs of a colony or two of bees without difficulty. Such persons are always informed that there is nothing that they can plant in such limited space which will make any noticeable difference in the product of the live.
Importance of Pollen.--An abundance of pollen for spring brood rearing is very important, and plants that produce pollen in quantity at this important season are second in value, only, to plants that yield a liberal surplus of honey. Without a plentiful supply of pollen, brood rearing will not progress in a satisfactory manner, as it is absolutely essential for larval food. In most localities there is seldom a scarcity of pollen during the height of the season, but in some places the bees do not find it plentiful at the time when they should be building up in preparation for the honey flow. **Rye** flour, meal or other substitutes which will supply the bees with protein are sometimes resorted.
to in an emergency, but there is nothing equal to natural pollen for brood rearing. The successful bekeeper always studies the honey and pollen sources of his locality.
There are many plants that furnish both honey and pollen, while there are others that furnish only one. Many of the plants which furnish pollen in greatest abundance furnish no nectar at any time.
The corn plant furnishes pollen in great quantities, yet the blossons do not secrete nectar. The bees are said at times to secure a sweet substance from the base of the leaves, and since aphids are sometimes found on the plant, honeydew, which is an insect excretion, may be gathered from this source. Ragweed, elm, etc., are also valuable sources of pollen.
Differences in Season.--There may be an abundance of blossons of the best honey plants and yet, in some seasons, the bees will get but little honey. Just what conditions in fluence the flow of nectar are not fully understood. One plant will yield most freely under given conditions when another will not yield at all. Some plants yield best under warm and moist conditions, while others require hot and dry weather. For this reason plants that furnish honey in quantity in one locality, often fail entirely in another. Alfalfa is one of the best honey plants in the West, but of little value in the humid climate of the East. Buckwheat is a dependable source in New York, but seldom produces any surplus in Iowa.
All these things must be taken into account by the beginner who expects to realize a good return from his bees. He must learn the kind of blossoms on which to place the most dependence in his locality, and plan his operations so as to have his bees in the best possible condition at the time of the bloom of these plants. In Iowa it is of little importance to have colonies strong after the close of the white clover flow, except in a few limited spots. In some eastern localities it is not important that the colonies reach their maximum strength so early since there will be little for them to gather until after midsummer.
In almost any locality there will be an occasional season when the honey crop will be a failure. There will also be several years when poor or moderate crops are gathered and an occasional year when a bountiful harvest will be brought in by every colony of reasonable strength. It should always be borne in mind that it is only the strong colonies that gather the profitable crops.
The Principal Honey Plants
_Northeastern States:_
Basswood, or Linden.
Clover, a l s i k c, white,
sweet, etc. All the
clovers yield nectar, but
some have corollas so
deep that the bees are
Heartsease, or
## Chapter 71 suggestions for getting started with bees
It is usually best to seek out some bekeeper as near home as possible, and buy two or three colonies to be moved to the new location. If the bees are not in such hives as the buyer wishes to use they must be transferred with the attendant discomfort and danger of loss of brood and queen, as well as the severe setback given the colony in the operation.
The up-to-date bekeeper who cannot get what he wants near home buys bees in packages, queens included, and places them on full sheets of foundation in new hives. There is a minimum of trouble and bother, while the bees act much like a newly hived swarm and proceed to comb building at once. By this method it will be necessary to wait until there is honey to be had in the fields, so that the beescan build their combs under favorable conditions. Since there are now numerous breeders who specialize in bees in combless packages it is an easy matter to buy whatever number are wanted and to get them at about the time desired. Correspondence with the breeder some time in advance will insure delivery at the proper time. Some care should be used to insure dealing with a reliable person. Since the bee journals go to a good deal of trouble to investigate the standing of their advertisers, it is easily possible to protect one's self in advance by writing to the editor of one of the journals and making enquiry about the standing of the particular breeder with which one contemplates placing the order.
If it seems desirable to purchase bees already on combs, the novice should always have some experienced heekeeper examine them for him if possible, to insure that the bees are not queenless, or that there is not too much drone
## Getting started with bees 87
comb in the hive. It often happens that the person wishing to buy bees will find it necessary to take about what is offered. If bees in poor condition are purchased, the buyer should pay accordingly and know what is necessary to put them in proper condition to harvest a profitable crop. Personally the author would prefer to pay a liberal price for Italian bees, on straight combs, in good hives, than to buy black or hybrid bees in undesirable hives at any price. The bother of transferring, the cost of new hives and queens and the time lost will amount to considerable, to say nothing of the irritation caused by such a disagreeable task.