The Fremont weekly journal. [volume] (Fremont, Sandusky County, Ohio) 1867-1877, 1873-05-23

/ lures through the frame with An aWi, ah0 put
IN a stick or wire to hold the comb; white
thorn would do He used to practice the good
cid way of sticzing the bees into cut OF
hollow tree, and letting them take care OF
themselves, but he thought there was great
improvement 10 taking care of bees, and he
was sure bees would make good return for
the attention paid them.
Mr.. Hodgson said he had tried All thsnew
tangled ways, and found the best plan to be to
fasten splints on the frames with strips OF tin,
as clasps. Thorns or Plus get loose. Some
used melted wax, but it would not always do.
Mr.. ]. Engler said that strips we're in the
way Of the bees, and it was difficult TO take
out the comb. He'pIefered the clasps, and
would remove them as soon as the bees had
fastened the combs to the frames.
Mr.. W. P. Irish agreed with Mr.. HOdgsOn
in the use of clasps when one comb fills 8
frame. When there are two or three pieces Of
comb, he used sticks to hold them in, and fas-
tened with clssps; both to be removed as soon
a the combs are last. He disliked pins and
thoIns.
Mr.. B. B. oFermyer agreed with Mr.. Hodg-
con and Mr. Irish, and said he would remove
ths strips and clasps in three or four days.
Second question: Which is best, high or
low hives for keeping bees2
Mr. Wsggoner fnvored high hives both for
wintsring and for raising brood. He had no
experience with low hives
DIR. Rice used to hear in elden times of the
high comb and the low comb; now it was high
hive and low hive. He told story of the
taIlsst hive he ever saw. 1t was ] I feet high.
He had the privilege of taking the honey out Of
it. 1t was in a bur-Osk log over which his
Indian pony jumped with him, exactly where
the bees went in and out; and be thought he
had got into hornets nest. Out of that log
he took barrel full, two tubs fnll, and two
pals full of honey That was in the days
when the elephant could be seen in this coun-
try, in 1922 That was high hive in one
way aud low one in the other, as the log was
lying down.
Mr.. Hodgson thought every man should suit
himself there is no patent on any hive in re-
gard to height. Mr.. LOngstrOth says that the
tall hive has advantages over the low, but it is
difficult to make the combs hang exactly alike.
A shallow frame can be handlsd more easily
than high one. About Is inches is the best
height. Bees in E tall hive, however, will be
later in swarming. Mr.. HsVsrstraw says
that bees will cluster into very small space,
10 very cold weather, not larger than hat
The comb becomes frosty, and they work up;
eating up until they strike the top; and if it is
then cold, they will starvs to death with hon.
ey all around them. This shows the adyan-
tage of high hives.
Mr.. Jonas Engler favored tall hives. He
had noticed that bees eat upward, leaving
honey on the sides of the hive; His father
had bees once in hollow log, which was tai
ler than the other hives, and they did much
better in regard to honey and brood. Mr..
Irish said he would avoid extremes. He would
have hive foot deep and l6 inches in
length. He saw hives in Michigan, lately, on.
ly 10 IL inches high, in which bees wintered
very well, and but few were lost. Mr.. Davis
of Michigan prefers hives a foot high and
Mr. Harper wants them l6 inches. He said
he Offered with DR.. Rice in regard to his tall
hive; it was long rather than tai; and as the
combs stood upright, they must have been
built after the tree fell.
Dr. Rice said when he was boy, he heard
smother boy describe beehive. Down in
Virginia he saw the bees working out of a
sycamore. A lot of men went for the honey
with buckets, and after an opening was made,
the honey ran out as thick as a mans leg.
They filed their pals and started home. The
next day the remaining honey was all gone,
and behold, the creek for three miles down
was covered with honey
Mr. Hodgson said he kept a swarm in a bar
rel once, and the second year they had the
barrel filled from top to bottom. If shallow
hives have honey enough, and protection, the
bees may do well; but tall hives are safer and
better.
Mr.. Oyermyer said he preferred tall hives;
but if he had q good bee-house, and many
bees, he should use shallow hives, as they are
much more easily handled In wintering bees
on a summer stand, he preferred tall hives.
Third question: Is it best to sst hives close
to the ground, or well upH
Mr. Irish would set bees close TO the ground
on a board resting on some seantling, and place
saw dust around and slopiDg gently from the
hive. Many bees come home heavily laden
aud tired, and drop just before they get 70 the
hive; and in that case they can readily crawl
up to the hive. On the approach of storm
bees are often found stTnng along on the
ground near the hive, and in such cases they
will more rapidly cras0I to the hive than JFy
In the winter they should be up higher on ac-
count of the snow.
Mr.. Hodgson said the arguments Of Mr..
Irish were very good, but there were objec-
tions. Saw dust is good. but where ants are
bad, there will be an ant-hill under every
hive.
Mr.. Irish said by moving the hives frequent
Iy, in summer, the ants would not harbor un-
der them. Mr.. Hodgson preferred grass to
saw dust, if kept cut short; and would have
the bees above the ground on account of the
ants In winter he would lower them instead
OF raising them, bat be careful to keep the
water from getting into them.
DR.. Rice did not like tbe ant business. He
had been very much annoyed by onts under
his bee hives. As a remedy he drove some
stakes near a board fence, nailed short boards
to them, one end resting on the fence, and set
his hives on the edge of the boards. Before
that when he had hives six inches from the
ground, be sometimes found a pint of ants un-
der every hive; now he finds but very few.
Mr.. Wagner preferred hives "a little high |
up" on account of the ants, which had troub- |
led him also. He thought the best way was
to drive three stakes into the ground until the
tops are level. then place a wide board on
them, and the hive on that. He never saw |
many bees dropping near hive; If any did, |
they soon few up again. He never saw bee |
Hy to within six inches of hive Whsu loaded, |
and then craaol in; they .fe'o in.
Mr.. Irish said he had seen them crawl 10 |
feet. Mr.. Wagner said farmers will not take |
the trouble to move their hives, and they |
would better set them well up.
Mr.. Overmyer keeps his bees 3 feet above |
the ground, the hive resting on the edge of
two boards nailed to stakes driven into the |
ground. Ants don't trouble him.
DR.. Rice wished there was some patent mix
turs to rub on that would kill the ants with
out iDjuring the bees.
Mr.. Hodgson said if green sage is put at
the bottom of the hive the ants will not trou-
BILE you. Fourth Question: Is it profitable
to clip the wing of the queen2
Mr. Wagner had not tried it, nor seen it