The Highland weekly news. [volume] (Hillsborough [Hillsboro], Highland County, Ohio) 1853-1886, 1884-02-20

/ to have the bees build straight combs
the frames can be lifted out at any
time with perfect ease. The frames
should always hang with the ends to
the entrance, or rather the entrance
should always be in the side Of the
hive and not at the end. The hive
should neither be too large or too
small A hive that will contain
$500 cubic inches in the brood
chamber is large enough for any
colony. The queen will lay as many
eggs in a hive of this size as she
would in a ten bushel box, for a hive
of this size will hold twelve frames,
eleven and half by ten and three
fourth inches, outside measure, and
these frames would hold 264o surface
inches of comb, and that amount Of
comb would contain about 10000
cells, and as the bees generally fill
the upper half Of the combs with
honey that would leave about
| $4,000 cells for brood, and as it
takes a very prolific queen to lay
900 eggs a day during the working
season, it would take such a queen
twenty-four days to fill all these
cells, and as it requires but twenty
one days for a worker bee to devel-
Ope, it will be seen that the first eggs
laid would be hatched out before the
last cells would be reached, and
when the queen has reached the op-
posite end of the hive from where
she began laying, the cells at the
other end will be ready to refill, so it
is plain to be seen that she could
not lay any more eggs if the hive
we're twice as large, The hive should
contain no ventilators, as bees do
not require any more ventilation
than what they get through the en-
trance, which should be wide and
shallow, and supplied with blocks
for contracting in cold weather, or
for weak swarms. When bees are
put into a hive, no matter what kind,
the first thing they do is to close
up every crack and crevice through
which air may enter or heat escape,
leaving no opening but the entrance,
and so we conclude that they do not
require ventilatOrs, or Nature, that
uneTring teacher, would have taught
them to leave some air holes for
that purpose, and then they possess
the power to ventilate their hives
whenever they require it. They can
lower or increase the temperature OF
their hives at will Every bee-keep-
er has doubtless observed his bees in
very hot weather, around the en-
trance with their heads close down
on the bottom board and their bodies
elevated at an angle of As degrees,
and turned towards the entrance and
their wings in very rapid motion.
Well, they were ventilating the hive,
and if it be opened at such time,
every bee in it will be found going
through the same motions. They
raise the temperature by clustering
in compact clusters in the center OF
the hive. Hives should be made
out of good white pine or poplar
lumber, well seasoned and dressed
on both sides, they should be well
painted, and should set loose on the
bottom board, so that they may be
lifted off in the spring and the bot,
toms cleaned off. There are. three
styles of frames used in movable
comb hives at the present day, the
style above described, that hang
loose in the hive and are open at the
top and sides, the close fitting top
bar, and the frames that when put
together form the body of the hive
; which is called the section hive.
The section hive when properly
constructed is a splendid hive, but
rather difficult to handle, and a
green hand at the business would
. find them hard to manage. The
side bars of this kind of a hive
should be nine inches long and one
and a half inches wide, and hall
, inch thick. The top should be four.
teen inches long one inch by one
5 and a quarter, and one side should
| be beveled to the shape of a Y, the
5 lower bar should be one inch wide
2 and half an inch thick. The sec.
t tions, twelve in number, should resr
e upon strips half an inch thick
z tackled upon the bottom board
Y which should be about four inChe.
e larger all round than the sections
, A rough box may be placed over tht
t hive and in the fall the space be
e tween the hive and box can be fiuel
{ with chat.
b The hive 1 use, and have beef
S using for ten years with but it'll
( change, is made as follows: Tn
e body Of the hive is I8 inches long
r. IL inches wide and ~ inches dee
e inside measure. The side piece
e are cut 1914 inches long and the en-,
d pieces I23I inches. The side piece
n are rabbeted at the ends s8 by z8 ant
e on one edge 36 by % inches. Tn
- rabbets in the ends take up "a of al
h inch Of the end pieces, leaving then
:, one foot inside when nailed ir
IT Upon the shoulder of the rabbet o
e the edge of the side pieces l tack
it strip Of galvanized sheet iron % {
n an inch wide and projecting ahou
e. the base IS of an inch. thus leavin
IS 38 of an inch above the edge of tn
a metai and the top Of the hive, an
p as the top bars of the frames are g
.e of an inch thick, they are when hun