Lincoln County leader. [volume] (Toledo, Lincoln County, Or.) 1893-1987, 1902-08-01
SOMETHING ABOUT BEES.
BY JAMES MCDONALD.


Editor LEADER: promised you last
spring that ! would give you something
on bees, but in consequence of having
six apiaries spread over an area of
twenty-four miles, and having the
swarming to attend to myself along
with all the other manipulations, itwas
simply impossible for me to do So.
Now the honey season is over and
must in measure try to redeem my
promise. But what will most interest
your readers?
Perhaps the appliances for the apiary
would interest some, and l would cor
daily invite all who wish information
to ask it through THE LEADER, or in any
other way they see fit, aud let us dis.
cuss the sweetest business in existence.
TIC ilst .i.ius .She, pia. ist /, s....s 70
look for is hive without ioufishes,
such as section holders, plain sections
and separators. There zare other OBJ
jcctions might mention in some lines,
but | do not want to find TOO much
fault at once. We want plain hive
with loose hanging frames In the brood
chamber, with the necessary bee space
all around, so the frames are easily re.
moved. If you do.not want to look in
to your hives you may as we'll yuse a
boot box or a. nail keg, but the modern
beekeeper wants hive that he can look
into when he sees there is something
wrong with his colony. They may be
mothy, may have lost their queen--and
let me say right,here thatthe is more
loss on account of queenlessness than
all other causes combined.
The next thing is the super. 1t must
fit on the brood chamber or on top of
another super, just the same, with the
same bee space, whether on the brood
chamber, in the middle or on top OF
t~o. three or five supcrs, with. fence
sepsrators between the sections made
to 1t bee-way sections, such as I have
Jcoutrived and had in successful cper.
latsaaSs two seasons; and many others
Eass highly pleased with them.
The next thing is. the hive cover.
This is the most complex feature In
hive making. now use fiat board
two inches longer and wider than the
hive, grooved all around on both sides,
which prevents the water from follow
ing under to the guild, which would
lead the water into the hive. In this
form it will beat all gable and double
covers ever invented. The next thing
l would recommend for the beekeeper
is the alley drone trap aud swarm con-
troller. Some object to killing drones
because it is the bees nature to pro-
duce them. Tc such would say get a
trap, use 1t properly on one hive, and
yoa will find the difference in honey
will purchase several traps in one sea-
son. Object lessons are the only
things that will convince some people.
So far as our convenience is concerned
Nature has erred in the overproduction
of males in domestic animals. Then
why not in the bee? The bee masters
seldom need the trap; they have other
methods of dealing with the drones;
but nothing will equal the trap to re-
quire the newly hived colony to stay
at home.
The next thing l would recommend
especially for the beginner, who has
but few bees and wants to retain all
late swarns, is the simplicity feeder,
made in such a shape that he can use
it in the super or at the entrance, so be
may help late swarms prepare for win
ter, and also to help others that may
need it in early spring.
To h.