New Iberia enterprise and independent observer. (New Iberia, La.) 1902-1944, 1920-03-06
BEE KEEPER TREATS THE
SCIENCE OF APTCULTURE.

Ahl. cOlIL1 W. " ait SlNCS Ills ca
perienced in the handling Of bees
in recent number of st. Landry
Clarion:
1t is said that the bee has more
historians than any nation on
earth. They have been studied
by scientists and wise men from
the early ages. The honey made
by them was the first and only
sweet of the ancients. Sugar and
/ other modern sweets are in re-
epsIity substitutes. Honey is a pre-
digested food and is the only
sweet which retains the natural
minerals and is the only one
which a great many invalids and
persons of delicate stomachs can
eat.
The keeping Of bees is a very
interesting and in some sections
very profitable occupa-
ton. The profits depend upon
the manner and attention given
them and the quality Of honey
producing plants within distance
of two or three miles.
There are many varieties of bees
but those known as Italians are
generally conceded to be the best
One who knows how to manipulate
them can start with a single col.
ony and, in a single season, in.
crease them to four or fve-in
fact. as many as twenty has been
obtained.
It would be waste Of time to
keep bees in anything except what
is called the patent" hive. These
are good strong boxes and all
should be of the same exact size
in an apiary. There is the eight
frame, ten frame and twelve
frame. Some beekeepers use even
larger ones. The eight-frame has
gone out of date. Bees swarm too
much when kept in small hives and
it is very important to reduce the
swarming to a minimum. Too
much swarming reduces the num-
Der of bees in hive and it re-
quires big, strong colonies TO
gather much honey. Ather me,
thods besides the use of large
hives are restorted to subdue the
swarming proclivity. The main
hive, we will say, contains ten
frames about Is inches long and
9 So inches deep. This might be
called the living ROOM or nurs-
cry, where the raising of young
bees should be confined, and
where the winter supply of honey
for the bees is kept. No honey
should ever be taken from this
apartment, as it should all be left
for the bees to survive on until the
flowers come in the spring.
When this time arrives, the top
of the hive should be taken of
and "queen excluder" laid on
top of the hive and another hive
known as a Super placed Oh
this. The "queen excluder" is a
sheet of perforated zinc. Some
are made of small lateral wires
The spacing of these wires, or size
of the perforations, are Of such a
size of the perfodations, are OF
such a size as to permit the work
err" bees to pass up from the lower
hive into the "super" above. The
queen. being larger than the
worker bees, she can not pass up
and in this way there is never any
young brood, or larvae. in the
combs from which the 'tbee man
extracts his honey. When this
super is nearly filled out with
honey, it can lifted off, set to one
side and another empty super put
in it's place and the nearly filled
super put back ON top. This can
he continued until the fall honey
flow is over when all the supers
should be removed, set to one side
and what is called 'Hbee escape
board placed over. or on, the
"queen excluder," then all the
supers put back in their places
The bee escape board has trap
in the center through which the
bees can pass down but can moi
pass back up. Bees never "sleep
up stairs" unless there is young
brood up there, and there will not
be with the "queen excluder" on
So when night comes on and the
bees get ready to "retire" they
will all pass down into the lower