=HIVES AND IMPLEMENTS.=
The safest and best rule in making or selecting hives and implements
for the apiary is, _have them simple and accurate in construction_. A
plain box with frames and as few other loose parts as possible will
yield in the hands of a skillful bee-master far better results than the
most elaborately constructed bee palace manipulated by one who does
not understand the nature and requirements of bees; in fact, the most
experienced generally prefer the former. The important point to decide
in connection with any proposed modification or adjunct of the hive is
whether its adoption will more than compensate for the resultant loss
of simplicity. While zealously endeavoring to preserve simplicity of
construction, however, complete adaptability to the purpose designed
must be kept in view, and should not be sacrificed because of a
slight added expense. The bee keeper needs but few implements. With
even a limited number of hives, a smoker, a wax extractor, and a few
queen-introducing cages are the most necessary, and one or two bee
veils had better be added to the equipment, the total cost of which
need not exceed $5 to $6. If the intention be to produce comb honey,
and but a few hives are kept, then sections folded and with starters
in place had better be purchased, but with ten or more hives and time
during the winter season to prepare sections for the harvest, a section
folder and a foundation fastener, costing together about $3, may be
profitably added to the outfit. If only extracted honey is wanted a
honey extractor with one or two uncapping knives should be purchased
instead of the section folder and foundation fastener, the cost of the
outfit being in this case some $15 to $18. Fifty or even seventy-five
hives may be managed conveniently and economically with no greater
investment in implements than that indicated above, and if both comb
and extracted honey are wanted the cost of the outfit, it can readily
be seen, need not exceed $20.
HIVES.
In regard to the particular style or form of hive to be used to insure
the best results, it should be stated that while an intelligent
apiarist whose experience has been considerable may be successful with
almost any hive, even with poor ones, there can be no doubt that a hive
not only adapted to the nature of the bees but also to the climate of
the bee keeper's particular locality, and at the same time permitting
the rapid performance of all operations necessary in securing surplus
honey, will very materially affect the net profit of an apiary. This
being the case, the original cost of a hive, whether a dollar or two
more or less, is of small importance compared with the desirability of
securing convenience and simplicity in its management and of promoting
the welfare of the bees in winter and summer. Frame hives managed
with intelligence and skill are essential to the greatest success.
Inaccurately made frame hives, neglected, as is too frequently the
case, so that the combs are built irregularly between or across the
frames, are not one whit better than box hives. Even an accurately
built frame hive, if no attention is given to the spacing of the frames
when combs are being built, will soon present no advantages over a box
hive of the same dimensions and having the same space for supering
above the brood apartment.
[Illustration: Fig. 22.--Ancient Greek movable comb hive. (After _La
Maison rustique_, published in 1742.)]
The frame and hive most in use in this country is the invention of
Rev. L. L. Langstroth, and this hive, with slight modifications,
has been generally adopted in England and her colonies. It is also
becoming known and appreciated on the continent of Europe. The patent
on the frame the essential feature--expired many years ago, so that
anyone who may wish to do so is now free to employ the invention. It
is still used by many in the same form in which it was brought out in
1852. Others have changed the dimensions of the frames and given them
different names, while retaining the special feature of the inventor's
principle, namely, the loose-fitting frame suspended by the projecting
ends of its top bar on a continuous rabbet. The outside dimensions of
the Langstroth frame most in use are 17⅝ inches long by 9⅛ inches deep
(fig. 24). Mr. M. Quinby, one of the most practical and successful
bee-masters of our century, preferred frames 12 inches deep by 18
inches Long, and these are still used by many large honey raisers.
Other sizes are also used somewhat.
[Illustration: Fig. 23.--Dadant-Quinby form of Langstroth hive, with
cap and gable roof. (Redrawn from Langstroth on the Honey Bee.)]
The bars composing frames are usually made seven-eighths inch wide,
although some prefer to have the top bar 1 inch or even 1⅛ inches wide,
and the bottom bar is made by some as narrow as live-eighths inch or
even three-eighths inch square. The narrower bottom bar, at least down
to a width of five eighths inch, renders the removal of the frames
less difficult, and bees are brushed off a little more easily; but
when combs cut from box hives are to be fitted into the frames it is
not quite so easy to hold the pieces in the center of the frame by
means of transferring sticks and get the bees to fasten them securely
at the bottom as it is with full seven-eighths-inch bottom bars. Top
bars have been made by some hive manufacturers from one-fourth-inch to
three-eighths-inch strips, strengthened somewhat by a very thin strip
placed edgewise on the underside as a comb guide; but such bars are
much too light and will sag when filled with honey or with brood and
honey, and when section holders or other receptacles for surplus honey
or sets of combs are placed above them more than a bee space exists
between the upper and lower sets of frames or between the section
holder and the frames below, and the bees will fill in with bits of
comb between these, making it difficult to remove the top story or
any of the combs from it; indeed, an attempt under such circumstances
to remove combs from the top story generally results in tearing the
frames apart and breaking the combs, and if honey leaks out robbing
may be induced at some times of the year, all because of an error in
construction.
[Illustration: Fig. 24.--Langstroth frame; size, 17⅝ in. by 9⅛ in.
outside; _pn_, projecting nail. (Original.)]
[Illustration: Fig. 25.--Form in which to nail frames: _b_, button;
_db_, double button. (Original.)]
To avoid this the top bar should never be less than five-eighths inch
to three-fourths inch thick, while for long top bars seven-eighths-inch
or 1-inch strips are preferable. The side and bottom bars may be made
of one-fourth-inch strips. A corner is taken from the end of the top
bar by a cross cut made at exactly right angles on the underside of the
top bar, reaching to within one-fourth inch of the top of the bar, and
another cut from the end so as to meet the first-mentioned one. Each
side bar can then be nailed by one nail driven from above through the
top bar, and two driven through the side bar itself into the end of
the top bar. The bottom bar can then be nailed on, or, better still,
cut short enough to permit it to be inserted between the side bars,
the nails holding it to be driven through the latter. Nailing frames
loosely or without getting them exactly in true brings with it great
disadvantages. If only slightly out of shape they may swing together
at the bottom or touch the sides of the hive, and in either case will
be glued fast by the bees; also in the first instance the combs, which
are always built perpendicularly, will not be wholly within the frames.
To avoid these troubles it is essential, first, that the parts for the
frames be cut very accurately; second, that the frame be in exact shape
at the time of nailing; and third, that the nails be driven in quite
firmly; long, slender, flat-headed wire nails being necessary to secure
proper stiffness of the frame. Nails 1½ to 1¾ inches long made of No.
16 or No, 17 wire, or 4d. fine wire nails are the right size. Nailing
in a form, such as is shown by fig. 25, is therefore advisable. Greater
ease in withdrawing the frames from the hive is secured by making the
bottom of the frame one-fourth inch less in width than the upper part.
A round-headed nail or a curved wire staple driven through the side bar
at each lower corner into the end of the bottom bar and left projecting
one fourth inch will also facilitate the removal of frames and their
insertion in the hive without the crushing of bees, and hence allow
more rapid manipulation. (Fig. 24, _pn_.)
[Illustration: Fig. 26.--Lock-joint chaff hive. (From Gleanings in Bee
Culture.)]
[Illustration: Fig. 27.--Manner of nailing hives. (Original.)]
The hive to hold the frames should be the plainest kind of a box, the
frames resting on rabbets made in the upper edges. Constructing it
with lock joints, as shown in fig. 26, or by halving together the ends
of the boards, as in fig. 27, and, in either case, nailing in both
directions makes a strong hive body. The latter may be single-walled
for mild climates or where cellar wintering is practiced: but for
severe regions it is advisable to have permanent double walls with the
inter-spaces filled with chaff, ground cork, or similar material, or
else outer cases should be provided giving space between the latter
and the hive proper for dry packing. As the bees always try to glue
the frames fast by means of propolis, it is better to make them rest
on strips of tin, galvanized iron, or band iron. The rabbet should
therefore be made eleven-sixteenths inch deep, and the strip of iron or
other metal frame-rest nailed on so that its edge will project upward
five-sixteenths inch from the bottom of the rabbet. Folded strips of
tin as made by manufacturers of apiarian implements are preferable to
single strips nailed on, since they facilitate the sliding of frames
and do not cut the top bars where the latter rest upon them (fig. 28).
The projecting ends of the top bars being one-fourth inch thick, the
bars themselves come within one-eighth inch of the upper edge of the
hive. It is essential that the distance between the ends of the frames
and the hive should not exceed three-eighths inch, lest in time of
plenty the bees should build comb there; nor can less than one-fourth
inch space be allowed, for if the bees can not readily pass around the
ends of frames of the Langstroth type they will glue the frames to the
side walls of the hive, making it very difficult, if not impossible,
to remove them without breakage. If, as suggested, the frames are made
one-fourth inch shorter at the bottom than at the top, that is, 17⅜
inches at bottom and 17⅝ inches at top, the hive should then be 18⅛
inches inside from front to rear, the frames running in this direction.
[Illustration: Fig. 28.--Section of improved tin frame-rest: _A_,
folded edge on which frame rests; _B_ and _D_, nails. (From Gleanings.)]
If the frames are accurately made there will then be one fourth inch
space at each end of the frame just below the top bar and three-eighths
inch at each end of the bottom bar. Between the frames and the bottom
board, on which the hive rests, one-half inch space answers, but
five-eighths inch is preferable. The width of the hive will depend, of
course, upon the number of frames decided upon, 1⅜ inches being allowed
for each frame, and three-eighths inch added for the extra space at
the side. If a top story to contain frames for extracting is placed
over the brood chamber, its depth is to be such as to leave the space
between the two sets of combs not over five-sixteenths inch, and in
this, as in the lower story, the space between the ends of the frames
and the hive wall should be no more than three-eighths inch. A good way
to keep rain from beating in between the stories and also to retain
the warmth of the bees in outdoor wintering, yet admit of suitable
provision for the upward escape of moisture, is to have the second
story fit over the top of the lower one, and rest on ledges made by
nailing strips around the latter one-half inch below the upper edge. As
this makes the upper story nearly 2 inches larger from front to rear
than the lower one: it will be necessary when arranging this story for
frames to make the front and rear double-walled. This is easily done
by tacking on the inside of each end two half-inch strips, on which a
halt-inch board is then nailed. These inside end pieces should be only
wide enough to reach within three-fourths inch of the top edge of the
outer ends, and, like the lower story, should be finished at the top
with a metal rabbet for the frames to rest on, or the inside piece may
be made to come within three-eighths inch of the top and its upper edge
beveled so the frames can not be greatly propolized, an arrangement
which answers very well for this story.
[Illustration: Fig. 29.--The Langstroth hive--Dadant-Quinby form--cross
section showing construction. (From Langstroth.)]
As to the width of hives and consequent number of frames each story
is to hold, there has been of late much diversity of opinion. The
original Langstroth hive held ten frames in the lower story and eleven
frames in the second or top story. A demand for smaller-sized brood
chambers and uniformity of the stories having been created, the larger
hive-manufacturing establishments gave hives constructed to hold eight
frames the most prominent place in their catalogues, and by many it
was considered that those who adhered to the older, larger form did so
merely through conservatism. But after some years' trial a reaction in
favor of larger hives seems to have set in, especially among producers
of extracted honey. Many of the latter are finding that with carefully
bred queens even twelve-frame brood apartments give the best results.
The author's experience of over twenty-five years with frame hives
of various sizes and styles, both American and foreign, in widely
differing climates, convinces him that to restrict a hive to a capacity
of less than ten frames for the brood chamber is, in most localities,
undesirable, but it will frequently be found advantageous to contract
temporarily the space occupied by the bees. For extracted honey alone,
especially in any region having a short flow of honey, twelve-frame
capacity is preferable. Thin, movable partitions, known as "division
boards," enable one to contract the space at will, and the addition of
supers or top stories gives storage room for surplus honey. Some prefer
to have the hive in one story holding twice the usual number of frames
and contractible with a division board. The entrance is then usually
at one end, parallel with the combs, and the surplus honey is obtained
from the rear part of the hive, either in sections held in wide frames
or it is extracted with a machine from ordinary frames. This plan
renders access to all of the frames somewhat easier than when two or
more stories are used, but as the methods now most followed involve
on the whole less manipulation of individual frames than was formerly
deemed advantageous this superiority can not count for much--hardly
enough in fact to balance the limitation as to the number of frames and
the inconvenience of larger and more unwieldy hive bodies, covers, and
bottom boards.
[Illustration: Fig. 30.--The Nonpareil hire. (From Bee-Keeping for
Profit.)]
[Illustration: Fig. 31.--Dadant-Quinby form of Langstroth hive, open:
_a_, front of brood apartment; _b_, alighting board; _c_, movable
entrance block; _d_, cap; _e_, straw mat; _f_, carriage-cloth cover for
frames; _g, g_, frames with combs. (From Langstroth.)]
Small hives may yield excellent results in the hands of a skillful
bee-master, but an equal degree of skill will, in general, give as
good, if not better, returns from large hives, and the novice who may
not know just when or how to perform all operations will find himself
much safer with hives holding ten or twelve frames in each story, and
far more likely to secure good returns from them than from smaller ones.
A good, tight roof or cover is indispensable, well painted, so that
no drop of water can get in from above. A flat roof slanting from
front to rear will answer, but a ventilated gable roof with the sides
well slanted is far preferable. Above the sections or the upper set
of frames a piece of carriage cloth, enameled side down, should be
laid during the summer season to prevent too great escape of heat
above and to keep the bees from getting into the roof or propolizing
it. The cloth is more suitable than a board, since the latter when
propolized can not be removed without considerably jarring the bees.
If the carriage cloth be weighted with a board which has been clamped
with a strip across each end to prevent warping, there will be less
propolization of the sections above or building of bits of comb on the
tops of the frames when these have been used. To dispense with this
extra piece and also to render the gable cover flat on the underside,
the board which rests on the carriage cloth may be nailed to the cover
permanently. During very hot weather the quilt may be turned back and
the cover propped up.
The bottom board to the hive may be nailed permanently or the hive
may be merely placed on it. In either case the sides and back of the
hive should be wide enough to come down over the edges of the bottom
board and thus shed all water that runs down the outside of the hive.
A sloping board in front will facilitate the entrance of heavily laden
bees and many that fall to the ground will crawl in if the hive is
within 8 or 10 inches of the ground. Many persons place the bottom
boards directly on the ground, and the majority have them but 3 or 4
inches above the surface. By arranging them farther from the ground, at
least 6 or 8 inches, dampness is avoided and the ease in manipulation
is greatly increased. English manufacturers make the Langstroth hive
with permanent legs some 6 or 8 inches long. This is no doubt necessary
in the damp climate of that country, and even here the free circulation
of the air beneath the hive and the entrance of direct rays of sunlight
at times are so beneficial that there might well be a return to this
valuable feature, which was part of the original Langstroth hive.
Great accuracy of parts must be insisted upon in hives and frames, both
because covers and top stories should be made to fit interchangeably,
and because the bees carry out their own work with great precision,
so that ease in manipulation of combs can only be secured by nice
adjustment. Hives cut by machinery are therefore greatly to be
preferred, and though most of those kept in stock by apiarian
manufacturers do not include in their construction all of the features
mentioned above, they still answer in most particulars the requirements
of bee life, and, if proper protection for the winter be afforded, are
very serviceable.
IMPLEMENTS.
BEE SMOKERS.
No well-appointed apiary in these days is without one or more bee
smokers. The professional bee keeper who has once used a bellows smoker
would as soon think of dispensing with this implement as a skillful
cook would be disposed to go back from the modern cooking range to the
old-fashioned fireplace.
[Illustration: Fig. 32.--The Bingham bee smoker.]
For hundreds of years smoke has been used to quell and even stupefy
bees, and various forms of bee smokers have long been used; but the
modern bellows form, so far superior to the old clumsy implements which
oftentimes required both hands of the operator, or to be held between
the teeth, is purely an American invention. Mr. M. Quinby, one of the
pioneers in improved methods in apiculture in America, was the inventor
of the bellows smoker having the fire box at the side of the bellows
so arranged as to enable the operator to work it with one hand, and
when not in use to stand it upright and secure a draft which would keep
the fire going. Certain improvements on the original Quinby smoker
have been made without changing the general form of the implement, one
of the most effective and durable of these improved makes being the
Bingham direct-draft smoker. Other modifications are the Crane, with
a cut-off valve, the Clark, Hill, and Corneil smokers. The medium and
larger sized smokers, even for use in small apiaries, are preferable.
They light easier, take in all kinds of fuel, and hold fire better,
while they are always much more effective since they furnish a large
volume of smoke at a given instant, thus nipping in the bud any
incipient rebellion. The bee smoker and its use are well shown by figs.
12, 32, and 53.
VEILS.
Veils for the protection of the face will be needed at times--for
visitors if not for the manipulator. The beginner, however, should use
one under all circumstances until he has acquired some skill in opening
hives and manipulating frames and has become acquainted with the temper
and notes of bees, so that he will have confidence when they are
buzzing about him and will know when it is really safe to dispense with
the face protector. Veils are made of various materials. In those which
offer the least obstruction to the sight, black silk tulle or brussels
net is used, the meshes of which are hexagonal. Linen brussels net is
more durable than silk, as is also cotton, though the latter turns gray
in time and obstructs the vision. By making the front only of silk and
the sides of some ordinary white cotton netting the cost of the veil
is less, but it is not so comfortable to wear in hot weather, being
less open. A rubber cord is drawn into the upper edge, which brings
the latter snugly in about the hat band. By having the veil long and
full and drawing it over a straw hat with a wide, stiff brim, tying the
lower edge about the shoulders or buttoning it inside a jacket or coat,
the face is securely protected. (Fig. 12.)
HONEY EXTRACTORS AND HONEY KNIVES.
[Illustration: Fig. 33.--Williams' automatic reversible honey
extractor.]
The honey extractor (fig. 33) consists of a large can, within which a
light metal basket revolves. The full combs of honey, from which the
cappings of the cells have been removed by a sharp knife, are placed
inside the basket and after several rapid revolutions by means of a
simple gearing are found to have been emptied of their contents. The
combs, only very slightly damaged, can then be returned to the hives to
be refilled by the bees. If extra sets of combs are on hand to supply
as fast as the bees need the room in which to store honey, great yields
can often be obtained. A good extractor should be made of metal, and
the basket in which the combs are revolved should be light, strong, and
doubly braced on the outside so that the wire-cloth surface, against
which the combs press, will not yield. The wire cloth used, as well
as all interior parts of the extractor, should be tinned, as acids
of honey act on galvanized iron, zinc, iron, etc. Wire cloth made of
coarse wire and with meshes one-half inch square is often used, but it
injures the surface of new combs and those very heavy with honey more
than that made of about No. 20 wire and with one-fourth-inch meshes.
[Illustration: Fig. 34.--Quinby uncapping knife.]
[Illustration: Fig. 35.--Bingham & Hetherington uncapping knife.]
For removing the wax covering with which the bees close the full cells
a peculiarly shaped knife, known as an uncapping knife, is needed
(figs. 34 and 35). The blade, which should be of the finest steel to
hold a keen edge, is fixed at such an angle with the handle as to keep
the hand that grasps the latter from rubbing over the surface of the
comb or the edges of the frames. The form of knife with curved point is
best adapted to reach any depression in the comb, which, if uncapped
and emptied of its honey, will likely next time be built out even with
the general surface. Dipping the knife in hot water facilitates rapid
work, and of course the heavier-bladed knives hold the heat better than
thin bladed ones, and are for this reason preferred by some; also
because they more surely lift the capping clear from the surface of the
comb.
WAX EXTRACTORS.
A solar wax extractor is needed in every apiary; several are kept
running in many large apiaries. Extractors which render wax by steam
are also used. To the latter class belongs the improved Swiss wax
extractor (fig. 36). This implement, invented in Switzerland and
improved in America, consists of a tin or copper vessel with a circle
of perforations in the bottom near the sides to let in steam from a
boiler below, and within this upper vessel another receptacle--the comb
receiver--made of perforated zinc. Its use, as well as that of the
solar wax extractor, is described under the head of "Wax production."
[Illustration: Fig. 36.--Excelsior wax extractor.]
Within a few years wax extractors employing the heat of the sun and
known as solar wax extractors have come into general use (fig. 61).
The essential features in all the forms that have been devised are a
metal tank with a glass cover and usually a wire-cloth strainer, below
which is placed the receptacle for the wax, the whole so arranged as to
enable one to tilt it at such an angle as will catch the direct rays
of the sun. The effectiveness of the solar wax extractor is increased
by having the glass doubled, and adding also a reflector, such as
a mirror or a sheet of bright metal. An important advantage of the
solar wax extractor is the ease with which small quantities of comb
can be rendered. By having this machine much is therefore saved that
might be ruined by wax moth larvæ if allowed to accumulate, besides
serving at the same time to increase these pests about the apiary. The
wax obtained by solar heat is also of superior quality, being clean,
never water-soaked nor scorched, and also light in color, owing to the
bleaching action of the sunlight.
The cost of a medium-sized solar wax extractor does not exceed that of
the larger Swiss steam extractors, yet of the two the former is likely
to prove by far the more valuable, even though it can be used only
during the warmer months.
QUEEN-INTRODUCING CAGES.
In every apiary there should be several of these on hand. The best are
such as permit the caging of the queen directly on the comb over cells
of honey. A little practice will enable anyone to make very serviceable
and cheap cages for introducing queens. From a piece of wire cloth
having ten to twelve meshes to the inch cut a strip 2 inches wide; cut
this in pieces 4¼ inches long, roll each piece around a stick to give
it a cylindrical form, lap the edges, and sew with a piece of wire.
Then in one end of this cylinder make slits three-quarters inch apart
and three-quarters inch deep, and bend over the tongues thus formed so
as to close this end of the cage. With the flat end of a pencil press
warm wax or comb into the bottom inside to give it firmness. Then
unravel five or six strands of the wire cloth at the other end. The
wire points left after unraveling these strands may be pressed into
the comb so as to confine a queen and four or five of her attendant
workers. (Fig. 66.)
Most of the queen-mailing cages are arranged to admit of their use in
introducing the queens also, so that when received it is only necessary
to withdraw a cork and place the cage on top of the brood frames, thus
admitting the bees to the candy. They will eat their way in and release
the queen in twenty-four to forty-eight hours. This plan is very good
for such as lack experience in handling queens, and hence might injure
them by grasping the abdomen, by pinching the thorax too hard, or by
catching the legs on the wire cloth of the introducing cage.
[Illustration: Fig. 37.--Simplicity feeder. (From A B C of Bee
Culture.)]
[Illustration: Fig. 38.--Fruit-jar bee feeder. Bottom of feeding stage
and perforated cap shown separately. (Orig.)]
BEE FEEDERS.
During warm weather liquid food may be placed in any open receptacles
which can be set in the upper stories of the hives. Tin fruit or
vegetable cans that have been used may be made to serve the purpose,
a wooden float for each or some bits of comb being put in to keep the
bees from drowning; but during cool weather feeders arranged to admit
the bees but not permit the escape of heat had better be employed.
Glass fruit jars with metal caps are generally at Land, and make
excellent feeders by merely punching a few holes in each cap. After the
jar is filled with liquid food and the cap screwed on tightly it is
inverted over a feed hole in the quilt or honey board. The cap, or top
story, with cover, protects the whole, and it is very easy to see when
more food is wanted by merely raising the cover slightly. If arranged
on a feeding stage covered on the underside with wire cloth, as shown
in fig. 38, feeding may be accomplished without being troubled by the
workers.
Feeders of various forms constructed of wood or tin, or of these
materials combined, most of them serving the purpose excellently, are
offered in catalogues of apiarian manufacturers.
SECTION FOLDERS.
Sections can be folded or put together readily over an accurately made
block just large enough to fill the space inclosed by a section, and
several machines to facilitate the work in case it is to be done on a
large scale have been devised.
BEE ESCAPES.
[Illustration: Fig. 39.--The Porter spring bee escape.]
The bee escape (fig. 39) is an important labor-saving invention for the
honey producer. A number of them may be regarded as necessary in every
apiary. They are inserted in holes bored in a honey board and used in
freeing supers from bees, as described under "Honey production."
FOUNDATION FASTENERS.
_For sections._--Several styles of implements for fastening thin
foundation in sections have been devised. All of them do the work well.
A simple one, which is also low priced, is Parker's; Clark's and the
Daisy are also highly recommended, and A. C. Miller's is very complete,
working automatically. The latter, and the Daisy shown in fig. 40, each
require the use of a lamp.
_For frames._--If the top bars of the frames have a slot or saw kerf
one-eighth to three-sixteenths inch deep on the underside, made by
passing them lengthwise over a circular saw, sheets of foundation
can be very readily fastened by slipping the edge into this groove
and running melted wax along the angle formed on each side by the
foundation and the top bar. Or a wedge-shaped strip may be crowded in
at the side and secured with small wire nails. If the top bar is flat
on the underside it will be necessary to press the foundation firmly
against it; that is, to incorporate the edge of the wax sheet into the
wood of the top bar by rubbing it with a smooth bit of hard wood or
bone, such as a knife handle, moistening this implement to prevent the
wax from sticking, and then fix it firmly by pouring melted wax down
the other side. In the case of top bars having triangular comb guides
or a projecting tongue on the underside the foundation can be securely
fastened by merely cutting five or six slits three-eighths to one-half
inch deep in one edge of the foundation and bending the tongues thus
formed in alternate directions so as to place the V-edge of the top
bar between them, when they can be firmly attached to the top bar by
rubbing with a knife handle as before. Soapsuds or starch water may
be used to advantage in moistening the knife handle. The foundation
roller (fig. 41), a small disk of hard wood which revolves in a slot
at the end of a handle and costs but a few cents, does effective work
in fastening foundation in brood frames; in fact, it is rather better
than the knife handle for the work just mentioned, except that it will
not reach into the corners of the frames, and to secure the foundation
there the knife handle must still be used. The roller will need to be
moistened the same as the knife handle.
[Illustration: Fig. 40.--The Daisy foundation fastener. (From
Gleanings.)]
[Illustration: Fig. 41.--Fastening starter of comb foundation in frame.
(Original.)]
It is particularly important that the sheets of foundation be well
fastened, for if one edge breaks loose with the weight of the bees
it will crumple down in such a way as not only to ruin that comb, or
rather to prevent the building of a good comb in the frame in question,
but also very likely in the adjoining frames if they have not been
previously built out; and in this case damage will probably result to
them. To prevent bulging of the comb it is also essential that the
sheets of foundation, if not wired, be narrower than the inside depth
of the frame and shorter than its inside length. A full inch of space
should be allowed between the bottom bar and the sheet of foundation,
and a half inch at each end for two-thirds of the way up.
[Illustration: Fig. 42.--Spur wire-embedder. (From Gleanings.)]
With these precautions swarms may even be hived on full sheets of
foundation without wiring the frames: but the practice will probably
continue of using starters, chiefly in the case of swarms, and, when
full sheets are employed, of alternating them with combs already built
out. Some prefer to wire the frames even though it is considerable
trouble, for the combs require less attention while in process of
construction and are firmer for shipping, for use in the extractor,
or for any other manipulation. Three or four horizontal wires will
suffice. No. 30 annealed tinned wire is the preferable size and
quality. The end bars of the frame are pierced by four holes, the first
1 inch below the top bar. A small tack secures the end of the wire,
which is then passed back and forth and drawn up so as to leave no
slack. The four horizontal wires, 2 inches apart, will be sufficient
to render combs quite secure. After fastening the foundation to the
top bar in the usual way the wires are embedded in the wax by a spur
embedder, which is a small wheel with grooved teeth (fig. 42). Where
large numbers of frames are to be wired a current of electricity from
a small battery will do the work more neatly and quickly than the spur
embedder.
The disadvantages of wiring frames are, first, its expense, caused
chiefly by the time employed in doing it; and second, the fact that
wherever the wire does not get embedded into the midrib of the
foundation, as is sure to happen in many cases, the rearing of brood is
interfered with, and also, under the methods employed by the majority
in wintering, moisture is very likely to cause the combs to cleave from
the wires, whereupon the bees are disposed to gnaw the combs away from
the wires in spots and not rebuild them.
These disadvantages, except that of expense, are overcome by
incorporating fine wire in the sheets of foundation when they are
rolled. The sheets are trimmed with wooden shears, which leave the ends
of the wires projecting. These are then glued to the bars of the frame.
The added expense is again the main objection, except to those who wish
to ship colonies or nuclei, or transport them from place to place for
pasturage.
COMB-FOUNDATION MACHINES.
The first attempts to give bees outlines of cells as a basis for comb
building were made in Germany. The top bars of the frames were coated
on the underside with beeswax, and a strip of wood having the outlines
of bees' cells cut on it was then pressed against this wax so as to
form a guide which should lead the bees to build their combs within the
frames. This was only a comb guide, but was succeeded by small strips
of wax having the outlines of bees' cells pressed on them by hand,
a block of wood being engraved for this purpose. The general use of
comb foundation, especially of the full sheets, was only made possible
through the improved means of manufacturing it developed in the United
States. The slow process of hand stamping was succeeded by its rapid
production on machines, the essential feature of which is two engraved
cylinders between which the warm sheet of wax is made to pass (fig. 43).
[Illustration: Fig. 43.--Comb-foundation machine. (From Langstroth.)]
Such machines are now made in numerous patterns costing from $15 up.
Foundation is made with flat-bottomed cells and also with the same form
as that given by the bees to combs constructed wholly by themselves.
Both sorts are readily accepted by the bees and built out. Both these
kinds are also made in various qualities and weights. Only a good
quality of perfectly pure beeswax should be accepted. Brood foundation
is made in light, medium, and heavy weights. For use in section boxes
thin surplus and extra thin surplus are made of light-colored wax. When
full sheets are used in sections it is better to have it extra thin
lest there should be a noticeable toughness of the midrib, technically
known as "fishbone." For unwired frames the medium or heavy brood-comb
foundation should be employed.
Until used it is best to keep comb foundation between sheets of paper
and well wrapped, since if long exposed to the air the surface of the
wax hardens somewhat, but if well packed it may be used years after it
was made with almost the same advantage as when first rolled out.
It requires considerable skill to make foundation successfully, and
those who use but a small amount will do better to purchase their
supply. The high quality of nearly all of the foundation thus far
supplied in this country has also justified this plan. Should the
practice of adulterating wax become as common among comb-foundation
manufacturers in this country as on the continent of Europe no doubt
many more would procure machines and make their own foundation.