Table of Contents

PREFACE

This book has been prepared especially to meet the needs of the beginner in bee-keeping. It is not intended to be a complete treatise for the professional apiarist, but rather a handbook for those who would keep bees for happiness and honey, and incidentally for money. It is hoped, too, that it will serve as an introduction to the more extended manuals already in the field.

When we began bee-keeping we found the wide range of information and varying methods given in the manuals confusing; but a little experience taught us that bee-keeping is a simple and delightful business which can be carried on in a modest way without a great amount of special training. After a beginning has been made, skill in managing the bees is gained naturally and inevitably, and interest is then stimulated by the wider outlook which bewilders the novice.

For the sake of simplicity this volume is restricted to knowledge gained in practical experience in a small apiary; and the writer has sought to exclude from it those discussions which, however enlightening to the experienced, are after all but devious digressions from the simple and straight path which the feet of the inexperienced must tread to success in the apiary.

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Why Keep Bees

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The reasons for keeping bees are many and various; for it is an industry as many-sided as the cells of a honey-comb, one of its chief charms being that it appeals equally to "many men of many minds." To know all the reasons why one should keep bees one must be conversant with the history of man; he must be familiar with the Vedas of India and master of the hieroglyphics of ancient Egypt; he must study the life of the common people in the Hebrew Scriptures and the classic literatures of Greece and Italy, and must be able to translate into terms of common human experiences the myths and legends of diverse peoples. For bees have been a part of the conscious life of man from the beginning. Not only have they sweetened his daily bread with beneficent honey, but they have had their place in his religious rites, and also in his family observances, as millions of happy lovers may attest who have experienced the "honey-moon." However, lacking the erudition necessary to enumerate all, the author of this book is quite content to mention a few of the more cogent reasons why anyone should, in this day and generation, undertake the keeping of bees

​One may keep bees for the sake of the honey, which is a most legitimate and fit reason. Honey is a wholesome and delicious addition to the family table. Though it is a luxury, yet it may be afforded by one living in moderate circumstances, if he be willing to give a modicum of time and care to the happy little creatures that gladly make it for him, free of all expense. But for the one possessed of great wealth, and able to corner the honey-market any day, there is sure delight, as well as education, in raising his own honey. Any person of experience well knows that the honey made by one's own bees has quality and flavour superior to that made by other people's bees. In fact, the only way to become a connoisseur of honey is to keep bees, for thus only may one learn to discriminate between honey made from basswood and that gathered from clover; or to distinguish, at first taste, the product of orchard in bloom from that drawn from vagrant blossoms, which, changing day by day, mark the season's processional. He who has once kept bees and become an artist in honey-flavours, would never again, willingly, become a part of the world at large, which, in its dense ignorance, dubs all white honey "basswood" or "clover" indiscriminately, and believes all dark honey is gathered from buckwheat.

Some, perhaps, might keep bees for the sake of making money. For him who would get rich keeping bees, this book manifestly is not written; its title explains that it is meant to show how to keep bees, and not how to make bees keep him. The person who ​would, from the first, make bee-keeping his chief work should receive his training in a large apiary. As a vocation it demands the entire time and energy of a shrewd and able person to insure success; of such, America already has a great number, with yearly incomes varying from $1,000 to $10,000. However, the desire to make the bees keep themselves and add more or less to the family income is a practical and sensible reason for keeping bees. Fifteen or twenty colonies may be managed with comparatively little time and attention and the work may be done largely by women or the younger members of the household. If proper care be given to such an apiary, it will prove of material benefit to the family purse; for, if the season be favourable, the product of one colony should net the owner from four to ten dollars. We know of boys who have thus earned their college expenses; and many women have bought immunity from the drudgery of the kitchen with money paid them for their crops of honey. It should be borne in mind that honey-money is not obtained without thought, energy, and some hard work. The bees would have been less beneficent to mankind had they bestowed honey without demanding a return in care and labour.

Many have kept bees as a recreation, and there is none better. It gives delightful and absorbing occupation in the open air and is not merely a rest from mental and sedentary labours, but is a stimulus to health and strength as well. In the various bee journals are recorded testimonials from thousands ​who, when tired, ill, and nervously worn out, began bee-keeping, and through it regained vigour and found a new interest in life. Notwithstanding the fact that bees have honest stings, they can work the miracle of changing a dyspeptic pessimist into a cheerful optimist with a rapidity and completeness that merits our highest admiration.

A love for natural science is a very good reason for keeping bees. Nowhere are there more fascinating problems for the investigator than those still unsolved in the hive. Of all the lower animals, bees are, perhaps, the most highly developed in certain ways; and it is more probable that the mysteries of the eternal heavens and the distant stars be made plain than that we ever learn the truths that underlie the development of the "Spirit of the Hive."

Another reason for keeping bees is the insight to be gained therefrom into the conditions of perfect communism. The bees and their relatives are the most intelligent and consistent socialists that have yet been developed in this world; and, through studying their ways, one may discern with startling clearness how the perfect socialism grinds off all the projecting corners of the individual until it fits perfectly in its communal niche. In the hive individual traits, as exemplified in kindness, selfishness, love and hate, are moved up a notch in the scale and characterise the whole community, even though they are eliminated from its members. If one is a social philosopher, he may become very wise, indeed, by studying the results of the laws of socialism ​which have been executed inexorably through countless centuries in the bee commune.

Last, but by no means least, one may keep bees because they belong to home life and should have place in every well-kept garden or orchard. There is no more beautiful domestic picture to be found in the world than a fine garden with a row of hollyhocks hiding the boundary fence and affording a fitting background for a neat row of white hives. It is not alone the æsthetic beauty the bees bring to the garden which touches the deeper currents of feeling and is productive of profound satisfaction; it is something more fundamental; for since the thyme of Hymettus yielded nectar, the happy hum of the bee has yielded comfort to the human senses. The garden without bees seems ever to lack something; mayhap, the silent longing of the flowers for their friendly visitors, intangible but real, so permeates the place that we are dimly conscious of it. Be that as it may, the perfect garden can only be attained through the presence of happy and populous bee-hives.

How to Begin Bee-Keeping

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There are so many ways of beginning this interesting work that no classic way obtains. Many people have received the stimulus from a swarm of bees, escaped from some apiary, which has alighted on a tree or bush on the premises, and which seemed too much like a gift of the gods to be ignored. In fact, no one with blood in him would do otherwise under such circumstances than to hunt up a soap-box or a nailkeg and, with an intrepidity amounting almost to heroism, place it under the cluster and shake the bees into it. Then, if the swarm feels content, the fact is accomplished; and the involuntary owner finds a new interest in life, and enthusiastically becomes a bee-keeper. This is an excellent and inexpensive way to begin, and for all who are thus favoured it is by far the best way. But one may wait many years before this happens, and after all there are other and more direct methods. The best way is to begin by wishing sincerely to keep bees, and then to adopt one of the following plans:

The cheapest way is to visit the nearest neighbour ​who keeps bees, and buy of him a swarm, which will cost, perhaps, two or three dollars. If the neighbour be a good apiarist, this may be an excellent method, for he will give practical advice and be a most helpful friend in time of future difficulties and doubts; he will also explain appliances and make the labours and perplexities of the beginner much smoother. Besides these advantages, it is a help to neighbourliness, for keeping bees is almost as close a bond between two neighbours as an interest in golf or automobiles, and has a much broader and more philosophical basis.

Of course, the bees may be bought at any time of the year convenient, but the early spring is the best season for beginning, for then one has the advantage of increase by swarms. If one is ingenious and inventive, one may easily construct other hives like the one bought; but there are other things needed which may be obtained cheaper and better from firms that sell apiarists' supplies. However, we are acquainted with several apiarists who furnish all of their own supplies except the sections for comb-honey, the wax foundations, the smoker, the cartons and the honey-extractor.

The usual way of beginning is to send to some of the dealers in bee-keepers' supplies for a catalogue and to invest in a library of bee books. There is something most fascinating about these books written by bee-keepers, for no one makes a success of bee-keeping unless he loves the bees; and if he loves bees he writes of them so persuadingly, and his lines ​are so full of insidious allusions to the enchantments of the occupation, that whoever reads one of these volumes finds life arid without bees.

Then the catalogue of bee-keepers' supplies has its own attractions. Never were such breathlessly interesting pamphlets written; and I would add that, on the whole, they are the most honest and reliable of all advertising catalogues. They almost invariably give good and sensible advice to beginners, suggesting proper outfits at moderate prices. To the would-be bee-keeper these catalogues are so delightful that, if the purse is long enough, he feels inclined to order a specimen of everything listed. However, this is not the best way to do. A moderate number of things can be ordered at first, and other things may be ordered later as the growing sense of their need develops.

If one is minded to go into bee-keeping as a regular business, the best way to begin is to spend a year with a successful bee-keeper, working for him and with him and paying for the tuition, whatever may be charged. Thus one may gain his knowledge of the business and get his practical training under the guidance of experience. The very worst way to begin, and one that is sure to result in disaster, is to buy a large number of colonies at first. This is a too expensive way of learning the extent of one's own ignorance and limitations as a bee-keeper.

As we have begun keeping bees three times in the course of our lives, we feel more or less competent to give advice about this special phase of bee-keeping. ​We first began when we were children and two swarms were bestowed upon us by an uncle who moved away from the neighbourhood. This was long before the idea of supers and box comb-honey had been thought of. We were among the first to adopt the old glass-sided super when it was introduced. The second and third times we purchased our outfit of a dealer in apiarists' supplies, and both of these beginnings were good and successful; so perhaps the best way to tell others how to begin is to describe how we began. The following is the order which we sent to a dealer.

One colony of bees, in an eight-frame, dovetailed, chaff hive with a deep telescope cover, and with a tested Italian queen.

The selection of the bees is the first and most important consideration, since race and heredity determine to so great an extent the bee's efficiency and disposition.

The consensus of opinion to-day is in favour of the Italian bees; this is so much so that the other races, except the German, are hardly on the general market in America. Taking all points into consideration, the Italian has a higher average of satisfactory qualities than has any of the other races.

Our earliest experiences were with the ordinary black German bees, and it was through them that we first learned to love bees, although their nervousness and their unhappy habit of considering us intruders when we neared their domain were always somewhat embarrassing, and made us feel like James Whitcomb Riley's visiting base-ball team, that "we weren't so welcome as we aimed to be." Therefore, when we decided to buy bees, we ​un-hesitatingly ordered Italians. These are much more gentle and friendly than the others, and it is one of our greatest pleasures to be on good terms with our bee-folk. Under all ordinary circumstances the Italian bees are not only tolerant of human interference, but are sweet tempered and optimistic, believing that we mean well by them; and one cannot work with them without learning to love them.

If one begins bee-keeping in the spring, some money can be saved by buying a nucleus and tested queen, instead of a full colony of bees. A nucleus in bee-keeping parlance is a small colony with only one, two, or three frames. The colony should be large enough to build combs with sufficient rapidity to keep the queen fairly busy, so as not to encourage in her the habit of loafing, and so that too much time shall not be required to build up a full colony. Two frames with about a quart of bees will accomplish this well.

Such a nucleus as this in a hive, with a division board on either side of the two adjacent frames, can be soon built up into a full colony if there is plenty of nectar and pollen to be had. A division board is a solid board of the shape of the frame, but a little larger so that it is close-fitting in the hive. The frame should be watched closely, and as soon as the comb is filled with brood, and there are enough bees to cover the brood well, another frame filled with brood foundation should be added; this should be continued until the hive is filled with frames.

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As the queen is the mother of the whole colony, her powers for transmitting a kind disposition and superior honey-making qualities are of the greatest importance. It is essential, therefore, to know that the queen, which is to serve as a foundation for the apiary, has mated with a drone of the desired race. A tested queen is one that has been kept until some of her offspring have been reared. The colour of these will indicate whether the queen has mated with a drone of her own race.

Next to choosing the bees comes the selection of the hive, for there are several kinds of hives in general use, and all of them are apparently good. We chose the Langstroth hive because its merits are attested by the fact that it is more largely used than all others taken together. We chose the eight-frame in preference to the ten-frame form because we wished to produce comb-honey, and it is easier to induce bees to store surplus in the sections when the brood-chamber is small. If one wishes to produce extracted honey, the ten-frame hive is the better one. We ordered the more expensive chaff hives, as we wished to save the trouble of moving the bees into winter quarters; and we think this would be the case with anyone with whom bee-keeping is an avocation instead of a vocation. In fact many

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​people who make bee-keeping their principal business prefer chaff hives, for they not only keep out the cold in winter, but also protect the bees from the heat in summer. The objections to them are that they are heavy to handle and are expensive, though the expense can be reduced considerably if one has the ability to make them. Another thing we like about the chaff hives is that they are fine and dignified in appearance, and we find that their majestic proportions, white and beautiful, set against the background of our larches, add much to our conscious pleasure every time we look upon our apiary. We ordered a deep telescope cover, as we wished room for two supers on the hive at once.

The hive-stand we ourselves made from lumber taken from dry-goods boxes. It is simply a smooth platform, six inches wider than the hive on three sides and extending about a foot out in front of the hive, thus serving as an alighting-board.

We knew that we would need these very soon, for the basswood harvest was imminent; we ordered them ready for use, as we wished to see all the "new wrinkles" in supers, and exactly how the parts are arranged. We used the supers as models later in putting together and fitting other supers. This proved a wise precaution, as it saved us much time in reading directions and studying out independently the arrangement of parts. We ​ordered 4¼ x 4¼ x 1½ sections, as this is the size most generally used, and we chose the no-beeway, or "plain" style, because we think it presents a better appearance when filled with honey. We will return to this question in Chapter VIII.

We wished to have these on hand for any swarms which might possibly issue.

I do not know just why we chose this of the many excellent smokers, but perchance the name called to mind happy experiences with sundry Cornell smokers of quite a different feather, and we were thus favourably disposed toward this one. It has not disappointed us in the least, for it is both handy and practical. It may seem an unfriendly act to smoke one's own bee-people, but a little smoke wisely applied is as efficacious in preserving pleasant relations with the bees, as was the smoke from the pipe of peace in preserving similar relations between our forefathers and the savages. (Plate I.)

The senior partner of our apiary rarely uses a veil, but when he does use one he needs it very much, and it is an article necessary to have at hand. To the beginner it gives a calmness of nerve and a surplus of courage which are highly desirable when dealing with such high-strung creatures as bees. Also ​there always occur times during the year when the bee-tempers are on edge for some reason or other; and at such times, if one be intrenched behind a bee-veil, it facilitates work and encourages a serene spirit.

While we do not use these ordinarily, yet when we have some special work to do which involves changing many bees from one location to another, we find these gloves most convenient to keep the disturbed little citizens from crawling up our sleeves, thus saving both them and ourselves from a most embarrassing situation.

Only a small supply of sections was ordered, as but few would be needed the first year in addition to those in the two complete supers. (Plate II.)

This was for use in the frames in the extra hives.

This was for use in the sections.

In the early days of our bee-keeping we fastened the foundation into the sections and frames with a common kitchen-knife which we heated over a lamp and then applied to the edge of the wax foundation held against the section, thus melting it and pressing ​it fast to the wood. Afterward we used a Parker fastener, and found it a great improvement over the primitive method. But this Daisy foundation-fastener as described in the catalogue appealed to the modern spirit in us. When we tried to use the machine, we were bitterly disappointed at the end of five minutes, but that was because the iron was not hot enough to properly melt the wax. After a little we learned to hold the foundation on the plate just long enough to melt it to a proper consistency so that it adhered to the section as soon as it was dropped upon it. Then it was that filling sections was placed on the list of sports. The rapidity with which we filled four dozen sections almost took our breath away.

This was ordered under the impression that it would be needed for fastening the foundation in the brood-frames, but when the hives came we found that a much better method of fastening the foundations had been devised. This is described in Chapter VIII. (Plate III.)

This is used for strengthening the foundation in the brood-frames, as described later.

The Porter bee-escape is a simple and most useful device. It is set in a thin board just the size of the top of the hive; in the middle is a bit of tin which ​forms a round pit on the upper side. The bees descend into this pit, and, trying to get out, push apart two strips of tin set at angles to each other, fastened at the ends, which act like a valve, letting the bee out but not permitting her to push back. This is put between the super and the hive in order to free the super of bees before removing the honey. This escape is also used on the doors and windows of workshops or extracting-rooms or other places where bees get in and it is desirable to get them out. (Plates III., XVIII.)

We bought this because we liked the idea of it, but as yet we have never had occasion to use it; however, we never look at its long handle without being filled with a mad desire to try it on a provoking swarm of bees clustered in the top of a cherry tree.

This is an exceedingly useful instrument for brushing bees from frames and from sections. (Plate III.)

Bee-keepers of extended experience consider this the best and most satisfactory kind of feeder in use for small apiaries. (Plate XII.)

This is not a necessity; we bought it in order to try experiments in preventing swarming by its use, and also to have on hand in case an excess of drones should be developed in any of our colonies. (Plate XIV.)

The Location and the Arrangement of the Apiary

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Where to put the hives is the first question, and this must be determined by two or three conditions necessary for the health and comfort of the bees. Hives should be placed where the sunshine may reach them in the morning up to eight or nine o'clock, and in the afternoon from three to four o'clock. An old orchard such as is kept because of picturesque beauty rather than for its crop of apples is an ideal place. The clean-culture orchards of the modern horticulturists are undoubtedly more efficient as producers of apples and money; but we are always grateful that there are still remaining many fine old orchards, on sod ground where the trees, more or less gnarled and twisted, are a joy to the artistic eye. Little wonder that such a place is the ideal spot for the apiary; if the hives are grouped four or five together beneath one tree, the requirements of shade will be met.

If there is no old orchard, what then? A young orchard will do, unless clean culture is practised; in the latter case horses and cultivator will not be permitted on the domain of the bee-people. If no ​orchard offers, then a trellis of vines extending east and west, eight feet high, may shade a few hives, and may be a thing of beauty in the garden as well. Grape vines, hops, Virginia creeper, or any other rapidly growing vines will do. To the one who loves his garden, there will be many ways suggested whereby the hives may be placed to compass both comfort for the bees and joy to the beholder. We started an apiary at the north of the lilac trees, and made it a part of the lawn.

If no such happy position for natural shade is to be found for the hives, then one must have recourse to artificial shade or double-walled hives. A very good method of shading, much in vogue among the farmers of our country, consists of a few boards placed awning-fashion above the row of hives. This is not an attractive solution to the problem, although perhaps it might be made so if this method were ever resorted to by anyone with a sense of beauty; but usually it is limited to a simple cover consisting of two or three boards nailed together, slanting a little toward the back of the hives to shed rain, supported by four posts, which hold it a foot or more above the row of hives.

In California instead of boards a thatched roof is made for this sort of protection, and is ample enough to allow an aisle for the apiarist between the rows of hives set back to back.

Many people use a single shade board, which consists of slats fastened together by cleats made large enough to project a foot beyond the hive on ​either side. This is placed directly on top of the hive, and has to be weighted down with stones, and is therefore awkward to handle when working with the bees. If the climate is hot, or in any case, a double-walled cover to the hive is most excellent, since it affords a chance for free circulation of air between the two boards which form it. However, these double covers do not obviate the need of shade, and natural shade is the most desirable sort.

In case the region is exposed to high winds, there should be a windbreak around the apiary. Mr. Root, who is one of the greatest of American bee-keepers, uses for this a row of hardy evergreens which grow together into a solid hedge. In case a windbreak, either natural or made, is impracticable, a board fence about eight or ten feet high, built on two sides of the apiary, usually the north and west sides, will be found to serve the purpose. This fence may be made the trellis for vines.

In the rear of the village garden is an excellent place for bees. A high board fence as a boundary, and perhaps a barn at the side will act as a wind-break, while the fruit trees yield a grateful shade. We know several such modest apiaries which are most attractive in appearance. There are those who live in cities or towns who are filled with the bee-keeper's ambitions; and even they need not despair. There are on record accounts of several small apiaries kept on the housetops of the owners, who believe that roofs are for more than mere protection. Where bees kept thus get their honey is a ​bee secret, but undoubtedly every flower in the region yields them tribute. If bees be kept in town, they must be placed on a roof or else a high fence must intervene between the hives and the highway, so that the plane of bee flight shall be set above the heads of horses and drivers; for these brave little honeymakers have never been taught to turn to the right, and so they often dispute the way with teams and usually come off victorious; and this might make the bee-keeper unpopular in his community.

Another necessity in the apiary is that the grass in front of the entrance to the hives be kept mown; otherwise many a heavily laden bee will experience loss or injury among interfering grass blades. It is not practicable, even if one were heroic enough to try it, to run a lawn mower nearer than four or five inches from the hives, so many bee-keepers place salt or coal ashes on the grass within this area. Mr. Root goes so far as to advise the use of sheep as automatic lawn mowers in the apiary, as nothing else can cut grass so short as does the sheep. People say "as silly as a sheep," but that is a silly saying, for many people may learn something of value about the management of bees from the sheep, which, when attacked by them, thrusts its head philosophically into a bush where the bees cannot reach the tender parts, and trusts to its wool to protect it elsewhere. As a matter of experience, sheep kept in apiaries are rarely stung at all.

In our own apiary, where it was not practical to mow close to the hives, we followed two methods:

​When we had many bees we placed a rough board over the ground in the immediate front of the hive; when we had only a few swarms, it was one of our joys to get on our knees on cold days, when only a few adventurous workers were going into the field, and with shears cut the grass close to the ground; and this period spent on our knees was not penance, but joy. However, it might well get to be penance in a large apiary.

Having found the place for the apiary, the next thought is of hive stands. Many bee-keepers use a hive that has a combination bottom board and hive stand; this has an inclined plane up which the loaded bees may climb if they strike the ground. This is a device which also saves the lives of many bees in cool weather, when they would scarcely be able, through numbness, to reach the entrance of the hive otherwise. However, there are other bee stands which hold two or three hives, which are very comfortable in height for the work of the bee-keeper. But it is always well to remember that the opening of a hive should be low down, as it is easier for the weary wings to let the honey-weighted bee down than to lift her up to the doorway. We use a simple platform, with blocks under the corners, so that there may be circulation of air beneath, and extending about a foot out in front of the hive, thus serving as an alighting board.

The arrangement of the hives in the apiary is a subject which will pay for thought. When beginning, this is easy enough, as they may be arranged ​