The frame hive as now made—with metal rabbets and arrangements for surplus honey, and quilts instead of honey boards—reduces propolization to a minimum and renders the danger of irritating the bees by jarring when manipulating much less. As a prerequisite to rapid and safe manipulation perfectly straight combs are necessary.
Fig. 15.—Manipulation—reverse side of comb brought to view. (Original.)
Fig. 16.—Manipulation—examining verse side of comb. (Original.)
With the common or black bees it is never safe to do without the veil as a protection to the face, and with these bees it will also be very difficult to avoid stings on the hands unless considerable smoke has been driven into the entrance beforehand and time has been given the bees to get well filled with honey before the hive is opened; even then frequent recourse to smoke will generally be necessary. Blacks are by far the most troublesome of all races about flying from their hive entrances to sting in an unprovoked manner. Next to these are the crosses containing the blood of the blacks. Italians have much less of this disposition, and Carniolans and Cyprians rarely, then latter almost never, fly from their hive entrances to attack unless their hives have been disturbed. Pure Cyprians can generally be handled without the use of the bee veil by skillful bee manipulators who understand the qualities of the race. Much of the work among pure Italians can be done without a veil after one has gained experience in manipulation. During four years' residence in Carniola the writer, manipulating annually several hundred colonies of bees, never had occasion to employ a bee veil. If no bees but gray Carniolans of pure blood are in the apiary and some smoke is used a veil will never be necessary. They maybe handled in all kinds of weather, early and late, even during the night, yet with but a small part of the risk which attends the manipulation of other races. Nor will it be necessary to delude them with smoke from time to time, as one is obliged to do with blacks. To dispense entirely with the bee veil is a more important consideration, especially to the professional bee-master, than is at first apparent to the inexperienced. Its use injures the eyesight seriously, especially where one is obliged to strain his eyes for hours to see eggs, larvæ, etc., in the cells, to hunt out queens and queen cells, and adjust frames. Besides this, the hindrance to rapid work which the veil causes, as well as the great discomfort in wearing it for hours during hot weather, are considerations worth weighing.
Fig. 17.—Quinby closed-end frames. (From A B C of Bee Culture.)
To recapitulate: To secure easy, rapid, and safe manipulation accurately made hives, with the frames, if hanging, arranged to rest on folded metal rabbets, and the combs perfectly straight, are essential. It is equally important also that some one of the gentler races be kept Furthermore, a good bee smoker fed with dry fuel is necessary, while the bee escape to clear supers without manipulation of combs is a great help. Quilts, queen excluders, and bee escapes reduce the amount of manipulation required, and at the same time facilitate what is absolutely necessary.
In general, the best time to manipulate hives is when most of the bees are busy in the fields. The young bees left at home are most easily controlled and the old ones returning are generally laden.