This section is from the book "How To Keep Bees And Sell Honey", by Walter T. Kelley. Also available from Amazon: How To Keep Bees And Sell Honey.
Bee hives and supers must be accurately made to provide the correct bee space inside the hive so that the bees can pass freely. A bee space may vary from 3/16 to 3/8 of an inch. If it is smaller the bees cannot get through so they will seal it up to keep out moths and other enemies. If the space is over 3/8 of an inch it will be too wide so they will proceed to bridge it with cross combs. The accepted standard for a bee space used in the manufacture of bee hives is 5/16 of an inch. This space is allowed at the top side of the supers and hive bodies. People who make home-made equipment seldom realize the importance of this bee space and as a result the parts become too badly propolized to be serviceable.
Propolis
Propolis is the general name for bee glue that is gathered largely from the buds of trees. It is used by the bees to fill up cracks and will be found in quantity at the ends of frames. It is also used to seal in enemies found in the hive such as wax worms, mice, etc. The grey Caucasian bees glue up their entrances and use so much propolis that few beekeepers care to keep them on this account although they are very gentle.
Pollen is the powderly like substance that the bees gather from the flowers. It is produced on the stamens, the male part of the flower, and normally varies in color from a light cream, yellow and even to a deep red. The bees store this pollen in pockets on their back legs and it is a common sight to see the bees going into the hive with large balls of this pollen on their legs.
Only a small part of the pollen is collected on the legs of the bees and much of it collects on the tiny hairs covering the bee's body and this is dusted on the female parts of other flowers as the bees go from flower to flower thereby producing cross pollination. It is this cross pollination work that the bees accomplish unintentionally that make bees so valuable in the production of many fruits and legume seed crops.
Pollen is normally stored in the brood nest just outside the ring of brood in a frame, as it is the main part of the young bees' diet. It is not uncommon, however, to find nearly solid combs of pollen in the frames on the far sides of the brood nest and it is not uncommon to find a few cells in frames of honey near the brood nest, especially when queen excluders are not used.
Many uninformed people believe that pollen is what the bees make beeswax of but this is not true, although wax is colored by pollen. Beeswax is secreted from glands on the underside of the bee's abdomen in a process similar to the secretion of milk by a cow. The bees chew these tiny wax scales into a plastic form and somehow unite these into honey comb that appears to be all of one piece.
CLOTHING: Do not wear dark colored or woolen clothing when working with the bees. Khaki clothing is the most serviceable and most commonly used. Do not wear a felt hat as wool will infuriate the bees. A helmet is the best and cheapest style of hat to wear because it has stiffness that will support the bee veil.
It is practically waterproof and most bee veils fit it snugly. In selecting your helmet be sure that the ventilation holes are too small for the bees to enter, otherwise you will have bees in your bonnet.
SHOES: The bees' supply factories do not supply any special equipment to keep the bees from crawling up the pants legs. Some beekeepers wear heavy socks into which the pants legs are tucked, and a few use leggings or high top shoes, a few use bicycle clips but most trust to luck and often get a sudden surprise.
GLOVES: The beginner will want gloves for confidence but as the season advances and the weather gets warmer they will be discarded, however, in the early spring and late fall the bees are usually quite mean as they wish to keep their stores of honey so it is well to always have a pair of gloves handy.
The beginner needs bee gloves until he gains confidence and experience. The leather gloves with the ventilators are the best and the most comfortable.
While the treated cloth gloves are quite serviceable they are not completely sting proof and they do not last long in regular use. All that can be said in their favor is that they are bee tight and cheap. The leather gloves will stand hard service and have the added advantage of the screen ventilator which makes them more comfortable to work in.
Bees, like other insects, crawl as well as fly and inasmuch as the bee has a stinger it is necessary that the beekeeper provide himself with special equipment to keep the bees off his head and to prevent them from crawling up his sleeves and pants legs.
A good bee veil is a very important item. The round wire veils are cheaper and better for the average beekeeper.
BEE VEIL: The bee veil is next in importance to the smoker because one or two well-placed stings around the nose and eyes will send even experienced beekeepers on the run to cover. It is advisable to always wear a veil when working with the bees although it is possible when there are only one or two colonies in the yard to work them without a veil for months at a time without a single sting, however, the day will come when they are out of sorts for one reason or another and they will quickly convince you that a veil is cheap insurance.
The hive tool is used to pry the supers and frames apart, to scrape off the propolis and burr combs. It is also used to pull nails and as a hammer at times.
While there are several styles of veils the cheapest and the best for beginners is the round veil which fits the helmet snugly. While the net tulle veil is somewhat cooler, it is easily snagged and when it blows against the face you may be stung.
HIVE TOOL: A hive tool is a special beekeeping tool that has one broad thinned out end which is used in prying the supers and frames apart. The hooked end is used in the hand and also for scraping and prying and is also fitted with a nail puller hole. The better makes are made of spring steel which will not bend or break under hard usage.
While a screw driver may be used in place of a hive tool, its narrow width permits it to cut into the wood and it quickly does more damage to the hives than the cost of a hive tool.
SMOKER: The smoker is the most important tool used in beekeeping. The smoke subdues the bees and sends them running to the cells into which they stick their heads and eat honey. Too much smoke will force the bees out of the hive and disorganize them. A few puffs at the entrance and a few as you lift up the cover and a few more now and then will keep the bees under control.
The smoker is your first line of defense so buy a 4-inch smoker and have a volume of smoke before opening a hive.
Do not buy a inch smoker as they are too small to be worth while. The 4x7 inch smoker is the most commonly used, although the 4 x 10 inch size is used by some commercial men but the author finds it too bulky and cumbersome.
The Boardman entrance feeder is about the only feeder found in the bee supply catalogues now as it is cheap to manufacture and beekeepers prefer it. It can be shoved in the entrance of the hive and the amount of syrup can be seen from a distance and the jar can be refilled without opening the hive.
The Boardman feeder is a hollowed out wood block that can be shoved into the entrance. It will hold any jar with the Mason size opening which vary in size from one pint to one gallon size.
 
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