apiary, however small, even if comb-honey is the chief product, for it saves much honey that otherwise would be wasted. When the apiary consists of less than forty hives of bees, one of the small non-reversible extractors may be used. These weigh less and cost less; but every frame of comb has to be taken out after the honey has been extracted on one side and reversed and put back in order to clear the honey from the other side. Though the automatic reversible machine costs more and is heavier, it is far more satisfactory on the whole, if there is much honey to be extracted.
EXTRACTING-FRAMES
The frames used for extracting honey are in form similar to those which hold the brood, except they may not be so deep. However, most bee-keepers use both supers containing the shallow extracting-frames, and also those filled with frames of the full depth. The bees will go into the shallow frames more readily than into the deeper ones, as they are better able to keep the small chambers warm. But if the colony is very strong and the harvest good, the deeper frames are acceptable to the bees and save the time of the bee-keeper. (Plate XVIII.)
WHEN TO EXTRACT HONEY
Some producers practice extracting the honey before it is capped, so as to save the trouble and expense of uncapping. There is one danger attending this method: the green, unripened honey is thus
