For April. 1920 



143 



The Bees in Spring 



HENRY W. SANDERS 



C: 



Young brood in the 

 proves the presence 

 laying queen. 



hive 

 of a 



lONDITIONS of eli- 

 minate, etc., in different 

 ' regions of the United 

 States differ so widely that 

 in writing about the Bees in 

 Spring it is necessary to 

 begin by saying that what is 

 here written applies to the 

 Northern States, these being 

 the ones which contain the 

 greatest number of bees, 

 although perhaps the more 

 favored regions, such as 

 California, or the irrigated 

 parts of Colorado and other 

 Western States, may boast 

 the greatest number of spe- 

 cialist beekeepers, and in 

 consequence, the greatest 

 and most spectacular honey crops. \\"e are, how- 

 ever, catering here to the amateur beekeeper or the 

 gardener who keeps bees as a sideline, and therefore will 

 deal with the problems of Spring from the standpoint 

 of the Middle and Northern States. 



In these regions, then, the bees have passed the ^^'inte^ 

 in a state of somnolence — not actually hibernating like 

 so many other insects, but clustered closely together with- 

 in the hive, and by consuming honey keeping the heat 

 of the interior of the cluster up to a point comparing 

 with the "blood-heat" of the higher animals. They will 

 have been protected by the beekeeper by packing, or in 

 the far north by placing them in a frost-proof cellar. 

 When the snows of the Winter have disappeared and the 

 genial sunshine of April announces to man and beast 

 and bee that Summer is at hand, they will be carried out 

 and placed on their Summer stands. 



It is at this point that the bees begin the most critical 

 ])eriod of the year, for they must breed fast enough in 

 the next few weeks to replace the hundreds that have 

 died during the Winter, and in addition to provide the 

 forces necessary to constitute a swarm. In fact, a colony 

 that has twenty thousand bees on April first, will some- 

 times have fifty thousand on June first. Each bee takes 

 three weeks to hatch, so that it will be seen that any 

 interruption of brood-raising has a serious effect on the 

 well-being of the hive. 



As the queen is the layer of all the eggs in the colony, 

 it is of the first importance that she should be young, 

 vigorous and of good breeding. This is a matter that 

 should have been attended to last August, a time of 

 year when all inferior queens should be replaced. In 

 Spring the only thing to do is to send to a southern 

 breeder for a few spare queens to arrive in May and 

 then to replace any defective ones. Poor ([uccns are 

 evidenced when the bees of the hive are few in numbers, 

 or of mixed color (indicating a "hybrid'' queen"), or 

 vicious, a quality that ought not to be endured. If a 

 colony comes out of the Winter quarters without any 

 queen it is not much good ti-ying to re-queen it. The 

 better plan is to unite it with a queenright colony. If 

 one wishes to experiment, then give them a little brood 

 to keep them from getting "laying-workers," and send 

 away for a queen. It is sometimes succes.sful, but so 

 often the reverse that uniting is better. There is gen- 

 erally a weak colony with a laying queen that will be 

 strengthened with the bees so added. Uniting is done by 



placing the two hive-bodies in contact with a single thick- 

 ness of newspajier between. 



Weak colonies are often a problem, especially if the 

 wintering has been under unfavorable circumstances. 

 The usual advice is to join them one to another, and 

 while this solves the matter, it involves a waste of queens, 

 as in the united colony there will be only one survivor 

 of the two queens placed together. The better plan is 

 to keep the colonies separate and then build the stronger 

 ones up by taking brood from the weaker. The natural 

 impulse is the other way — to take from the stronger for 

 the weaker ones. In practice, however, this results in 

 having all colonies weak when the honey begins to come 

 in. By building up a few powerful colonies a crop of 

 honey can be gathered and they do so much better that 

 before the season is over they will repay with interest 

 the brood they received from their weaker brethren. 



Protection from the cold winds of Spring is desirable, 

 and this is best accomplished by wrapping the hives in 

 tar paper. The cover is removed, but not the "Quilt" 

 beneath, and the paper is then wrapped over and around 

 the hive and secured with a piece of lath and a nail. The 

 entrances are also made very small, both to conserve 

 heat and to prevent robbing. A windbreak of trees, 

 shrubbery or a board fence should be upon the north 

 and west sides of the yard. 



An abundance of food is very necessary for the brood- 

 rearing of Spring. On a warm day when the bees are 

 flying, the first work of the season consists in going 

 through the hives and seeing that each one has plenty 

 of food. Those that are short can usually be supplied 

 by sparing a comb from those that have plenty, or if 

 there is none available they can be fed syrup made of 

 equal parts of granulated sugar and water. Any of the 

 feeders on the market are good, or a home-made one 

 that does very well is made by punching a few holes in 

 the cover of a tight can, filling it, and inverting it over 

 the bees within an empty super. In any feeding opera- 

 tions care should be exercised not to expose any syrup 

 or honey where the bees can get at it, or robbing may 

 be started. 



At the time when the Spring examination is made it 

 is well to make sure that each hive has a queen, and is 

 strong enough to get through to the honey-flow. Then 

 if all is well, wrap them up in paper as described above 

 and let them alone till settled warm weather comes. 



Bees need an abundance of water in Spring for their 

 brood rearing operations. If there is a natural stream 

 or creek near by. they will visit this, but unless one is 

 quite close it pays to provide water right in the bee- 

 yard. A crock, tub or barrel, with pieces of wood float- 

 ing to prevent the bees from drowning, will serve, and 

 some salt is usually placed in the water to sweeten it. 

 In the iic.vt numher onr subject zuill treat on the 

 Swaniiiiiii Tune. 



LEARNING 



Learning taketh away the wiltlness and barbarism and 

 fiercenes of men's minds, though a little superficial learn- 

 ing doth rather work a contrary effect. It taketh away 

 ali levity, temerity, and insolency by copious suggestions 

 of all doubts and difficulties and acquainting the mind to 

 balance reasons on both sides, and to turn back the first 

 offers and conceits of the kind, and to accept nothing but 

 the examined and tried. — Bacon. 



