COMB HOXEY. 



113 



COMB HOXEY. 



foundation, because it has been shown, over 

 and over again, that bees are much more 

 ready to accept full sheets than starters. If 

 you have complied with this, perhaps the 

 hive is not properly shaded, and. as a conse- 

 quence, the surplxis-apartment is overheated 

 by the direct rays of the sun. In this event, 

 if you can not extemporize some kind of 

 shade, use a shade-board, and smoke the bees 

 above. (See Apiakt.) 



If the methods given still fail to force your 

 '•ees to occupy the sections, and you have 

 f oUowed faithfully the instructions, the trou- 

 . lie may be because honey is not coming in 

 sufficiently rapid, because the brood-nest is 

 lot yet filled, or becaiLse the colony is too 

 *veak. It requires strong colonies under any 

 'X'ndiiions to do much work in the supers. 

 The hive should be boiling over with Ijees. 



•rCEBIXG ITP. 



If honey is coming in at a good rate, you 

 may expect if the bees have got started 

 above; that the super, or case of sections, 

 will soon Ije filled about half full of honey — 

 with the sections in different stages of com- 

 pletion. When the super is about half filled 

 with honey, raise it up and place another 

 empty super imder it. About the time this 

 reaches the condition of about half comple- 

 tion, raise both supers and put under anoth- 

 er empty one. This process of "tiering up." 

 or "storifying." as it is caUed by the Eng- 

 lish, may l:>e continued vmtil three orfour high, 

 depending upon the length of the honey-flow 

 and the amount of nectar coming daily. In 

 the mean time the ripening proc-ess of the 

 honey in the first super continues. It is not 

 . racticable to tier up more than two high. 



CAunox. 

 Care must be exercised in tiering up. or a 

 lot of unfinished sections will be the result. 

 Wlien the honey-flow is drawing to a close, 

 and you discover that there is an evident de- 

 crease in the amoimt of nectar coming in. 

 give no more empty supers. Make the bees 

 complete what they have on hand, which 

 they will do if you are fortunate enough in 

 your calculations as to when the flow of nec- 

 tar wiQ end. If unc-ertaia whether another 

 super is needed or not toward the close of the 

 harvest, it is often advisable to put another 

 super on top. The h»ee5 are not likely to com- 

 mence on this till they really need it. It is 

 impcissible to give general rules on tiering 

 up ; but with the assistance of the foregoing 

 yon are to exercise your own discretion. 



WHEX AXD HOW TO TAKE OFF SECTIOXS. 



Usually it is not practicable to wait tiU 

 every section in a super is complete : that is. 



1 until every cell is capped over. Those sec- 

 tions most liable to be unfinished will be in 

 the two outside rows, and these the bees will 

 be long in completing. If the honey-flow is 

 over we would not wait for them to be com- 

 pleted, but would take the whole super off at 

 once. The longer it remains on the hive, ' 

 the more travel-stained the honey will be- 

 come, and the more it will be soiled with 

 propolis. Bees have a fashion of running } 

 through their apartments with muddy feet, 

 and in this particular are not so very much 

 unlike their owners. However, if you desire 

 a really fine, delicious article of comb honey, 

 one more pleasing to the tongue than to 

 the eye. and are not particular about the 

 white marketable appearance of the cap- 

 pings, leave the super on the hive for two or 

 three months. Most bee-keei>ers ^ree that 

 comb honey left on the hive acquires a cer- 

 tain richness of flavor not found in honey 

 just capped over. Although such honey is 

 really better, it is not quite so marketable. 



HOW TO GET BEES OUT OF THE SECTIOSTS 

 WITHOUT BEE-E^CAPES. 



There is one danger in leaving honey on 

 till after the honey-flow. As soon as you 

 open the hive, the bees, especially hybrids, 

 are apt to uncap and carry some of the hon- 

 ey down. Whether you leave it on the hive 

 or whether you remove it as soon as capx)ed. 

 the methods of taking off and getting the 

 bees out will be much the same. In the lat- 

 ter case, some supers may not l>e filled with 

 honey, although a glance at the top may 

 show nice white capped combs. Satisfy' your- 

 self by lifting one up and looking imder. If 

 capped below, it may be removed. To take 

 off. blow smoke into the top of the super 

 for a little while, to drive most of the bees 

 down : lift off the super, and set it on end 

 near the entrance (not as it sits on the hive, 

 or you will kill bees'. If honey is coming in 

 freely, robbers will not molest, and in two or 

 three hours the bees will have left the sui)er 

 and gone into the hive. 



Until you have had some experience. i)er- 

 haps your safest plan is. never to set a su- 

 per of honey by the hive. .Sometimes it 

 may be safe to let it stand there all day 

 when the bees have more than they can do 

 on the flowers : but. again. aU at once it 

 may start the bees to robbing, and demoral- 

 ize them generaUy. 



If the honey flow has stoppled or is taper- 

 ing off. to avoid the possibility of robbing 

 it would. i>erhaps. be better, after smoking 

 the bees out as far as possible, to give the 

 super a vigorous shaking in front of he 



