370 



JOUENAL OF HOBTICULTUBB AND COTTAGE GAKDENEB, 



[ May 14, 1868. 



neighbour of mine took no lees than 42 lbs. of first-class sur- 

 plus honeycomb from each hive, simply by working up to these 

 directions. 



To return to the subject of swarming. I will endeavour to 

 point out the cause and eii'ect, describing, as I proceed, the 

 different phases that take place, and how a swarming hive may 

 in some years be the most profitable. As I have already men- 

 tioned, every fourth hive ought to be allowed to swarm, or, 

 which is better, be kept for making artificial swarms. The first 

 signs of swarming are a number of the older bees becoming 

 less active, the cause of which is that every cell in the hive is 

 occupied. The queen, finding no place in which to deposit her 

 eggs, becomes restless, traversing the hive in an uneasy man- 

 ner, and not unfrequently rushing towards the outside combs, 

 which being disliked by the bees, she is commonly surrounded 

 by their ceasing to open up a clear way for her passage, but 

 rather forming, as it were, a kind of encasement ; a general 

 commotion arises as the heat increases, and often the swarm 

 departs, almost the whole of the bees leaving, many hundreds 

 of young ones falling on the ground, not able to follow, and at 

 this time not a single queen cell has been commenced. These 

 are the swarms that frequently go astray, issuing without the 

 slightest warning, and leaving the apiarian to deplore their loss, 

 the only means by which he could have saved them being to 

 take them artificially. There is another phase which some- 

 times lasts so long thit it causes the bee-keeper to lose all 

 patience — at least it often makes him lose all honey by their 

 idleness. 



When the cells have become fully charged the queen paces 

 to and fro until she is encased and permitted to range through 

 part of the hive only, when, being kept apart from many of the 

 young bees, they immediately commence queen cells ; for be it 

 understood that young bees are those which commonly per- 

 form that duty, the old bees taking less interest in it than the 

 young ones. Whilst this is going on the bees get divided, as it 

 were, the old queen attempting the destruction of her rivals 

 while yet in embryo, and in this she often succeeds ; but when 

 bees once commence raising queens they are not easily 

 thwarted, although some may bo destroyed. This rather in- 

 creases their vigour and determination, and as the heat in- 

 creases their activity the commotion commences, the queen 

 straining every nerve to destroy her successors, and the young 

 bees pertinaciously resisting until the old queen, once so re- 

 luctant, becomes but too glad to resign her own will to that of 

 her people, and woe betide the haughty sovereign who will not 

 do this. 



The swarm having new issued, and being safely hived among 

 combs of the previous year — which the apiarian will always 

 have by him if he attends to my instructions — if early, and it 

 happens to be a protracted honey season, it will, with its after 

 swarms, produce more honey and combs for future use than if 

 swarming had not been allowed. It must, however, be borne 

 in mind that, as a rule, unless in protracted seasons, the stori- 

 fied hive is the profitable one for the current year ; but to in- 

 sure success and to have in readiness a large quantity of empty 

 combs in case of foul brood, or to use for nadiring or the ex- 

 changing of full for empty combs when a sudden honey harvest 

 presents itself, it is essential that a fourth of the stocks should 

 be allowed to swarm anniially. 



To insure success with hives on the storified principle they 

 must be attended to in time ere they have settled on swarming, 

 giving room below if honey is yet scarce, but if plentiful the 

 super may be put on. Much attention is, however, required, 

 as giving room does not always prevent swarming, for bees will 

 frequently swarm out of a large hive only partially filled, the 

 same as from a small one. The cause of this is that it never 

 was designed that a queen should lay all her eggs in one sea- 

 son, or that she should lay continually. Nature demands a 

 rest, and this happens earlier with some queens than with 

 others. So, when a queen relaxes laying whilst the hive is 

 still active, the bees feel indifferent towards her, young queens 

 are brought forward, and the old queen is commonly killed by 

 the young ones, or meets an imtimely end by her own subjects ; 

 thus many a young and fertile queen is lost. The only way to 

 prevent it is to remove her, if a valuable one, ere they have 

 done with her ; and a stock under these circumstances, when 

 the hive is well filled with yonng bees, will make more honey, 

 which, moreover, is sure to be free from brood while the young 

 queens are coming forward, than if the old sovereign were still 

 regnant. 



Small nuclei ought to be formed in case of any accident 

 happening to the old stock or the old queen and ever; cell but 



one cut out, so as to prevent after-swarms issuing, as they will 

 undoubtedly do if this precaution be not taken. I have had 

 swarms issuing from stocks after being divided into three. It 

 will be easily seen from the foregoing under what circumstances 

 piping takes place before a swarm has issued, and how to pre- 

 vent swarms issuing, and that swarming at all is a natural act 

 arising from different circumstances through the instinct of 

 the bees. 



I have thus given a brief outline of the management of bees, 

 pointing out the appearances at swarming, and its php.ses as 

 learned by long and patient watchfulness and by observa- 

 tion of the nature of the bee. I have not worked on the 

 experiments of others, but started on a basis of my own, ob- 

 serving patiently for more than a quarter of a century, and 

 carefully watching every aberration that took place ; nor were 

 my observations confined to what may be termed the dingy 

 houses of olden times — viz., straw hives, but the modern hive 

 with many of its improvements. 



To insure success with bees, everything that will economise 

 life should be resorted to, not, if possible, allowing a single bee 

 to perish. Using nice dry mats made of straw for their floors 

 in winter would save many a bee. Many bee-keepers about 

 here appraise each bee in February and March at a halfpenny, 

 and the following anecdote will show what value an old man 

 put on his bees. He had a favourite cat, and one day a bee 

 happened to be on the window, when pussy made a spring and 

 broke the window. " Confound it," said the old man, " there's 

 a gude bee killed. " Attending carefully to bees during autumn 

 and winter is the surest way to success, at least it has been 

 proved to be so by — A Lanarkshire Bee-keepek. 



P.S. — I have in my possession frames which were used by 

 me many years before the famed Woodbury hive made its ap- 

 pearance, and which were subjected to many an alteration of 

 form for the sake of observation, although those commonly 

 used by me were frames left open below, having the top bar 

 projecting over the hive, and having the two end pieces only. 

 This being the shape of the frames, the outside case had one 

 end moveable, sliding on two dovetails, by which means the 

 hive could be enlarged or contracted at will, being partly on 

 the lateral system, but never allowing it to be larger than a 

 common hive, as I always considered the lateral or collateral 

 system an utter abomination, and in direct opposition to the 

 nature of the bees. 



OUR LETTER BOX. 



Fowls Dying without Appaiient Cause (C. E.]. — It would bavo 

 rendered it easier for ub to have piven an answer if you had told ns the 

 breed of the fowls that have died. You say Spanish and Brabmas have 

 escaped. If those you have lost were La Fh chethere is no marvel ; they 

 are healthy in the morning, dead at night. CrOve Cceurs are sometimes 

 sick, but they seldom die. There is no fault to find with the feeding ; 

 but we are always averse to feeding with bad food. There is no economy 

 in it, and it should be portioned rather as to weight than bulk. Lettuce 

 is good for them, cabbage is little better than nothing. Feed on your 

 kitchen scraps, ^ith your best barley. Have they a grass run ? If they 

 have not, it is probable they die from internal fat. We never tried lobster 

 as poultry food, bat we should not hesitate to do so. The barley is per- 

 fectly clean, and in the absence of other proof we should be disposed to 

 attribute the cause of death to pecking the fresh paint. All birds are 

 fond of doing so. If they have no grass run cut some heavy sods of 

 growing grass with plenty of mould, and let them have it every day. 



Game Fowls with Diseased Livers. — " For some time past several 

 of my Game hens have died, and on opening them their livers have been 

 invariably found to be full of small stones, which no doubt caused their 

 death. They are Duckwing Greys. Can any one explain the origin of 

 their disease, and suggest a remedy for it ? — E. O.'' 



Parrot SrB.TECT 70 Fits (Parroi).— You have not stated what kind of 

 Parrot you have. If it be a Grey one, the only reason we can assign for 

 its having fits is that it has not sufiBcient moist food, and the seed is not 

 nourishing enough. It should have scaldod bread mixed with hempseed, 

 fresh every day ; water to drink should al.so be given, and occasionally 

 fruit of any description. Equal quantities of heiupsecil and canary seed 

 should be placed in the feeding box. Should the Parrot continue to 

 have the fits, mix one-third of rum to two-thirds of water for it to drink 

 and give it a piece of bread or biscuit soaked in this mixture while warm 

 and occasionally also in warm coflfee. 



Maogot in Corkwork (ii. Palmer].~-'We know of no application that 

 will check its ravages, unless you can soak the model in spirit of tor* 

 pentine. _^ 



POULTRY MARKET.— May 10th. 



We hnve still but a scanty supply of goods at market, and prices are 

 high. We may shortly look for a better supply of some of our spring 

 poultry. 



d. 8 

 6 to 5 



6 4 



Large Fowls 4 



Smaller do 3 



Chickens 3 3 



Goslings 6 6 7 



DuckUugg SO S 



Pigeons 8 



Pheasants 



Partridges 



Guinea Fowls 



Hares 



Rabbits 1 



Wild do 



d s. d 

 teO 

 



