PREFACE. 



Bee keeping is primarily a breeding- problem, for the honey surplus 

 of a colony depends so much on the queen. In order to make more 

 public some of the best methods of queen rearing, this bulletin is 

 issued. Much of the labor of manipulation can be avoided by the use 

 of the systems herein described. 



It is held by the best bee keepers that it is necessary to restock all 

 colonies with new queens everj'^ year; but the practice is not as com- 

 mon as it should be. It is hoped that the simplicity of the methods 

 hereafter described will serve as an inducement to those bee keepers 

 who have not adopted the plan to pursue it in the future. 



The rearing of queens has become a separate field, in that some men 

 devote their entire apiaries to this purpose; and to these professional 

 queen breeders must, to a large extent, be given the work of the 

 improvement of stock; but it is far from wise for the ordinary honey 

 producer to neglect this side of the industry. 



E. F. P. 



