COMB HONEY. 21 
will be good. The progressive beekeeper, however, provides condi- 
tions favorable to brood rearing even though the early flowers fail 
to yield nectar. It is therefore highly important (1) that each 
colony be in a normal condition at a period six or eight weeks pre- 
vious to the honey flow, and (2) that brood rearing be at its maximum 
for the entire period of six or eight weeks during which the brood is 
reared to produce workers available for the honey flow. 
BUILDING UP THE COLONY IN THE EARLY SPRING. 
The condition of the colonies in the early spring depends upon 
many factors not all of which are under the control of the beekeeper. 
In the white-clover belt for instance, where the honey flow comes 
early, a large percentage of strong colonies in early spring means of 
course that they have wintered well, which in turn is largely dependent 
upon proper conditions the previous late summer and autumn, The 
manipulations having for their purpose the rapid upbuilding of the 
colony may therefore have their beginning at or even before the 
close of the honey flow of the previous year, including late summer 
and fall management and wintering. Good -queens, preferably 
young, with enough room for breeding purposes and a supply of 
stores during the previous late summer and autumn are among the 
factors favoring good wintering. During the winter the central 
idea is the conservation of the energy of the bees, the complex details 
of which can not be presented in this paper. 
The rapidity with which the colonies build up in early spring 
depends upon a number of conditions, some of which are: (1) The 
number and vitality of the workers; (2) the age and fecundity of the 
queen; (3) the supply and location of stores within the hive; (4) 
weather conditions; (5) the supply of new pollen, nectar, and water; 
(6) the conservation of heat within the brood nest; (7) the race of 
bees; (8) the character of the brood combs, ete. Most of these con- 
ditions are to a great extent within the control of the beekeeper. 
By supplying each colony with a young queen the previous autumn, 
or at least supplanting all undesirable ones, a greater number of 
young and vigorous workers are reared late in the season, which 
usually means greater vitality and numbers the next spring. Young 
queens reared the previous summer or autumn should be in prime 
condition the next spring. If to this combination is added an 
abundance of stores within the hives, brood rearing should progress 
rapidly, even in spite of adverse weather conditions. It is now the 
general practice among beekeepers to supply enough stores the 
previous autumn not only for winter stores but for brood-rearing 
purposes the next spring. Since the amount consumed during the 
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