Dec. 19, 1901. 



AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL 



807 



they are sure to do in any case, owing to tlie surprise that the 

 change will cause among them. 



These precautions are of more importance if the bees are 

 •carried only a few feet, than if they were taken to an entirely 

 new location, tor in the new location there is no spot to which 

 they have been accustomed, and they are more readily in- 

 duced to come back to the place whence they have issued, 

 without seeking any other. 



Now, to evidence the success of the above-given method, I 

 quote below an extract from the second letter of the man 

 whose enquiry led to this article: 



Johnson Co., Iowa, Nov. 12, loui. 



Mk. C. p. Dadant— Dear Sik :— You requested me to let you know 

 what luck I had in moving my bees according to your instructions. I 

 received your r.'ply October l-S, and the next morning turning out beauti- 

 ful, I went riftht to work. The first thing I did was to shut them all in, 

 then carried them to their new stand and set them down lather roughly; 

 I was glad thev were shut in, for they made an awful fuss. 



The ne.Yt thing I did was to tear down everything around their old 

 location that I possibly could, after which I put boards, saw-horse, wash- 

 tubs and limbs of trees, or any old thing I could lay hands on, in front of 

 the hives on the new stand, and kept them shut in until noon, then let 

 them out. The tlrst colony started out too lively for me, so I concluded to 

 smoke the rest, and it was just the thing, for it made them hang around 

 better even than the first colony. I watched them until sundown, and a 

 few went to the old stand, but I dou't believe I lost a dozen bees out of rav 



20 colonies I am iust through leading the American Bee Journal, 



Vols. i883 to 1807. which were given me, and I think I must have this 

 paper, for I got more information out of those I have been 'eadiug than I 

 ever would out of books, for out of books I get one man's idea, while out 

 of a good paper I get the ideas of many writers. 



Yours truly, John T. Paitin. 



Tliis letter is conclusive as to the method I recommend. It 

 has been tried many times, but the latest testimony is always 

 •the best. Hancock Co., 111. 



Swarminjj— Eucalyptus Trees—Bailing Queens. 



BY DR. E. QAI.LUP. 



THE remarks of Mr. E. E. Hasty, on page 633, seem to call 

 for something more from me. I had to cut down four 

 eucalyptus trees and move three colonies — one 12 feet,one 

 23, and one 33. The first two I shook into the clustering box 

 early in the morning-, before the bees were out to work ; the 

 last was a very strong colony, and I did not get to work with 

 it until afternoon, consequently a strong force was out in the 

 field. Of the first two, not a bee went back to the old stand ; 

 the other kept coming in until nearly night, but I leaned the 

 em ty clustering-box against the fence, and the bees hazed 

 about, finally clustering in" it, whiMi I carried them to the new 

 stand and shook them in front of their hive ; the following day 

 not over half a dozen bees returned to the old stand. It was 

 a novel sight to see from two to three quarts of bees together. 

 and nearly every one loaded with different-colored pollen. 



THE EUCALYPTUS TKEE. 



Now, a little about the eucalyptus tree. Eight years ago 

 last July I set out 8ii small seedlings, and now one of the four 

 we cut into stove-wood measured 2 1 inches across the stump, 

 12 inches from the ground, the tree measuring ^0 feet in 

 length. The eucalyntus blossoms from December to March, 

 so the bees are humming on it all winter. I have often won- 

 <iered why bee-keepers do not plant a grove near their apia- 

 ries. They are self-irrigating after the first season, as the 

 leave.s condense the moisture from the atmosphere at night, 

 and one often sees puddles of good size under the trees in the 

 morning. My trees have never been irrigated, except a few 

 wettines with a pail the first season, soon after they were set 

 out. Eucalyptus makes the best of fire-wood, and if cut in 

 the winter the stumps send up sprouts from « to 1 5 feet in 

 length the first season. The leaves and twigs make the finest 

 kind of kindling for starting a fire. 



MIXFD SW.-VIiMS BALLING QUKEN8. 



Mr. Hasty may be right about a lean honey-flow, but I 

 have succeeded here and in Iowa, and will give my experience. 



In Ventura County, early one morning, a large prime 

 swarm issued and clustered in a big live-oak tree. I cut the 

 limb and let it down to within four or five feet of the ground 

 and fastened it there. I then shook the bees into a clustering 

 box and carried tlu'in to a liive; while doing this, out came an 

 after-swarm and clustered on the same branch. Well, I soon 

 hail fun enough, for I had 14 or 1 (i (I have forgotten which, 

 it is so long ago) swarms come out, and sometimes three or 

 four after-swarms were in the air at once. They all clusten'd 

 on the .same branch, but as soon as I would see a great rush 

 to the cluster I would shake them into the box, and from that 

 into a hive placed on the cover, and then closed the hive «ith 

 a quilt or blanket to keep out the swarming bees. After the 



seance was over, I had a tremendous pile of bees. I shook 

 them into a large clustering-box and then uncovered the 

 swarms to see if they had queens; I found them all right and 

 quiet except one. 



In the clustering-box I found a balled queen rolled down 

 to the bottom end of the box. I took a long-handled one-quart 

 dipper (which, with me, is one of the necessary implements 

 about an apiary), scootiod up the balled queen, filled the dip- 

 per with bees from the lower part of the cluster, and carried 

 them to the queenless swarm ; I poured them down at the en- 

 trance and ran them in. 



The next performance was to examine every swarm, adjust 

 the frames, and see which needed more bei^s. Some had 

 plenty and some were quite small in numbers. The next per- 

 formance was to get bees from the large cluster and e(|ualize 

 things. To avoid getting the queen I would dip from the 

 lowi'r part of the cluster, as the queen almost invariably keeps 

 near the top. I am positive about this from actual experience 

 in, I might say, hundreds of eases. I scooped them up with 

 the dipper into a small box so as to know how many I wanted, 

 by measure, to equalize each swarm. I then carried them to 

 the hive and poured them down at the entrance. After the 

 equalizing was done 1 hived the balance, taking care that the 

 (lueen ran in with the bees, and so knew that all was right 

 thus far. 



The next operation was to insert a frame containing eggs 

 and unsealed larv;e in each colony ; so if any queen is lost 

 on her weddiug-tlight we can soon tell tiy their starting 

 queen-cells — I found cells started in one colony the sixth day. 



Now, Mr. Hasty, if you know of a case of bees being more 

 mixed than in the above, please "Gallup" it out. In all my 

 experience, I can recall but two cases where thi-y may have 

 killed their last queen by balling, and in both of these cases 

 they might have been lost on their wedding-Hight. At all 

 events, 1 found no dead queens in front of the hives, which we 

 can almost invariably find in a clean yard, if we look carefully. 

 You will also notice that I shook that balled queen mentioned 

 above right down in front of the hive, without taking the 

 trouble to liberate her. The bees were run into a hive with- 

 out combs and no other queim. It is a groundhog case with 

 them, and they seem to realize it almost instantly. 



Now, what are you going to do about it? 



Orange Co., Calif. 



\ Qiuestions and Answers. | 



CONDUCTED BY 



DR. C C. MILI^ER. Af areng-o, HI, 



(The Questions may be mailed to the Bee Journal oflBce, or to Dr. Mille 



direct, when he will answer them heie. Please do not ask the 



Doctor to send answers by mail.— Editor.1 



Rearing the Best Queens. 



Can we not get a long-tongue bee, healthy bee. ambitious 

 worker — and all of these considered good and useful (jualities 

 — by some one that can control the mating fairly well? Breed, 

 or mate, the (jueen with the drone from her sister worker? It 

 looks to mo as if there would be a gain of at least one-half of 

 a bee-generation, in the preservation of the good qualities of 

 the workers. Ohio. 



AvswER. — Th(^ project of having some one make a busi- 

 ness of rearing queens on a large scale in something like the 

 way you mention has had some consideration; but as yet noth- 

 ing has come of it. It is true, however, that some able men 

 are engag<'d in rearing queens which they are trying to bring 

 up to tlie requirements you mention, and there is constantly 

 approach to the highest standard being made. 



Starting With Bees. 



I would like tlirections for a beginner to start with bees 

 in the spring, in northern Illinois. I know nothing about bees. 

 How shoulti I proc(!ed in order to insure the best success. 

 Please give explicit directions. 1. G. Nou.\NCE. 



Answeu. — I don't know. I'd give a good deal if I did. 

 I've been tryiiiL; for years to learn just what is the very best 

 way to do to ii- ire success, but I'm not always suri' of success. 

 Soi'netimes lli^ >eason is so bad thai I can lay my failure en- 



