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G L K A K 1 N (; S IN B K l') C L' L T U H E 



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TALKS TO 



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ST N C K w o 

 li:i\o our out- 

 fit in rcaili- 

 iicss and liit\ e 

 learned a little 

 coiioerning the 

 interior of the 

 liive, we are now 

 ready to get our 

 iK'es and to be- 

 gin the aetual business of beekee})int;'. 

 Where and How to Get Bees. 



Altho one might obtain a start by 

 ting- bees from the bee-trees or by purchas- 

 ing colonies in old box hives, we do not 

 recommend either plan for the beginner. The 

 first is interesting, but entails considerable 

 work, and is hardly advisable unless one 

 has some knowledge of bees. The second is 

 undesirable because it is impossible to re- 

 move the combs and learn the condition of 

 the bees one is buying. Still, since many 

 beginners will purchase their bees in box 

 hives, Ave shall in this same talk describe 

 the method of transferring to modern hives. 



Another common plan of getting bees is to 

 send to some breeder for nuclei (small colo- 

 nies) on combs, or for combless packages of 

 bees, a queen being ordered with each. Of 

 these two plans the combless package is 

 much the cheaper and safer investment, since 

 there is no danger of acquiring foul brood 

 as in the case of a nucleus sent on combs. 

 If two-pound or three-pound packages are ob- 

 tained early in May, and given a little brood, 

 they may, by stimulative feeding, be built 

 up into good colonies six or eight weeks 

 later, and in many localities might, there- 

 fore, be in time for part of the main honey 

 flow. But even a two-pound package ob- 

 tained the last of May or June, could by fall 

 be increased to one full-sized colony all 

 ready for the fall flow. However, unless one 

 can obtain an entire colony to supply the 

 desired brood, we would be inclined to dis- 

 courage the beginner from buying the comb- 

 less packages. 



A two-pound package (and we advise buy- 

 ing no smaller package) should be hived on 

 four or five drawn combs, one containing 

 some young larvae. More combs may be 

 added later as the colony increases in size. 

 These three combs are shoved over agaiinst 

 the side of the hive and a division -board 

 placed at the inside. Also the entrance of 

 the hive should be contracted to but a small 

 opening in order to prevent robljers from en- 

 tering. Upon the arrival of the bees they 

 should be placed in the new hive in ac- 

 cordance with the directions that accompany 

 them. 



Two cups of syrup consisting of two parts 

 of sugar to one of water should be given 

 the bees every other day. It may bo fed 

 in Mason fruit jars or friction-top pails 

 with lids pierced with only one or two holes 

 to insure slow feeding, which is con- 

 ducive to rapid breeding. Snugly covering 

 the tops of the frames, and the feeders in- 

 \erted over the brood-chamber, should be a 



BEGINNERS 



Editor 



1 



^^^^^^^^ 



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waiin (M)\er for 

 r^'taining the 

 heat of the 

 cluster. 



B y far the 

 best [)lan is to 

 buy entire colo- 

 n i c s of bees 

 from some relia- 

 ble breeder or 

 J rom a beekeeper in one's own vicinity. These 

 may be purchased in the hives just as they 

 stand; or, better still, an agreement may be 

 made by which the buyer provides the 

 beekeeper with new hives in which to hive 

 the new swarms. These new colonies are 

 taken care of by the purchaser, but not 

 removed until the end of the season. Even 

 tho obliged to pay a little more for the 

 sake of having the bees hived, it would cer- 

 tainly be cheaper than to buy bees in a 

 swarm hanging from a limb thus necessitat- 

 ing the dropping of one's work at a minute's 

 notice. 



How to Know the Value of a Colony. 

 If bees are to be purchased in the hives, 

 it is a good plan to take along an experienced 

 beekeeper to determine whether or not the 

 stock is diseased. If in healthy condition, 

 their value will depend entirely upon the 

 size of the colony; the age, prolificness, and 

 strain of the queen; the condition of the 

 combs, whether crooked, full of drone cells, 

 etc.; the amount of stores contained in the 

 combs; and the condition and style of the 

 liive. Bees that are purchased in old hives 

 should be transferred to modern ones if one 

 expects to get a good crop the first season. ■ 

 Moving the Bees. 

 After the colonies are purchased there 

 arises the problem of moving them to their 

 new home. V'''hen bees first fly in the spring 

 they circle about the hive, noting its exact 

 location in regard to its surroundings. Later, 

 if the hive is moved, the bees return to this 

 same spot, and, being unable to find the 

 hive, become lost. With the exception of 

 bees in a swarming condition, those colo- 

 nies moved a distance less than a mile will 

 thus lose many of their bees. For this rea- 

 son if one wishes to move a colony only a 

 short distance, it should first be moved to a 

 place two or three miles away. Then a few 

 weeks later it may be moved to the desired 

 spot with no loss of bees; for by that time 

 the original location will have been forgot- 

 ten. If one wants to move but a few feet, 

 this may be done with less trouble. The 

 hive may be moved a foot or so the first day, 

 and each successive day the distance increas- 

 ed until they are moved a yard or more at a 

 time. The bees ap])ear to get into tte habit 

 of expecting their hive to be removed a little 

 further each day. 



About the quickest and easiest way of 

 moving bees is by auto. Any sudden lurch- 

 ing or jerking of the combs sidewise miglit 

 rause them to break, especially if heavy with 

 lioney. Therefoi'e if the road is very rough, 

 so that one is obliged to drive slowly, the 



