58 



"novice's" gleanings in bee culture. 



may be, having it torn down, we would in- 

 jeri it in place of some one that the bees 

 have started during the two days. For a 

 simple mark to designate which hives we 

 have made queenless we slip a grape leaf 

 partly under the cover of the hive and 

 the leaf is left there until the young 

 queens are found to be laying, which we 

 find to be in from six to twelve days after 

 insertion of the cell. It may be objected 

 that much time is lost in keeping a colony 

 queenless thus long, but it is at a season 

 of the year when more brood is generally 

 of little account and the time is not 

 greater, many times, than would be con- 

 sumed in introducing a queen, besides, 

 our cells are built and queens are Jiatch- 

 edin full colonies, points which although 

 they may not be absolutely necessary at 

 all times, are certainly safe for "Novices." 

 It' your object be increase of stork, hav- 

 ing queens already good, proceed for cells 

 as before. Have your new hives, trellises, 

 sawdust, etc.. arranged before hand and 

 in place of removing queens take two 

 combs, one of honey and one of brood 

 hatching out, irom each colony that can 

 spare a swarm, put these with all adher- 

 ing bees (but not the old queen) into the 

 new bive and cover the top and sides of 

 these combs with the quilt, insert cells as 

 before and when the young queens are 

 laying give them combs enough (without 

 bees) irom any old colonies to fill out the 

 bive. These combs should be mostly 

 brood combs, and thus we shall have full 

 colonies at once equal to any of the old 

 ones, and indeed, if the season continue, 

 in a few days these new colonies can 

 spare a comb or two for other new ones, 

 but we should avoid having frames only 

 partly filled in the hives for wintering. 



Remember if we are going to try and 

 winter all colonies without loss, they must 

 be all good so far as combs and bees are 

 concerned and most of all, a good queen. 

 No matter about the honey so they don't 

 starve before September for we wish to 

 take it all away then. 



Above all things don't let robbers have 

 any hand in the business, whenever they 

 gel very bad you had better stop. "Nov- 

 ice" says you had better stop whenever 

 they get so bad that a bee'veil is neces- 

 sary, but "P. G." doesn't quite agree to 

 that, \ et she is getting a "way." thisseason 

 of working about among the bees without 

 any * overing at all for the head, and with 

 apparently the greatest unconcern. Even 

 a "sting in the mouth" isn't the "terrible 

 affair" now, that it used to be, and the 

 .-welling instead of lasting two or three 

 days now lasts but a few hours. 



By the way, dear readers, we will im- 

 part a great secret if you'll promise 

 never to t 11 any one else, for it is worth 

 a great many dollars (more or less), "lis 

 a perfect preventive of robbers and .you 

 may open hives, leave them open, leave 

 combs all around the apiary, and be as 

 free from annoyance as if on a desert 

 and "nary"beeto bother. If it don't do 



all we claim, money will be refunded. 

 This is for our unfortunate friends who 

 don't have fall pasturage. Well! Ahem ! 

 Extract the honey or whatever other 

 work j r ou may wish during warm, moon- 

 light evenings. You Avill need to use 

 considerable smoke to subdue the bees at 

 firstj and you will have to be careful of 

 you lamp or lantern if you use one. 

 Unless you are hunting queens, etc., you 

 can learn to do very well by "moonlight 

 alone. "( We mean "only;" " taint good'' 

 to be "alone." ) 



P. S. — Mrs. "N." says if she is expect- 

 ed to be assistant, she prefers some other 

 "post" than holding the lamp." 



P. S. No. 2. — We would advise all who 

 feel disposed, to try the queen nurseries, 

 but can only add that our opinion remains 

 unchanged, viz: that to rear the best 

 queens we would prefer that they have 

 the full run of the hive as soon as hatch- 

 ed. Unfertile queens, we are inclined to 

 think, would be of as little use to "Nov- 

 ices" as they are to strange bees, and we 

 have found them very uncertain property, 

 to say the least. "We have succeeded well 

 in making new colonies, as follows: Cut 

 out your cells and place them in the 

 nursery, with bees or without, it don't 

 matter. A lot of queens cages fastened 

 or suspended in a frame make a nursery; 

 if pasturage is not abundant, some pro- 

 vision should be made in one end of the 

 cage for the queen to feed herself. Hang 

 the frame, cages, cells and all in the mid- 

 dle of a populous colony; remove the 

 empty cells as soon as the queen is 

 hatched to give her more room, and as 

 soon as you can thereafter, release her 

 among the bees on one of the frames of 

 comb removed from the hive. Place this 

 comb, bees, queen and all, between two 

 combs of hatching brood from other 

 hives, in a new hive and on a new stand. 

 When she lays, lill up as before. You 

 thus save some time and are not obliged 

 to make your swarm until your queens 

 an- hatched and approved of. If you 

 have more than ten or dozen cells a large 

 colony will be required to give bees 

 enough to each queen. It may not in- 

 jure young queers to be kept caged sever- 

 al days, .yet we do not feel -satisfied that 

 such a course is advisable. 



Ik your income from bees has been 

 small, make your expenses in that direc- 

 tion correspondingly so. Many times 'tis 

 hard to come down to rigid economy, but 



it generally "does a body good" after all. 

 — ♦ — > — 

 'Tis very lu/d economy to feed bees all 

 winter and then have them die. Let us 

 all resolve to attempt to winter no more 

 stocks than we can probably take through. 

 If all are now agreed that sugar for winter 

 is as safe as honey, nothing will be lost 

 but our time, in giving it a further trial, 

 for the homy sells for the most. 



