852 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Nov. 1 



liivers, I discovered that, to cag-e a queen 

 with a zinc entrance-guard beside her own 

 hive, would secure part of tlie swarm, at 

 least, every time, and they would enter the 

 new hive and beg'in work with as much cer- 

 tainty as thoug-h they were hived by any 

 other process. 



To test this plan, remove a queen from 

 her colony and cage her with an entrance- 

 g-uard in a new hive beside the old one, and 

 shake in front of the hives about the num- 

 ber of bees that would naturally go with 

 the first swarm, and see how quickly you 

 will have a new swarm established and 

 working. This is just what the hiver does; 

 and in less two hours, treated as above, I 

 have observed both eggs and honey deposit- 

 ed in combs to receive them, which should 

 always be provided if possible. 



After trying- numerous experiments of this 

 character it was conclusive to me that the 

 only remaining feature was to be sure to 

 g-et the queen thus caged at the issuing- of 

 the swarm. As a result, the swarm would 

 be securely hived by the returning plan, 

 and with much more certainty than by any 

 other plan of natural swarming. 



My latest hiver affords all possible in- 

 ducements to lead the queen through the 

 large cone, thus caging her directly in front 

 of the new hive as though she were cag^ed 

 with an entrance-guard. 



An important offset in the zinc leads the 

 queen directly to the cone; the end of the 

 hiver over the old hive-entrance is darkened 

 by a shutter, and the end over the new hive 

 is provided with light through wire cloth, 

 all of which are required to produce the 

 best results. When the queen is thus cag^ed, 

 hiving is assured. 



To secure convenience in manipulating 

 and adjusting the hivers, the bottom-boards 

 should be placed on double stands about 

 three inches apart, and project about four 

 inches beyond the entrance of the hives, 

 which furnishes a g-ood support. In order 

 to place the empty hive on either side of the 

 old hive, the hivers are vn?\.dL& t eversible, the 

 cone always pointing- toward the empty 

 hive. 



The hivers are securely held in place by 

 a wire spring- passings between the hives, 

 one end against the back of the old hive, 

 and the 'other end over the front and center 

 of the hiver. 



The plan I prefer for comb honey is to 

 have all hives arranged on double stands 

 in early spring. At the beginning of the 

 honey harvest one hive (the weaker one) is 

 removed from each stand to another double 

 stand (two on a stand), each of which is to 

 be worked later, as those remaining- on the 

 old stand; i. e., if the swarming- season is 

 not over when they have gained sufificient 

 streng-th to work in boxes, and swarm. 

 The remaining hives at once receive the 

 field bees from the hives removed, and boxes 

 are at once given them. 



In about one week preparations for 

 swarming may be expected when an empty 

 hive is placed beside the old swarm in the 



place made vacant by the one previouslj' re- 

 moved. 



The hiver is now placed in position, be- 

 ing- sure that no bee can enter either hive 

 without passing through the zinc. 



To empty the hiver of dead drones as oft- 

 en as occasion may require is all the atten- 

 tion required until swarming is over. 



When the swarm issues and is hived, 

 about half of the bees will return to the old 

 hive. This is not objectionable, tis they are 

 just as valuable in the old hive to store in 

 the boxes as thoug-h they remained in the 

 new hive. 



Any time within eight days after swarm- 

 ing-, the unfinished boxes are removed from 

 the old to the new stand, as also the work- 

 ing force, by any plan best suited to the 

 bee-keeper. He may exchange hives, or he 

 may shake the larger part of the bees off 

 the combs of the old hive in front of the new 

 swarm. He may remove the old hive to a 

 new stand, or divide into nuclei, or use any 

 manipulation to prevent second swarming, 

 and build up in good shape for winter. 



I have much confidence just now in a sim- 

 ple chute which covers the entrance of the 

 old hive, and extends to the edge of the en- 

 trance of the new hive with a passageway 

 for the bees, so that, returning from a fly, 

 they 'unite with the new swarm, making the 

 new swarm very strong through the honey- 

 harvest, and making the old one too weak 

 to send out a second swarm. The chute, 

 of course, is to be removed before the young 

 queens wish to fly, or when enough bees 

 have been exchanged to accomplish the de- 

 sired result. If you wish these hivers to 

 hive your bees successfully, don't allow an 

 accumulation of dead drones to remain in 

 them. Don't allow j^our hives to contain 

 much drone comb. Mr. Doolittle says, " I 

 never knew a swarm to have too few drones 

 to be profitable." Don't use the hiver un- 

 til the approach of the swarming season. 

 Don't leave it on long after the swarm has 

 been hived and working. Don't remove it 

 before they begin work, and the danger of 

 running away is over. 



And now, kind reader, if you follow these 

 directions carefully you will find the above 

 a pleasing way of hiving 3'our bees and se- 

 curing nice comb honey, besides the satis- 

 faction and gratification of saving the ab- 

 sconding swarms. 



Oswego, N. Y. 



[Complaint has been made once or twice 

 that I have, in a footnote, weakened or en- 

 tirely nullified the force of an article. When 

 I have done so, however, it was because I 

 believed I was fulfilling a duty to our read- 

 ers. In this particular case I do not like 

 to throw cold water on the automatic hiving 

 described by Mr. Cyrenius; but as I have 

 had quite an extended experience in the 

 very things he speaks of, I feel it my duty 

 to utter a word of caution. 



As our older readers will reinember, I 

 succeeded in hiving swarms automatically; 

 and at one time I felt quite enthusiastic 



