316 



September, 1915. 



American Hee Journal 



10 frame, but because I changed to 8-frame 

 when that became the fashion, and as a 

 matter of convenience still continue using 

 the smaller hive. 



10. I don't linow. but I doubt if therewould 

 be any more need of excluders with the 

 plain sections. 



Placing Bee-Escapes Bees Casting Swarms — 



Age of Brood— Where are Queen-Ceils 



in the Hive ? 



I When you have on more than one super 

 how would you put a bee-escape under; 

 would you lift the supers one at a time and 

 put them on a bench, and then after the 

 escape is on put them back ? 



;. If you wash yourself with salt and water 

 before handlinu bees, will it help to keep 

 them from slinging? 



i. One of my colonies put off a swarm about 

 10 30 a.m. and went back. The next day 

 it swarmed again about 7 a.m. What was 

 the matter ? It was the second swarm. 



4. Can I put a swarm back ? Does it make 

 any difference what hive you return them 

 to ' What is the best way to return a 

 swarm ? , , , 



5 Can you tell how old brood is if you do 

 not look at it very often ? 



6. When is the best time to blow smoke in 

 at the entrance when opening a hive, on a 

 cloudy or sunshiny day. or both ? 



7. How long can you keep the hive open 

 when handling bees without smoke ? When 

 they come to the top of the frames do you 

 smoke them back ? 



«. Are queen-cells in the middle of the 

 hive or on the sides, or both ? 



Michigan. 



Answers.— I. If there are two or more 

 supers on the hive you are not likely to 

 want to take all off at a time unless at the 

 close of the season. So lift off supers until 



is sealed you can tell nothing about its age 

 by looking at the sealing, 



ft. The time to blow smoke into the en- 

 trance is just before you takeoff the cover, 

 no matter what kind of a day. 



7. Maybe one smoking will do for all day; 

 maybe two minutes. So long as the bees 

 remain peaceable they need no more smoke. 

 No matter if they do come to the top of the 

 frames so long as they remain good natured. 

 but when they begin to fly at you give them 

 enough smoke to make them behave. 



8. A queen-cell may be anywhere in the 

 hive where the bees have any other brood, 

 as on a bottom-bar. 



Swarming— Uniting 



1. I had two swarms come out of one hive 

 at the sametime and go away together. Why 

 was this ? I put them in a hive and in two 

 davs one swarm came out. 



2. These two hives seem to be about 'one- 

 third drones; would it be right to use a 

 drone trap ? 



.t. I would like to have your best plan for 

 putting colonies in with each other. 



Michigan. 



Answers.— I. You say you had "two 

 swarms come out of one hive at the same 

 time." That would really be only one 

 swarm, the swarm dividing into two parts, 

 as sometimes happens. Like enough they 

 came out after two days because the hive 

 was too close and warm, but I don't know 

 why only part of them should do so. 



2. It would be a good plan to trap the 

 drones, and it would also be well to get rid 



APIARY OF C. KLABUHU & SONS, CONNEAUT. OHIO 



all are off that are ready to take, setting 

 them on end on the ground, leaning against 

 their hive or some other hive, or perhaps 

 setting them on top of an adjoining hive- 

 Then return any that are not ready to take 

 yet. put on the escape, and then the super 

 or supers that are ready to take. 



2. Unless your hands are dirty. I don't be- 

 lieve washing in salt water will do any good, 

 and then soap is better than salt. When 

 bees are swarming they seldom feel tike 

 stinging. 



3. Thai often happens. I don't know just 

 why. 



i. You can return it to the hive it came 

 from, but if you return it to some other hive 

 the bees might be killed. You can return it 

 just the same as you hive a swarm in an 

 empty hive. 



5. An egg hatches in three days. Then the 

 larva grows rapidly during the five or six 

 days it remains unsealed, and you can tell 

 something about its age by its size. After it 



of some of the drone-comb, if with a good 

 iiueen the bees still have too many drones. 



?. I don't know of any safer plan than the 

 newspaper plan, unless it would be more 

 newspaper. For with more than one thick- 

 ness of newspaper the bees would have a 

 bit longer time to unite. 



Replacing Combs in Same Order, Etc. 



1. To what extent at this time, or any 

 other lime, does it make any difference 

 when examining colonies to replace the 

 frames in the same order as taken out ? 



2. Do you destroy all /•»/ one or two queen- 

 cells ? Is it not risky to leave only one ? or 

 is it the correct thing to leave only one ? 



Pennsylvania. 



Answers.— I. Early in the season it it 

 quite important to keep combs in same or- 

 der in hive, for the bees have the brood-nest 

 arranged approximately in the form of a 

 sphere, in the best form for the production 

 of brood, and any disarrangement may re- 

 sult In loss of brood. When hot weather 



comes, and the hive is boiling over with 

 bees, provided the combs have been built 

 on foundation so that the septum is in the 

 center of the frame.it matters little about 

 the order of the frames. Indeed some think 

 that pulling the outside combs in the center 

 has a tendency to prevent swarming. 



2. Your question is not as definite as it 

 might be. If you are talking about killing 

 cells to hinder or retard swarming, then by 

 all means destroy all cells. To leave one 

 would be about as bad as to leave all. If 

 you mean destroying cells about a week 

 after a prime swarm has issued, so as to 

 prevent an afterswarm. then leave one cell, 

 and only one. If you leave two. you are just 

 as likely to have an afterswarm as if you 

 left all. Yes. there is a little risk in leaving 

 only one. tor sometimes that one will hap- 

 pen to be bad. but there's the greater risk if 

 you leave two that an afterswarm will issue. 

 No. it's hardly a greater risk either, if the 

 single cell left is bad. for in that case the 

 colony would be left hopelessly queenless. 



Parcel Post for Honey 



Can extracted honey be sent through the 

 mails in friction-top pails by putting it in 

 wooden boxes, provided the honey is can- 

 died solid so that it would not run if the 

 cover was taken off in transit ? 



Minnesota. 



Answer.— Yes, such honey can go by par- 

 cel post all right. 



Color of Honey 



I have been rearing bees for several years 

 and my honey has been real white, sour- 

 wood and other blossoms, and this lime the 

 honey is yellow, about the color of gold, and 

 a fine flavor. What is the reason for this ? 



■ViroiNiA 



Answer.— I don't know. Of course the 

 change from while to yellow is due to the 

 bees getting honey from some new source; 

 but I have no idea what that source is. Pos- 

 sibly some other Virginian can help us out. 



Where to Get Bees 



I want to start an apiary and don't know 

 where to obtain some Italian bees. Will 

 you please give me the desired information. 



Louisiana. 



Answer.— I have no means of knowing any 

 better than you. Your first effort should be 

 to get the bees as near by as possible, since 

 expressage is very expensive, and the rail- 

 roads will not accept bees by freight, A 

 little ad in your local paper might discover 

 someone close by. having Italian bees of 

 whom you had no knowledge. Possibly you 

 may find in the advertisements of Ihis jour- 

 nal what you want, and if not then an ad in 

 these columns costing very little would 

 probably bring a number of offers. 



Preventing Increase— Wintering 



1. Last S[)ring I bought three swarms of 

 bees from one of the neighbors and they all 

 have crooked combs in the brood-chamber. 

 He did not use starters, and they are so 

 crooked that I cannot pull the frames. 

 These same colonies have each swarmed 

 three limes already. The first swarms were 

 large. I hived them in new lo-frame hives. 

 The next three swarms were smaller. I 

 also hived them in lo frame hives, and the 

 last three were small. As I did not want 

 any more bees. I killed the queens in the 

 last three swarms and put ihem back in the 

 parenl hives. They tlid not swarm any 

 more. .'\s I don't want any more swarms, 

 how can I prevent them from swarming? 



2. One morning I found six dead queens in 

 front of one of the hives. Why do they have 

 so many ijueens ? 



3. Two of the first new swarms have 

 already 75 pounds of comb honey. They 

 were hived about three weelts ago. One of 



