OCTOBER 15, 1915 



bees within a mile went on a rampage. 

 Tbey hung around the house doors and 

 windows, robbed out weak colonics, and 

 were a nuisance generally. I tried to feed; 

 but the hives with empty bodies on, and 

 food in these, were black with robbers from 

 a neighbor's apiary trying to get the syrup. 

 The berries were covered with them — as 

 many, sometimes, as three on one_ raspberry. 

 This year there are no bees in the berry- 

 patch at all. Last year many berries were 

 sucked as drj' as though dried by artifleial 

 heat; this year there are no such berries, 

 and no bees there other than now and then 

 a little yellow Avasp. 



It seems that the bees must go into 

 winter quarters in the best of condition ; 

 but our profits for honey this year are 

 small. There are no large apiaries in the 

 north of the state, and most of those who 

 keep them alloAV them to swarm naturally. 

 1 am thinking that next season I will re- 

 move a frame or two of brood and the old 

 queen from the hives as a nucleus for a 

 new swarm, and introduce a young queen 

 to the parent hive without waiting for them 

 to raise one themselves, and see how that 

 works. I am also minded to try the Pearce 

 method witli one hive, except that I shall 

 not put them in a window but leave them 

 on their stand. 



Unlike most people who handle bees I 

 have never used a smoker. I often open 

 the top of my hives without gloves or veil ; 

 but if T plan to handle fi-ames I put on 

 both; and by moving quietly they do not 

 get much excited. All through the spring 

 they do not seem to resent being handled 

 at all, especially if I have been feeding 

 them ; but later, when they have stores of 



new honey that must be disturbed, they are 

 somewhat indignant, but nothing fierce aft- 

 er all. I think I have a very gentle race of 

 bees, however, because those 1 had some 

 time ago were inueh more difficult to handle, 

 and I tried a smoker; but the smoker both- 

 ered me more than it quieted the bees, and 

 so I discarded it altogether. 



I have been putting starters in some 

 frames. I had no foundation, and could 

 not wait to send for any; so I took some 

 empty worker comb and cut strips II/2 

 inches wide, and fitted these into the frames 

 and tied them in snugly. The bees seem to 

 like this very much. They fastened it, then 

 cut out the string, earned it out of the hive, 

 and are busily building more comb. I think 

 that next time I will fasten it to the frame 

 with beeswax and rosin, and save them the 

 trouble of gnawing off the strings. 



We are told that it does not pay to make 

 our OAvn hives; yet that is just my plan for 

 another year. Our supplies have to come 

 several hundred miles, and the freight on 

 a five-hive lot is considerable. They must 

 be nailed together and painted anyhow, un- 

 less one feels able to buy them all ready, 

 which makes them cost high. I will have 

 the bodies, supers, tops, and bottoms sawed 

 from lumber here, and will send for the 

 inside fittings. There is about twelve feet 

 of lumber in a bodj'^, super, etc. Lumber is 

 about two cents a foot undressed. If prop- 

 erlj^ cut, it will be no more work to set it up 

 than to set up those I buy. The saving will 

 be the greatest cost, and this will not be 

 heavy in this locality. May be I am count- 

 ing my chickens unmatched — anyhow, I will 

 tell you by and by how I come out. 



Glover, Vt. 



SEPTEMBER SWARMS 



BY H. M. LEACH 



'J'he past season has been the most re- 

 markable I have ever known. During June, 

 July, and August, only a small amount of 

 honey was stored; but, beginning with the 

 last week of August, and so far this month, 

 my bees have stored many pounds of fine 

 light-colored honey. One colony in ten days 

 filled and capped a 32-section super. Now, 

 what has interested me most, and seemed 

 unusual, is the swarming. 



Some of my colonies cast large swarms as 

 early as Ma.y 17, and during the first and 

 second week of September they have cast 

 large swarms again. The new swarms are 

 doing well. What would cause them to start 



swarming in September when they were 

 furnished plenty of room to work? Some 

 of my neighbors have had the same experi- 

 ence with swarming this month. My last 

 swarm came Sept. 16. It was a large 

 strong swarm, and is getting along well. 

 From my six largest colonies I shall get 500 

 pounds extracted and comb honej', and all 

 made since August 20. No dark honey has 

 been stored in supers. 



] have had bees swarm but once before in 

 September, and that was twentv years ago. 



Hiram, 0., Sept. 20. 



[See editorial la.st issue. — Ed.] 



