802 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



Oct. 1 



rious attacks of the bees. The next day he 

 also rubbed his hands with the same com- 

 position and was able to finish the exami- 

 nation of 17 other colonies without being 

 stung once." 



\b 

 PROGRES APICOLE. 



A contributor gives the following from 

 his experience, which may be of great ser- 

 vice to others: "Honey diluted with water, 

 with the addition of a few drops of tincture 

 of arnica, is excellent for washing wounds. 

 Honey mixed with rye flour, and boiled till 

 it is thick, and applied to burns, produces 

 suppuration, and draws out the heat. If 

 one holds a burned member in honey he 

 will immediately find the pain ceases, and 

 blisters will cease to form. The use of hon- 

 ey for burns is especially advised when 

 they are on the face, and when no better 

 remedy is at hand." 



m 





UNITING AFTER-SWARMS AND NUCLEI. 



"Mr. Doolittle, I came over this afternoon 

 to have a little chat with you about uniting 

 bees." 



"Very well, Mr. Brown. I have a few 

 minutes' leisure, and would a«; soon talk 

 with you as with any one. Why do you 

 wish to unite your bees?" 



"I have some light after-swarms and nu- 

 clei that do not seem to have sufficient bees 

 to winter successfully as they are, and I 

 thought if two or more of them could be put 

 together their chances for wintering would 

 be bettered ; hence I wished to know the 

 best way for doubling or uniting these little 

 colonies preparatory to wintering, and the 

 best time to do the same." 



"My idea has been that the time of year 

 to double up weak swarms or to unite nu- 

 clei is just as soon as the bees cease to gath- 

 er honey, and I have the extra queens dis- 

 posed of, as I wish, these queens being used 

 to fill orders with the queen-breeder, and 

 to supersede any poorer queens that the 

 honey-producer may chance to have." 



"Can you not tell me about the time of 

 the year that would be best?" 



"The last half of September and the first 

 half of October is the time when I do the 

 most of my uniting of small colonies, where 

 I have such. The sooner it can be done 

 after September 20 to 25 the better, for then 

 the bees are given more time to fix their 

 stores and hive in the shape they wish them 

 for winter; and the nearer these things are 

 to what they would be in a full colony which 

 has had all summer to prepare for winter 



in, the more assurance of successful winter- 

 ing we have." 



"Why are not these united after-swarms 

 in just as good shape for wintering as any 

 colony, providing they have the same amount 

 of bees and honey?" 



"A hive which has its combs all over- 

 hauled after the 25th of October, and put 

 back promiscuously, is in poor shape for 

 winter, as the nest prepared for winter. . 

 with unsealed honey surrounding it on all 

 sides, is thrown out of shape and made as 

 uncomfortable to the bees as a bed would 

 be to a person were it thrown over a pile of 

 stones instead of resting smoothly on bed- 

 springs. No great disturbing of the win- 

 ter-nest of the bees should be done later 

 than October 25th to 30th, unless it is a pos- 

 itive necessity, north of 40 degrees north 

 latitude." 



"I think I understand this part. Now, 

 how shall I do the uniting?" 



"The plan which I have used of late 

 years is the one which I prefer to all others, 

 after having tried them all, and is as fol- 

 lows: When the time comes to unite I select 

 the hive having the queen I wish to retain, 

 as the one to contain the united colony. I 

 now open this hive and take out what combs 

 I think will be necessary, leaving those con- 

 taining the most honey, when those which 

 are left, being sure the queen is on one of 

 them, are placed next one side of the hive, 

 as closely together as I wish them to be 

 left for wintering. The bees which are on 

 the combs to be taken away are now shaken 

 off so they can run back into the hive, 

 which, after closing, is left as it is, ready to 

 receive whatever is to be united with it. I 

 next go to the one or more colonies which are 

 to be united with this one; and if they have 

 a queen she is hunted out and disposed of 

 as I desire, when all the frames are remov- 

 ed but two or three, in accord with the num- 

 ber of bees there are in this colony." 



"Which combs do you leave this time?" 



"The combs left each time are usually 

 those having the most honey in them, so 

 that the united colonj'^ may have as much 

 honey as possible, for it would be a rare 

 thing for such colony to have too much hon- 

 ey." 



"Do you fix these combs as you did those 

 in the first colony?" 



"No. These two or three combs are now 

 spread apart from 1 to 1?2 inches, and plac- 

 ed in the center of the hive, when the hive 

 is closed and the bees shaken ofl: the combs 

 taken out, so they can run in with those 

 left on the spread-apart combs. I also fix 

 any others that are to be united, in the same 

 way, in some cases putting as high as four 

 or five in with the one having the queen, 

 but not usually more than one, two, or three, 

 according to the number of bees each con- 

 tains." 



"How long do you leave them thus?" 



"I now wait till some cool, cloudj', raw, 

 windy day, or some morning when there 

 has been a frost the night before, or nearly 

 so, when I am ready for the uniting, which 



