GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



August, 1919 



only believes, but proves it by his crops, 

 that the average strong colony, good enough 

 for most beekeepers, is hardly half as strong 

 as he would have it. Perhaps most beekeep- 

 ers would call him a crank, or crazy on the 

 subject; but when it takes a stepladder to 

 lift off the filled supers of comb honey from 

 some of those triple-strong colonies, one is 

 forced to believe that there is method in his 

 madness. 



With so many bees located hundreds of 

 miles apart, in 70 yards, it is impossible to 

 tiive each individual colonv all the atten- 



brood hatches out, may or may not produce 

 some honey. The one colony with the work- 

 ing force of three queens, one would natural- 

 ly think, would swarm; but the flow from 

 alfalfa is so strong that swarming is cut 

 out. This enormous force of bees from three 

 queens goes right into the comb-honey su- 

 pers — they have to, for where else can they 

 go? As the bees fill the sujiers, empties are 

 added. At the end of the season or at the 

 fourth and last trip the crop is taken off. 



It will be apparent that, when the forces 

 of three colonies are thrown into one at the 



ff^-'m 



Fig. 3. — Figs. 3, 4, and 5 repi-esrent three different apiaries of Mr. Warren after he had thrown the working 

 forces of three colonies into one. Noticei the gaps between the hives. From some of these colonies he took 

 18 cases of comh honey at $5.50 per case, and one can of extracted honey, making a total production of $111 

 per colony, or as Mr. Warren says, a net profit, of $5.50 per minute for help and manipulation in the har- 

 vesting. It sho/uld be remembered that this $111 per cO'lony was the ma.xiraum yields, and was also the 

 product of three queens and three colonies. One-third of $111 would be $37.00 per colony, which, it will 

 clearly be .seen, is not out of the range of possibility. 



tion it requires; nor is it necessary, by Mr. 

 AVarren's system. He, with his helpers, 

 visits his yards three times in the season 

 at intervals of 30 days, spending five min- 

 utes at each hive. At the end of the season 

 a fourth trip is made to remove the honey. 

 The colonies are set off in groups of three. 

 At the approach of the harvest the working 

 forces of all three are thrown into one colo- 

 ny. The average beekeeper, if he owns 

 3,000 colonies, might think that that was an- 

 other crazy notion; but let us see. Probably 

 two of the colonies out of the three will be 

 a little below par. Just before the harvest 

 opens he shakes all the bees of the group in 

 front of the strongest hive, giving all the 

 sealed brood he can to the one colony. The 

 rest of the brood from the two hives below 

 par he gives to the colonies that are run 

 for increase; and these later on, when the 



beginning of the harvest, there will be a 

 two-thirds reduction in the numerical colony 

 count. In other words, 3,000 colonies will 

 shrink down to 1,000. Perhaps some will 

 argue that the 3,000, each with its individual 

 queen, would produce as much honey; but 

 Mr. Warren saj'S not. 



As to whether this plan would work with 

 the average man and in the average locality 

 I have my doubts; but that it works with 

 Mr. Warren in his locality there can be no 

 doubt, if the statement of his men and of 

 the railroad agent who ships the honey can 

 be believed. 



By referring to Fig. 2 you will see how 

 Mr. Warren starts out. The Flor}^ brood- 

 chamber, which he prefers nearly square, is 

 shallower than the regular Langstroth hive. 

 As it is wider than the supers, the space on 

 either side is covered with a strip of wood. 



