GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



sions ripe queen-cells from our very best 

 stocks; and when there is no honey-flow on 

 we resort to outdoor feeding, and thus our 

 off grades of honey are utilized. All queens 

 ^are given all the room they can occupy by 

 inserting empty combs in their nest ; and 

 .as soon as one well occupies six or eight 

 • combs the colony is again equally divided, 

 .and so on throughout the season. Such in- 

 crease may be distributed around to out- 

 iapiaries at any time during the year. 

 Cordele. Ga. 



THE SWARMING PROBLEM IN THE EAST 



Some of the Common Methods of Control Dis- 

 cussed ; Natural Supersedure During 

 Swarming 



BY J. E. CRANE 



Perhaps to no one subject connected with 

 beekeeping has more thought been given 

 than to the control of swarming. With the 

 production of extracted honey this is com- 

 pai^atively easy. By raising one or two combs 

 of brood into a super of empty combs 

 above the brood-nest, filling their place with 

 good empty brood-combs early in the sea- 

 son, and keeping the colony well supplied 

 \iith. room, there is usually little trouble 

 with swarming. 



It is quite othei-wise with the production 

 of comb honey, for the brood must all be 

 kept below, and the brood-chamber crowd- 

 ed, in order to force the bees into the su- 

 pers. 



Destroying or decapitating a large 

 amount of worker brood has been recom- 

 mended as a sure preventive of swarming; 

 but the practice is too expensive and dis- 

 gusting to be thought of. 



If one opens a large number of colonies 

 week after week he may be surprised to see 

 how many of these will have eggs in queen- 

 cells, and" sometimes young larvae for three 

 or four weeks, and yet never swarm, so 

 evenly are the forces of the hive balanced 

 in favor of swarming or opposed to it. We 

 may take a hint from this, and use all those 

 measures that tend to discourage swarming, 

 such as giving an abundance of ventilation, 

 shade, room for the queen to lay in the 

 brood-chamber, super room for storing sur- 

 plus, with bait sections, as well as the prop- 

 ter manipulation of the supers to stimulate 

 to the utmost the storing instinct. I have 

 also found that it is a decided help to de- 

 stroy drone brood where there is much of 

 it in the hive, or it will sometimes be found 

 where there are many old combs. But after 

 all is done that one can do to discourage 



swarming, if the season is good, honey 

 abundant, and the hives filled with brood, 

 there will probably be many colonies that 

 will prepare to swarm. 



As fast as such colonies are found, 

 prompt measures must be taken. If the 

 colony is strong with a vigorous queen I 

 would shake at once on clean worker combs. 

 If these contain some honey it is just as 

 well ; and if half full of sealed brood I am 

 inclined to think it is even better; but I do 

 not often find the latter. When the bees 

 enter the hive, or before, return to them the 

 supers from the hive they have occupied. 

 The absence of any unsealed brood will 

 most likely cause them at once to give up 

 any desire to swarm; and the half-filled 

 supers will stimulate their storing instincts, 

 and you will have them under control for 

 the season unless the flow of honey is of 

 long duration. 



If you find a colony that is not strong 

 making prejjaration to swarm, do not shake, 

 as it will be of little value if you do, unless 

 you take pains to nurse it and build it up; 

 and even then it may prove to be an un- 

 profitable venture. 



If the queen from such a colony is old or 

 not prolific, the best thing to do is to catch 

 her and destroy her at once. It is not al- 

 ways easy to find a queen during the swarm- 

 ing season ; but if you have a queen sieve 

 it is not usually a long job. Then destroy 

 all sealed queen-cells, and in eight days 

 again destroy all sealed cells, and in an- 

 other se^"en or eight days give a virgin 

 queen. It is well to take from the brood- 

 chamber any combs not occupied with 

 brood, if possible, and to fill up with combs 

 of mature brood. In this way work may be 

 begun in the supers within a short time. 



If I find a colony i^reparing to swarm 

 with a queen of good age, and yet a colony 

 which for some reason may not have a large 

 number of bees, I often take the queen 

 away, with perhaps tv^^ice as many bees as 

 necessary to care for the brood, and place 

 them in a new hive with an empty comb on 

 one side and a comb of honey on the other 

 side of this brood-comb. I set the hive 

 aside, and throw a little gTass or a few 

 weeds oyer the entrance, and it will take 

 care of itself. Most of the old bees will go 

 back; but enough will remain to make a 

 good beginning for a new colony. 



The swarming season is the natural time 

 for the supersedure of old queens, or such 

 as have become exhausted by excessive pro- 

 lificness. Queen-cells are started, and, when 

 of proper age, the colony swarms; and the 

 queen, unable to fly, drops to the ground 

 and is lost. The colony returns to the hive. 



