October, 1914. 



351 



lAmoricanlSec Jou rnai]^^^^^^^^^ 1 



time, however, they have been re- and advancing in priec," but I cannot 

 duced to a single story, with half as think of a more appropriate epithet, 

 much material and protection as It is hoped that this explanation 

 formerly, and yet they are sold today will suffice for all who have fallen 

 for p,.2'i in the flat, without any up- into the error of assuming that the 

 per story. Dr. Bonney objects to my sectional hive is a small hive, 

 calling them "tlotoriorating in quality. '^■ririn^ham, Ohio. 



limbs, llicii loo, my work lakes inc away from 

 liome iK-arly all day, so I would lose 9 out 

 of every len swarms were it not for my 

 traps. 



As I am somewhat of a carpenter, I make 

 all my own hives. Some may say I can buy 

 them cheaper, but being in the lumber busi- 

 ness I make them at odd times. Not consid- 

 ering my time, they cost me about (10c each. 

 I make mine with glass sides and wooden 

 panels, which is a lot of help, as you can 

 sec their progress without disturbing them 

 and know when they are ready for supers. 

 Of course. I buy my sections as 1 run for 

 section honey exclusively. Mississii)pi. 



Answers: — I heartily sympathize with you 

 in your struggle against swarming. I've been 

 fighting it for years and am not through yet 

 Cutting out cells does sometimes and some- 

 times not. You can shake swarms, but it is a 

 good deal like letting the bees swarm. Cut- 

 ting out drone comb may help, but will no! 

 stop swarming. If you exchange the old 

 queen for a young one about the time swarm- 

 ing begins, you are safe from swarming till 

 another year. One of the best ways to avoid 

 swarming is to run for extracted honey and 

 use the Demaree plan. Just before swarming 

 lut all the brood but one frame in a second 

 story over an excluder, leaving the queen be- 

 low with one frame of brood and empty combs 

 or frames filled with foundation. 



Geo. S. Crone in His Apiary at Browning. III. 



Dr. Miller*s ^ Answers^ 



Send Questions either to the office of the American Bee Journal or direct to 



Dr. C. C. Miller. Marengo. III. 



He does not answer bee-keeping questions by mail. 



More Honey Without Swarms— Requeening 



1. I started beekeeping last year with a 

 three frame Necleus. This year that colony 

 swarmed three times. I united the second 

 and third swarms. The swarms have each 

 filled over two supers and the old colony has 

 started in the second. Would I have ob- 

 tained more honey if they had not swarmed. 



2. How can 1 know if the virgins mated 

 with their brothers, as I think it is possible 

 — as the nearest bees to me are three miles 

 away over a ridge ? 



3. Should I renueen the prime swarm: 

 When? 



4. How many frames of honey does a 

 colony need to winter outside 



.'). Are Italians the only bees having three 

 yellow rings on the abdomen ? Should the 

 rings be wide or narrow? 



6. What causes the bees to fly out in front 

 of their hive in great excitement for a short 

 time and then return to it without attempting 

 to cluster. Washington. 



Answers: — 1. Very likely you would 

 have had more honey up to date of your 

 letter if the bees had not swarmed. But if 

 the season should continue long and late 

 it might be the other way. 



2. You cannot know, unless it be that 

 your neighbor's bees are different from yours 

 (say blacks, while yours are Italians) and then 

 you may tell by the worker progeny of your 

 young queens. 



3. No, unless it be to give them a queen 

 of better stock, and then you can do it at 

 or near the close of harvest. 



4. They should have the equivalent of 

 thirty pounds of honey, and forty will do 

 n harm. 



5. There are others having there such 

 rings, as the Cyprians. It doesn't matter about 

 width of rings. The distance of one ring 

 from another being the same in all cases. 



6. It is the younger bees coming out for 

 a play spell to take exercise. 



How to Prevent Swarming? 



My bees are hybrids but I am requeening 

 with Golden Italians. My greatest trouble in 

 handling bees is my inability to prevent 

 swarming. I have tried numbers of plans, 

 but still they swarm. Have tried ventilation, 

 both top and bottom, give them plenty of 

 space, go through them in the spring before 

 they start raising young and give them a 

 thorough house cleaning, put on supers when 

 I see they are ready for them and still they 

 swarm. 



The most satisfactory way I have found 

 yet, is to go through them and cut out all 

 queen cells, after they have the swarming 

 fever. I would like to read some other ex- 

 periences on this subject in the American 

 Bee Journal. If I could overcome this one 

 thing, I would be better satisfied to handle 

 bees. Have read some about cutting out 

 drone combs, so am going to try it next 

 spring, and replace with worker comb. 



Each new swarm I take shall be put on 

 frames filled with full sheets of foundation, as 

 heavv a^ they make. l\Tv idea is not to in- 

 crease the number of colonies, but keep the 

 old ones strong and well stimulated. 



T saw in the May number. I believe, where 

 some one said "the up to date" bee man 

 does not use. or hardlv ever uses the oueen 

 tran. I do not see how I could get along 

 without it. T trv to have one for each hive. 

 W*^<»n I sec them getting readv to swarm I 

 ptit on the tran, or else I would lose them ^ 

 p-i rot •-h-':i'~n'^v n' Ic *.o climb ani *■«•■■ f fT 



Miscellaneous Questions 



1. Will hen lice bother bees if one has 

 them in a /lOuse apiary in the second story of 

 a chicken establishment? 



3. In winter if bees run out of honey 

 stores will they feed upon the stored pollen? 

 Is it as good as the honey stores? 



.S. In giving bees candy for winter, would 

 it be all right to pour the candy right in the 

 empty combs while soft, or would it be bet- 

 ter to insert the sheets of candy between the 

 frames? 



4. Win chickens bother bees. 



5. How manv hives do yon think T could 

 keep in my aniary here in Spokane. There 

 are about a dozen good parks where there is 

 a constant blooming of clover, domesticate^ 

 flowers and trees. T live on the edge of 

 one of the parks. There are practically no 

 others here who keep bees. Washington. 



Answers; — 1. I never have heard of bees 

 being troubled by such lice. 



2. No, when the honey is all gone they 

 will starve to death, leaving plenty of pollen 

 in the hive. 



3. It would be all right if you could get 

 the candy into the cells, but I don't think 

 you can. 



4. Generallv not. Some renrt that thev 

 eat drones," and there have been a very few 

 reports of their eating workers. 



.'>. I could hardly make a safe gu^ss. 

 Probably 50: possibly 100, 



Cellaring Bees— Introducing 



1. Is it a good plan to winter bees out- 

 side up to December 1st, in boxes filled with 

 sawdust, 6 inches of sawdust under hives 

 and all around excent in the front, which is 

 covered with very thick rancr. a super con- 

 taining a thick cusion of chaff on ton of each 

 hive and a roof above to shelter the whole 

 from snow or rain from December 1st to 

 March 1st. I will winter them in a cellar 

 according to directions in "Wintering of 

 Bees'* bv A. 1. Root. On March 1st T will 

 put theni in sawdust again as described above 

 and leave them in it throughout the summer, 

 or till next December. 



2. Will it hurt the bees if in Tenuary T 

 give them two combs taken out of hives in 

 August, the cells partly filled with honey but 

 unsealed. Does that unsealed honev riren in 

 the hive when I put it away. The hive is 

 in the house 



3. In order not to ston the nueen from 

 laying. T want to introduce during honey 

 flow, a tested nueen th'ts: Rrnod rh^mbpr i-! 

 divif'el into two c "a! c^r.:; a:*:*\C'i'« 'y a 



