100 BEES. [NO. 



sickly and the produce becomes light. The situation 

 of the hive is to face the South-east ; or, at any rate, 

 to be sheltered from the North and the West. From 

 the North always, and from the West in winter. If 

 it be a very dry season in summer, it contributes 

 greatly to the success of the bees, to place clear water 

 near their home, in a thing that they can conveniently 

 drink out of; for if they have to go a great way for 

 drink, they have not much time for work. 



163. It is supposed that bees live only a year; at 

 any rate it is best never to keep the same stall, or 

 family, over two years, except you want to increase 

 your number of hives. The swarm of this summer 

 should always be taken in the autumn of next year. 

 It is whimsical to save the bees when you take the 

 honey. You must feed them ; and, if saved, they 

 will die of old age before the next fall ; and though 

 young ones will supply the place of the dead, this is 

 nothing like a good swarm put up during the summer. 



164. As to the things that bees make their collec- 

 tions from, we do not, perhaps, know a thousandth 

 part of them ; but of all the blossoms that they seek 

 eagerly that of the Buck-wheat stands foremost. Go 

 round a piece of this grain just towards sunset, when 

 the buck-wheat is in bloom, and you will see the air 

 filled with bees going home from it in all directions. 

 The buck-wheat, too, continues in bloom a long while ; 

 for the grain is dead ripe on one part of the plant, 

 while there are fresh blossoms coming out on the 

 other part. 



165. A good stall of bees, that is to say, the pro- 

 duce of one, is always worth about two bushels of 

 good wheat. The cost is nothing to the labourer. 

 He must be a stupid countryman indeed who cannot 

 make a bee-hive ; and a lazy one indeed if he will 

 not, if he can. In short, there is nothing but care 

 demanded ; and there are very few situations in the 

 country, especially in the south of England, where a 

 labouring man may not have half a dozen stalls of 

 bees to take every year. The main things are to keep 

 away insects, mice, and birds, and especially a little 



