704 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



Heads of Grain from Different Fields 



Getting Rid of Drone Comb; the Purpose of the 

 Follower 



Does lirood comb ever get old? If so, should it 

 be replaced by new foundation ? 



After an extraeting-comb is used repeatedly, 

 should it be changed for a new one ? 



If so, what is to be done with the old comb? 

 On the other hand, are the old combs more valu- 

 able for extracting purposes than they are if 

 "transformed into beeswax? 



If an old comb happens to become a drone comb 

 at a time when worker-cells are urgently needed, 

 can the drone part of the comb be cut out and 

 a piece of worker comb fitted in ? 



A short time ago I purchased five fairly strong 

 colonies. The man who sold them to me is not a 

 beekeeper, having bought the bees with the place. 

 How can I tell whether they are the first or 

 second swarms ? My colonies are all Italian. What 

 'do you think of fig trees for the purpose of shad- 

 ing the hives? I expect to establish my apiary 

 somewhere on the Indian River. 



As I am deaf, please tell me how I can tell 

 whether or not the bees are cross. 



How often should each hive be examined ? How 

 can I tell whether the honey-tlow ceases suddenly 

 •or is decreasing gradually ? 



Do I understand that there are no regular 

 bees in robber-traps? 



Please explain the value of the follower and 

 the division-board. 



Orlando, Fla., Sept. 24. L. P. JONES. 



[If your combs are straight, and if they do not 

 contain an undue proportion of drone-cells, there 

 is no object in cutting them out and replacing with 

 comb foundation unless there has been some dis- 

 ease about your apiary, such as foul brood of 

 •either type. If this is the case, it pays to renew 

 the combs, of course, in order to prevent the 

 disease from breaking out again ; for the germs 

 of the trouble lurk in out-of-the-way places about 

 the comb in small amounts of honey in some 

 ■of the cells, etc. It depends upon circumstances 

 whether all the combs should be renewed at once, 

 ■or whether only a few at a time. If there is no 

 disease, and you are merely wishing to replace 

 crooked or drone comb, you can replace one or 

 two at a time with comb foundation. The best 

 time to do this is in the spring or early summer 

 when the bees are building comb. In this way 

 you do not obstruct the work of the colony to 

 any great extent. If you have a large vat into 

 which you can throw the combs while they are 

 in the frames you can generally get them free 

 from the wires, leaving the wires still in the 

 frames, and then imbed the same wires into a new 

 sheet of foundation. If you have no way of 

 melting the combs out of the frames in this man- 

 ner, you may find it more convenient to cut the 

 wires and then rewire the frames after the latter 

 have been scalded and made otherwise clean. 



An extracting-comb, if it is straight, and free 

 from^ disease, hardly ever needs renewing. In fact, 

 the old combs are tougher and even better than 

 new ones. 



You can sometimes cut out drone-cells and fit 

 in a piece of foundation ; but the bees are likely to 

 build di-one-cells again around the edges of the 

 patch, so if a comb has very many drone-cells it 

 pays to cut it out entirely, melt it up, and re- 

 place with a full sheet of foundation. 



Prom the description of the bees that you 

 bought, we can not say whether they are first or 

 second swarm. About the only way to tell would 

 be to judge of the comparative strengths of the 

 colonies ; for if they completely fill the hives so 

 that the hives are boiling over with bees, as the 

 saying goes, it is probable that they are first 

 swarms or parent colonies that have cast but one 

 swarm. 



Pig-trees would probably be all right for partial 

 shade, although we do not know that we have 

 ever seen them so used. 



If the bees are cross, you can tell very quickly 

 by the way they fly up and attempt to sting 

 when you are handling the combs. 



It depends on circumstances as to how often 

 a colony needs examination ; but ordinarily it 

 should be looked over once in two weeks anv wav. 



to make sure all is right. When the honey-flow 

 suddenly ceases, the bees become much more ir- 

 ritable, and the bees stoij flying into the hives 

 in that industrious manner that they have only 

 when they are gathering honey. 



Rotber-fraps may catch a few innocent bees as 

 well ; but they get the robbers mainly, and pre- 

 vent them from flying. 



The follower in a hive should be used close to 

 the outside frame when there are not the full 

 number of frames in the hive, to prevent the bees 

 from bulging that comb. It is also very convenient 

 when the full number of combs are in the hives, 

 for it is easily removed, and then there is space 

 to pry the other frames apart. If the frames 

 completely filled the hive, it would often be dif- 

 cult to remove them. The follower is also some- 

 times called a division-board. A chaff division-board 

 is a thicker one padded with chalT for use during 

 the v/inter as additional protection. — Ed.] 



The Shaken-swarm Plan; Has it been Abandoned? 

 the Doolittle Method 



As I desire to produce comb honey exclusively, 

 and also to establish an out-apiary soon, I have 

 for some time been studying the best methods for 

 operation, and am very much impressed with the 

 plan given by Doolittle in his "Year's Work in an 

 Out-apiary." But in the bee journals of the past 

 few years, some doubt has been thrown on the 

 shaken-swarm method previous to preparation for 

 swarming. This is Doolittle's strong point, I be- 

 lieve. In view of the fact that he did this work 

 during the years 1905 and 1906, I should like 

 to know if the following years' experience on 

 his part, or, in fact, on the part of any large 

 apiarist, has proven this policy to be • "laid on 

 bed roek." If there are any modifications of his 

 plan as then outlined, please let us hear of them. 



Toronto, Ont., Sept. 16. Chas. E. Hoppee. 



[The shaken-swarm method is just as effective 

 in every way. It is true, there has been less 

 said about it in the bee journals, and possibly 

 that fact might make it appear that no one is 

 using it now ; but, as a matter of fact, we believe 

 that some of the best honey-producers in the 

 country are still using it. It is invaluable to the 

 professional man who has to be away from the 

 bees practically all day , because he can practice 

 it at any time that is convenient — on Saturday 

 afternoon, early in the morning, or in the even- 

 ing when he is at home ; but there is no use 

 in attempting it until the bees have made some 

 preparation looking toward swarming. Mr. Doo- 

 little makes that point quite clear. 



With regard to Mr. Doolittle's having tested out 

 his method during 1905 and 1906, if we re- 

 member correctly he did try it out with practically 

 the same results. But we may say this, that the 

 Doolittle method of shaking swarms can not be car- 

 ried out very satisfactorily unless there is a fall 

 flow like buckwheat. You remember, if you fol- 

 lowed out the method, that Mr. Doolittle arranges 

 to have a large number of combs of sealed honey 

 in the fall. These he carries over until next 

 year, and then gives to the bees in order that 

 they may feel "rich in stores." 



With regard to the question of whether others 

 have tried this same method or not, we may say 

 that we have had a number of reports from those 

 who have tested it ; and wherever there is a fall 

 flow of honey the method seems to work out well 

 in the hands of others as well as those of Mr. 

 Doolittle. In this connection we should be glad 

 to get reports from those who have tested out 

 the Doolittle method of producing comb honey 

 as well as controlling swarming. Surely, during 

 all these years, there must have been a very large 

 number who have tried it, and can, perhaps, now 

 give us some very interesting data. — Ed.] 



Eucalyptus Burned 



Brush fires swept away the eucalyptus forests 

 last autumn all through this district, and ruined 

 the prospects of this season's honey crop, besides 

 burning 15 colonies of bees with abundant stores. 



Hahndorf, South Australia, Aug. 7. J. J. Darby. 



