PROTECTION FROM WIND 237 



brood-rearing will commence in due season in spring. Colonies 

 with failing queens are likely to be so badly weakened before 

 their true condition is discovered in spring that they will be 

 worthless or nearly so. 



Practical bee-keepers look very carefully after the queens 

 in making winter preparation. Some apiarists re-queen all 

 colonies every year to insure only young queens. This method 

 results in the destruction of many valuable queens, however. 

 It is a common practice to re-queen every other year, thus keep- 

 ing the queens for two years, while others keep a record of every 

 colony and only replace the queens when they show signs of fail- 

 ing. If bees are on straight combs in movable frame hives, as 

 they must be for profitable care, it is an easy matter to remove 

 the old queen. She must always be removed before a new queen 

 is given. Otherwise the bees will destroy the newcomer. Queens 

 are for sale by numerous queen breeders who will supply them 

 from April to October. Directions for introducing: them come 

 with the little cage in which they are mailed. This subject is 

 further considered in Chapter VII. 



Protection from Wind.— Not all of wintering lies in getting 

 the colonies through the winter. It is equally important that 

 they come through in such condition as to build up early, in order 

 that every colony be very populous at the beginning of the honey 

 flow. The changeable weather of early spring must be consid- 

 ered and some protection be provided against the chilling winds 

 of this season. As soon as warm days come, the queens will 

 begin to lay in earnest. Within three days from the time the 

 eggs are laid the larvae hatch and require a very warm and even 

 temperature. Baby bees are even more sensitive to unfavorable 

 conditions than baby chicks. It often happens that a few warm 

 days will result in the appearance of considerable quantities of 

 brood in the hive. A sudden drop in the temperature makes it 

 difficult for the bees to keep the brood nest sufficiently warm, with 

 the result that a part of the brood is likely to be chilled and 



