FIFTY YEARS AMONG THE BEES 187 



through the rest. When, however, we find one or more 

 queen-cells with an egg in each, then it is time to begin 

 a systematic canvas of all colonies, and to keep it up in 

 all so long as we continue to find queen-cells in any, ex- 

 cept in a case where a colony has already been treated or 

 has treated itself in such way that it need not be expected 

 to swarm. 



COLONIES THAT DO NOT NEED WATCHING. 



In struggling with the swarming problem, there are a 

 few things that may be relied upon with some degree of 

 certainty. A swarm that has been hived in an empty 

 hive this season will not send forth a swarm this year, with 

 rare exceptions. Equally safe from swarming is a colony 

 whose queen has been removed and the colony allowed 

 to rear a new queen, provided only one queen is allowed 

 to mature. Also a colony kept queenless about 10 days 

 and then given a laying queen of the current year's rear- 

 ing. Colonies that do not come under either of these 

 heads will need watching until the time comes when bees 

 have given up starting cells in all colonies. 



LOOKING FOR QUEEN-CELLS. 



We plan to go through each colony about once in 

 ten days to look for queen-cells. I say about once in 

 ten days, for it is not always possible to be exact. It 

 may happen that one or two days in succession will be 

 rainy, and then the ten days become eleven or twelve. 

 Or, it may be that on account of some interference with 

 our work that we can see in advance, we may think it 

 best to shorten the ten days to nine or less. 



Suppose w^e go through a certain colony and find no 

 queen-cell with as much as an egg in it. The next time 

 around it may be in the same condition, and so it may 

 continue throughout the season. In that case there is 

 nothing to be done with that colony beyond the examina- 

 tion every ten days but to let it alone and be thankful. 



