274 FIFTY YEARS A:M0NG THE BEES 



FIXAL TAKING OFF OF SECTIONS. 



When the time comes that the bees are expected to 

 do no more work in the sections, whether that be im- 

 mediately at the close of the clover harvest or later, the 

 supers with their sections are all brought home and piled 

 up in the honey-room. On some accounts it is better if 

 the sections can be taken out of the supers at once and 

 taken care of, and on other accounts it is better they 

 should stand for some time. It is a very difficult thing 

 to scrape the bee-glue from sections while the weather is 

 still hot, and as disagreeable as it is difficult. There may 

 be some unsealed cells of honey in the o'/.ter cells of some 

 sections, and this will have little chance to evaporate if 

 it is thin, after the sections are in the shipping-cases. So 

 the sections are likely to stand for some Lime in the supers 

 after all are taken ofif, being blocked up as in Fig. T9. 



FUMIGATING SECTIONS. 



Formerly it was necessary to fumigate the sections 

 with sulphur after they were brought into the house, i"he 

 fumigation being repeated two or three weeks later. I 

 suppose I should now prefer bisulphide of carbon to 

 sulphur for fumigation, but for several years I have not 

 found it necessary to fumigate. Formerly the larvae of 

 the bee-moth would make bad work if fumigation were 

 omitted, and sometimes in spite of it, but now there is 

 no trouble. I don't know what makes the difference, un- 

 less it be that formerly there was so large a per cent of 

 blaok blood in my bees. 



When the time does come for taking the sections all 

 out of the suiters, the work is gone at in earnest and con- 

 tinued until all the nnrketable sections ?re in their ship- 

 ping-cases ready for market. Tt will be understood that 

 all supers taken off before the last, have been handled as 

 heretofore mentioned, the marketable sections having all 

 been piled up in the honey-room and the others returned 

 as "go-backs," and the last lot taken off' will consist of 



