

QEORQE W. YORK, Editor. 



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40th YEAR 



CMCAGO, ILL,, APRIL 12, 1900, 



No, 15. 



A Kansas Apiary— Several Queen Experiences. 



BY SILAS HARTBR. 



THE accompanying- is a picture of my 3-year-old apiary 

 from a beginning of one colony, the second year buy- 

 ing four. How is that for central Kansas ? The pic- 

 ture was taken on Jan. 19. The bees were flying and a few 

 were bringing in pollen. 



It will be noticed that I am in shirt sleeves, and not un- 

 comfortable. My pos- 

 ture would indicate 

 that I have been a la- 

 boring man, and that 

 I am a little round- 

 shouldered, neverthe- 

 less I am enjoying the 

 best of health. The 

 one in the distance is 

 one of my sons, "Will," 

 who will soon graduate 

 from our college here. 

 The trees you see are 

 cherries, and in sum- 

 mer make quite a cozy 

 place for the bees. 



Now, don't think I 

 have a telephone to my 

 apiary — it is only a 

 clothes-line. 



If you won't laugh, 

 I will tell a little of my 

 experience at roasting a queen. One bright morning I re- 

 ceived a nice Italian queen from a breeder in the East, to 

 give to a queenless colony. As the bees and queen in the 

 cage seemed to be a little chilled, I thought I would place 

 them in the sunshine by the window. I left them there for 

 perhaps an hour, when, on my return, to my astonishment, 

 all were dead as a doornail. So another lesson was learned, 

 and quite a loss sustained, as it was early in the 

 season. 



At another time, on receiving a queen I desired to clip 

 her wings, and so opened the cage at the window, thinking 

 all was closed, but to my astonishment the upper window 

 was down a little, and out went the queen. Well, I thought 

 she was gone, but I quickly raised the window and after 

 flying around awhile she flew in. I thought myself more 

 lucky than wise. But another lesson was learned, to be a 

 little more careful. I think this rule should hold good in 

 all our work with bees. 



McPherson Co., Kan. 



NO. 5.— COMB HONEY PRODUCTION. 



Managing Swarming — Strong Colonies Only for 

 Good Section-Work. 



Apiary of Mr. Silas Harter, McPherson Co., Kan. 



BY R. C. AIKIN. 



WHEN swarming begins, what shall be done? What- 

 ever is the method of handling swarms, it should be 

 done in such way as to keep the section-work going 

 right along. The handling of swarms is one of the things 

 I have had only a limited experience in. True, I have had 

 a good many swarms in 25 years of practice, and, compar- 

 ing my experience with that of the average apiarist, per- 

 haps it would not be strictly true to say that I have not had 

 much experience. Here is how it is : 



The first few years after I began bee-keeping I had only 

 fall honey-flows, coming the last of August and first 



of September, generally 

 about a month of flow, 

 and about equally divi- 

 ded between August and 

 September. Late honey 

 harvests do not cause 

 much swarming, and if 

 one is in a location with 

 no early flow, and the 

 main harvest just before 

 frost in the fall, he has 

 indeed a very easy time 

 of it compared with 

 those of us who have 

 the early flow. Just 

 think of having all 

 spring and summer till 

 Aug. 1 to IS to get ready 

 for a honey harvest ! 



That is what I had 

 in my first few years in 

 bee-keeping. 



After this came the white clover flows in June — once it 

 began the latter part of May. I think I am safe in saying 

 that swarming was all of four times greater, and equally 

 more troublesome when my harvest came in June. I prac- 

 ticed hiving swarms back, and sometimes uniting two weak 

 ones, or putting small swarms in with weak colonies, the 

 object being to have strong colonies for section-work. 



To hive a swarm back to where it came from is like try- 

 ing to put a fire out by adding fuel. I cut out cells only to 

 have them rebuilt in very many colonies. Some would re- 

 main content and do good super work, but many would not. 

 Some would stay a few days till new cells were started, 

 then swarm again, and some would come out without wait- 

 ing to build new cells. 



Neither is it satisfactory to hive swarms in with other 

 colonies, unless both the swarm and the bees of the colony 

 to be united be dumpt together off^ the combs. In later 

 years I often mix up bees from several colonies and put all 

 into one hive, and it can be successfully done, and such 



