276 



AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL 



May 3 1900. 



new colony, thus throwingf nearly all the force into the 

 swarm, which will be in excellent condition for working in 

 the supers, no signs of swarming, and working vigorously. 

 The old colony, by being changed from one side to the 

 other whenever it shows signs of swarming, has the swarm- 

 ing element removed, and supplanted by bees which have 

 no inclination to swarm ; thus both colonies will become 

 extra strong, and will work with a vim and vigor, and vic- 

 tory is sure to be ours. By this method we have doubled 

 our number of colonies, and all are working just where we 

 want them. 



" But now we have as many colonies as we desire to 

 keep, and we can not follow this plan the next spring," 

 some will say. This is only half the plan, and now we are 

 at the close of the honey season with just twice the number 

 of colonies that we intend to winter. Each pair of hives is 

 now examined, and one queen is destroyed, which should 

 always be the inferior one, if there is anj- choice between 

 the two. Here we can always find a loop-hole to get rid of 

 any inferior stock, or if all are choice many can be sold by 

 advertising in the fall at a low price. 



The queenless colony could be left in this condition for 

 at least two days, and then set on top of the other hive 

 with a bee-escape board (with escape removed) between the 

 two stories ; in a few days the colonies will be safely 

 united. The bees will remove the honey thru the hole in 

 the board to the combs below, where they can get at it 

 more readily during the winter. 



After the 21st day after the queen was removed, all bees 

 will be hatcht, and the extra set of combs may be lifted 

 from the hive and stored away, ready to receive a swarm 

 again the coming spring, and the colony given the final 

 preparation for winter. 



In this way SO colonies, which might need feeding to 

 carrj- them safely thru the winter, can be safely united and 

 wintered when reduced to 25, and all the expense of feed- 

 ing, and half the work of winter preparation be saved. 



This plan of controlling increase may be modified by 

 dividing instead of allowing the bees to swarm, which 

 would make it more convenient for those who can not be 

 present when swarms issue ; and also the method of uniting 

 may be changed somewhat to suit those who may have a 

 favorite way of their own ; but this would not alter the 

 plan any, which will practically remain one and the same 

 thing. 



It really looks to be very troublesome, and involving 

 much labor when explained in print, but there are some 

 things in this world the actual doing of which is much 

 easier than the explanation of how to do them, and this is 

 one of those things. Try it and be convinced. 



Hamilton Co., Ohio. 



A California Method of Manag-ing- Swarms. 



BY MRS. F. S. A. SNYDER. 



NATURE provides that bees should swarm, so I allow 

 each colony to throw off one good swarm in a season. 

 Have all ready made up and fully equipt one new 

 brood-chamber and as many supers as you have colonies 

 that you think will swarm, and 8 or 10 new frames (which- 

 ever number you use) for each super, with one-half sheets 

 of comb foundation in each frame, the the frames are 

 wanted for the brood-chambers and swarms, as I will show. 

 I use seven for each brood-chamber of foundation, and then 

 place a frame with a little honey and brood out of a full 

 hive in the center for the eighth, to encourage the swarm, 

 and to keep them from absconding. 



Now cut as many pieces of wire-netting just the size of 

 the brood-chamber as you have supers, and two strips of 

 wood one inch in width for the sides, and two strips of wood 

 the same width for the ends, and about the thickness of a 

 shake, or, if you have them, the strips of wood used to raise 

 the brood-chamber from the bottom-board are just what you 

 want, but you will want two instead of one ; for the ends I 

 use a shake cut in strips just the length and width of the 

 ends and sides of the hive. 



My method requires that you should be on the spot and 

 know to a certainty which colony has swarmed. Directly 

 the swarm has issued, and you are sure the queen is with 

 them, remove the old hive from its stand and place the one 

 brood-chamber with 7 frames of foundation, and one with a 

 little honey and brood on the old stand, then place the wire- 

 net separator over it, and then the sticks with one nail in 

 each to keep them in place. Now cut a piece the size of an 

 inch out of the middle of the end stick at the back end of 



the brood-chamber, so the young bees can have an entrance 

 distinct from the swarm to fly from. Now place one empty 

 super on top of the shakes, and above the swarm already 

 hived in the new brood-chamber. Cut all queen-cells out of 

 the old hive, and place the frames, young bees and brood, 

 over the swarm in the empty super. If it is a two-story 

 hive use two supers, and the bees will be that much 

 stronger, and you can use the old brood-chamber with 7 new 

 frames of foundation, and one from a strong hive with a 

 little honey and brood in it for the next swarm, and proceed 

 as before. 



The first hive I fixt this way I did not think the wire- 

 net separator or separate entrance for the young bees neces- 

 sary, consequently the young bees hatcht out and fell among 

 the empty frames or on the bottom-board and perisht from 

 hunger, and were hustled and jostled out half-dead by the 

 hurrying bees of the swarm. 



In from seven to ten days, according to the honey- 

 yield, the queen of the swarm will have laid the frames in 

 the brood-chamber full of brood, and the young bees will 

 all have hatcht out of the frames in the super. They seem 

 to know intuitively that there is a queen in the hive under 

 the wire separator, and make no attempt to build queen- 

 cells ; however, the frames should be lookt carefully over, 

 and if any cut them out. 



Now remove the wire-net and place the empty combs 

 out of the super in the brood-chamber, and the combs full 

 of brood from the brood-chamber in the super, replace the 

 super on the brood-chamber without the net separator, and 

 if there is a good honey-yield 9 or 10 days after, you will 

 find all the bees hatcht out of the frames in the super, and 

 instead of brood each comb will be full of capt honey. 



By this method you will have 40,000 worker-bees in the 

 field, and 60 pounds of honey ready to extract in just 30 

 days after the bees have swarmed ; and you need have no 

 more colonies than you care to increase to ; and with dili- 

 gent extracting you need fear no more swarms. 



Sonoma Co., Calif. 



Feeding- Whiskey in Honey to Bees. 



BY C. P. DADANT. 



MR.DADANT: — Did you ever hear of any one feeding whiskey to bees 

 in honey, and is it true that it renders them bolder and causes them 

 to try to rob other hives ? About a week ago, a man who has three 

 colonies of bees, told me that some strange bees were completely 

 robbing one of his colonies. To-day very probably the same bees were 

 robbing one of mine, and I only have three. I stopt up the entrances, 

 and that belpi some, for my bees are quite strong. 



I was told that when bees were fed whiskey in honey it makes them 

 bold to rob other people's bees. What is your opinion ? Illinois, 



In the first place, one thing which we must establish be- 

 fore all others, is that the bees do not discriminate between 

 the colonies which belong to their owner and other people's 

 bees. It looks as if it might be superfluous to mention this, 

 but I have often heard the remark that Mr. So-and-So's bees 

 were robbing Mr. Somebody's hives, just as if a man could 

 " set " his bees onto another man's apiary as bad boys 

 " set " one dog onto another, or as some of our so-called 

 civilized Christians organize a prize-fight. 



Bees have no sense of morality outside of their home 

 interests. They love their home, they love their own sis- 

 ters, and they love their mother with a reverence which 

 resembles veneration ; and all their actions, whether they 

 be beneficial or injurious to the apiarist, are the result of 

 these feelings, if we may so call their instinct. As a mat- 

 ter of course they love honey, but if they gorge themselves 

 with it, honestly or dishonestly in our eyes, whenever occa- 

 sion offers, it is only with the intention of taking it home 

 and placing it in the cells for the common good of the col- 

 ony. They do not know of anj- friends outside of their 

 home, and all other hives are considered either as enemies 

 or as possible plunder. So they will rob your own bees as 

 well as those of your neighbor, and if whiskey has any in- 

 fluence over them, and makes them more vicious (and it is 

 quite possible that such be the case, since it is the case with 

 human beings), it would only add to the possible trouble in 

 your apiary as well as in your neighbor's. 



I have never heard of strong drink being used in feed- 

 ing bees, except in one instance. I remember reading in 

 L'Apiculteur j-ears ago, of an old-time bee-keeper having 

 fed his bees with bread dipt in honey which had been mixt 

 with a proportion of wine, to cure them of diarrhea early in 

 the spring. Having never tried it I can not say whether 

 this recipe was of any value as a tonic for diseased bees. 



The bee-keeper whose colonies are robbed by other 

 bees, whiskey or no whiskey, can lay the blame on himself. 



