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133 



Oetting; Worker-Comb Built 

 a New Colony. 



bj 



Written for the American Bee Journal 



Query 615.— With starters in the brood- 

 frames, live cells deep, what should be the 

 most favorable conditions to assure the build- 

 ing of worker-comb by a newly-hived swarm ? 

 —Maine. 



of honey. — H. D. Cut- 

 proliflc queen. — 



A good flow 



TING. 



A good, fertile, 

 Dadant & Son. 



Thej- build every time, with me. I 

 put sections with some comb above. — 

 A. J. Cook. 



It should have a young and prolific 

 queen.— M. Mahin. 



Warm, pleasant weather, with plenty 

 of honey in the fields. — Mrs. L. Har- 

 bison. 



The best is to put in full sheets of 

 comb foundation. It is poor economy 

 to use starters. — P. L. Viallon. 



Most favorable conditions : A big 

 swarm, with a young, vigorous, laying 

 queen, and a plentiful yet moderate 

 flow of honey.— J. P. H. Brown. 



I doubt if I can get my bees to do it. 

 Hutchinson's plan works pretty well 

 with him. — C. C. Miller. 



Plenty of storing-room in full drawn 

 combs above, and a queen excluder 

 between, might accomplish this end. — 

 J. M. Hambaugh. 



Contract to five frames, giving plenty 

 of section room above, and using a 

 queen-excluding honey-board under 

 the sections. — G. M. Doolittle. 



A contracted brood-chamber, a vig- 

 orous queen of the current year's rear- 

 ing, and honey receptacles above con- 

 taining comb or partlj--drawn founda- 

 tion, from which the queen is ex- 

 cluded. — R. L. Taylor. 



1. The super on above, with a queen- 

 excluding honej'-board between. 2. A 

 queen vigorous enougli to keep the 

 cells full of eggs as fast as constructed. 

 — Eugene Secob. 



" The most favorable conditions 

 should be " just such as will insure the 

 desired result. A warm atmosphere, 

 a good honey-flow, and a young queen 

 are very favorable. — A. B. JIason. 



This requires too much of an an- 

 .swer for this department, it seems to 

 me, and I have never seen it answered 

 so fully and completely as in Hutchin- 

 son's book, on "The Production of 

 Comb Honey." — James Heddon. 



The conditions most favorable are, 

 that the honey-flow should be light. 



and that comb will not be built faster 

 than the needs of the queen require. 

 In other words, if built for the queen, 

 it will be worker size ; if built for stor- 

 age, it will be storage or drone comb. 

 — J. M. Shuck. 



A good honey-flow is the prime re- 

 quisite. The only plan is to watch for 

 the drone-comb, and cut it out when 

 started. If the bees become too per- 

 sistent, use full sheets of worker foun- 

 dation.— Will M. Babnum. 



Just what would be " the most favor- 

 able conditions" in any case. As to 

 conditions, it makes no diflference 

 whether there are starters or full 

 frames of foundation. A large swarm 

 with a good hone3'-yield will give good 

 results. The queen should not be over 

 2 years old, in the case asked about. — 

 J. E. Pond. 



Some drone-comb will surely be 

 built when starters only are used. The 

 only thing that will discourage drone- 

 comb building is, to put the frames If 

 inches, or less, from centre to centre. 

 Some drone-comb will be built, and if 

 you do not wish to go to the expense 

 of foundation, you can cut out the 

 drone-comb, and tit in pieces of worker- 

 comb instead. — C. H. Dibbeen. 



1. A swarm with a strong, j-oung 

 queen, capable of laying all the eggs 

 that she can find room for. 2. Do not 

 give too many frames at a time. But 

 as nearly all swarms are the result of 

 a desire on the part of the worker bees 

 to supersede old or otherwise weak 

 queens, the only safe plan to get good 

 solid worker-combs is, to fill the frames 

 full of foundatton. — G. W. Demaree. 



I prefer the tin separators to all 

 other materials. — P. L. Viallon. 



Yes. Tin rusts, and the perforations 

 in wood are not reliable. — R.L.Tayxob. 



I think not, but I have never tried 

 it. — Mrs. L. Harbison. 



I have never tried it for the purpose, 

 but I have grave doubts of its being 

 any better.— J. P. H. Brown. 



No. Wood is the cheapest, and 



M. 



fortunately 

 Shuck. 



the very best.- 



Good honey weather, and a profuse 

 supply of nectar are some " condi- 

 tions " not to be despised. A good 

 queen is always an essential " condi- 

 tion." — The Editor. 



Perforated-Zinc F§.Tin or Wood 

 for Separators. 



It is probably better than tin. For 

 loose separators, hardly enough better 

 than wood, to pay extra cost. — C. C. 

 Miller. 



No ; perforated separators have no 

 disadvantages e.xcept in theory. — 

 James Heddon. 



There would not be but little difl'er- 

 ence if the tin and wood were per- 

 forated. — H. D. Cutting. 



I do not think that it would. In fact 

 I do not think that perforated separa- 

 tors of any kind are of any value as 

 compared with unperforated. Besides, 

 zinc would be too thick and clumsy. — 

 J. E. Pond. 



I do not know. I never used sep- 

 aratoi's, and I do not expect to. I can 

 crate my honey without. I put the 

 sections in the crate in the order they 

 were when in the hive, and I have no 

 trouble. — M. Mahin. 



I have never tried it for separators ; 

 but I think I can say in advance that 

 it will not do at all. But if it would 

 do even better than tin or wood, its 

 present cost would be in the way of its 

 extensive use. I prefer tin for separa- 

 tors, though I have seen very nice 

 wood separators. — G. W. Demaree. 



Zinc may be better than tin for sep- 

 arators, but its cost is more ; perfora- 

 tions are of no particular advantage, 

 however. — The Editor. 



Written for the American Bee Journal 



Query 616.— Would perforated-zinc be any 

 better than tin or wood for separators ?— T. 



No. — Will M. Babnum. 



I do not know. — J. M. Hambacgh. 



I prefer the tin. — G. M. Doolittle. 



I have never tried it. — A. B. Mason. 



I never have tried it. — Eugene 

 Secor. 



I do not know. 

 J. Cook. 



It will do, but it is more costly. — 

 Dadant & Son. 



No, I do not think that it would be 

 anj- advantage whatever, and it costs 

 more. — C. H. Dibbebn. 



Some say yes. — A. 



CouTention Notices. 



ZW There will be a meetlnK of the Susquehanna 

 County Bee-Keepers' Association at the Court House 

 In Montrose. Pa., on Saturday, May 4. 1«8«, at lu a.m. 

 B. M. Seelbt, Sec. 



J^y" The DesMoines County, Iowa, Bee-Keepers' 

 Association will lioM its annual convention in the 

 Court House at Burlington, nn April I3:i. lAS-i, at 10 

 a. m. All bee-lteepers are Invited. John Nau. Sec. 



jy The 1 Ith annual session of the Texas State 

 Bee-Keepers' Association will be held in the apiary 

 of W. U. GrahHui, of Greenville. Hunt Co.. Tax., on 

 May 1 and i', ihm!). All bce-lieepcrs are invited. The 

 last mectintjwas held here last May. and wa.s the 

 best ever held. So we look f<irward to a ii<iod time 

 next May. A cordial welcome and hospitality will 

 be tendered to all who come. G. A. WILSON. Sec, 



A Ilonie Market for honey can be 

 made by judiciously distributing the 

 pamphlets, " Honey as Food and Medicine." 

 Such will create a demand in any locality at 

 remimeratlve prices. See list on the second 

 page of this paper. 



