No. 4.] BEK KKEPING. 85 



hives very largo, aii<l lakiiig' from tliom the surplus honey at 

 the proper time. It was a great step, wo thought, when we 

 discovered how to run a yard for both comb and extracted 

 honey with very little if any swarms, and visit the yard but 

 once a week. The main feature was to get young queens lay- 

 ing in a nuclei, and after putting them in a regular comb 

 honey hive, draw brood from the extracting hive and fill these 

 hives full of hatching broods, putting on a set of sections. The 

 queen being young, this colony would not swarm, but would 

 devote their time to comb honey. There being such an abun- 

 dance of coud)S of brood in the extracting hive at this time 

 they did not feel the loss very much, and it rather discouraged 

 swarming if they had such inclination. AVe now run several 

 apiaries for comb honey exclusively, and by a visit of about 

 once a week lose very few swarms, owing to having all queens 

 clijiped and looking over the brood frames of all colonies 

 likely to swarm during the coming week. If any are found 

 building queen cells they are made to swarm then and there 

 by what is called the shaking off process, which, briefly told, 

 is taking all the brood from the colony and replacing it with 

 frames of full sheets of comb foundation. The brood removed 

 is put in a hive by itself, and to prevent a swarm issuing, the 

 cells are cut later, or, if early in the season, this brood may 

 be divided among three or four weak colonies, to prepare them 

 for the harvest. 



It is quite surprising in some seasons that a yard only five 

 miles away will secure honey on days that another doas but 

 little. By having apiaries four or five miles apart the average 

 yield of the yards is better, for the reason that in a cool season 

 those occupying the valleys seem to produce a larger crop than 

 those along the hills, and vice versa in the warm season. 



It just occurs to me that I have said little in regard to 

 actually handling the bees. I usually handle them without 

 veil or gloves, even on yards where the owners consider it 

 unsafe to dispense with such protection. Some of these men 

 Wieve that I have a preparation that I apply that makes me 

 immune to stings. Such is not the case. It is only by under- 

 standing their likes and dislikes better than their o^vner. 



