76 



THE AMERICAN APICULTURIST. 



the beemaster is happy. The beau- 

 tiful snow-white combs, in perhaps 

 hundreds of hives, are daily increas- 

 ing in size, while the purest nectar 

 is sparkling from each tiny cell ; 

 when to his utter disgust the work 

 lags in many hives, and eggs and 

 larva are found in queen cells. 

 Soon a harsh, heavy sound an- 

 nounces that swarming has begun ; 

 hive after hive is left nearl}^ empty 

 of workers and work in sections is 

 entirely neglected, while the honey 

 harvest is swiftly passing away. 

 What is to be done? If we multi- 

 ply colonies it is at the expense 

 of surplus honey unless the season 

 is longer than most of us enjo}'. 

 Mr. Heddon of Michigan gives a 

 method by which he claims nearly 

 all mature bees are secured with 

 the new colony, and surplus stor- 

 ing but slightly interfered with, 

 while the old colony never casts a 

 second swarm. 



I have tried this method very 

 carefully the past season with Ital- 

 ian bees and found about every 

 other colony would cast a second 

 swarm. I think it might work with 

 black bees, as the swarming im- 

 pulse does not seem to be nearly 

 as strong with them as with the 

 Italian race. I have prevented 

 black bees from swarming b}' sim- 

 ply cutting out queen cells ; and 

 again, after casting a swarm, by 

 cutting out all queen cells, mov- 

 ing the hive to a new place and 

 running the swarm into the hive ; 

 they would work on industriously 

 until the close of the season, fin- 

 ishing off their surplus boxes to 

 my entire satisfaction, but Italian 

 bees are not made up that way. 



After many years of experience, 

 and after making a great many 

 experiments with hundreds of col- 

 onies in several yards, tlie way 

 that suits me best is as follows : 

 See that every queen's wing is 

 clipped before the swarming seas- 

 on begins. When a swarm issues, 



pick up the queen ; and, if you wish 

 to save her, cage her witli a few 

 workers, or otherwise destro}^ her. 

 Open the hive from which the 

 swarm came and cut out every 

 queen cell ; this can be done with- 

 out smoke. By this time, the 

 swarm will be ready to return or 

 cluster in some place when it can 

 be returned. Again in eight or 

 nine days open the hive and again 

 remove every queen cell, and at 

 the end of another week give a 

 virgin queen. Black bees will ac- 

 cept a laying queen while Italians 

 as a rule will destroy one under 

 the same circumstances, but they 

 will usually acceptof a virgin queen. 

 If a queen cell nearly mature is 

 given they are quite apt to swarm 

 after she hatches, but if the virgin 

 queen is given as above directed, 

 I do not remember to have had 

 such a hive, out of many hun- 

 dred so treated, attempt to swarm. 

 Again the same season, I fre- 

 quently run these queens into the 

 hive without smoke or other cere- 

 mony, and some years not three 

 per cent will get lost. In other 

 years, perhaps ten per cent may 

 be lost or destroyed, so that a few 

 new colonies should be made early 

 in the season to make up any de- 

 ficiency likely to occur. When 

 the season is quite long more in- 

 crease is admissible, using early 

 swaruis for this purpose. Where 

 the swarms are used for increasing 

 the number of colonies, the hives 

 casting these swarms should have 

 their queen cells removed and vir- 

 gin queens given the same as 

 where the swarm is returned to 

 prevent second swarms. 



The advantages of this system 

 of management are, briefly, that it 

 effectually [)revents increase of 

 colonies beyond the desire of the 

 honey producer ; it leaves only a 

 small amount of brood to be 

 nursed during the greatest yield of 

 honey ; it prevents the maturing 



