58 SOUTHERN JBEE CULTURE 



start cells again ; and by constantly doing this they will often give up the 

 notion of swarming and take to the field to gather honey. But in going 

 through the hives the supers should be removed gently, and no more smoke 

 used than possible, and the covers not removed at all, so as not to disturb 

 the bees in them any more than possible. Sometimes bees will swarm with- 

 out starting queen-cells, leaving this for the remaining bees to do; so we 

 have greatly reduced swarming, but not controlled' it ; and if it is not reduced 

 enough, clip about a third of one of the queen's wings oflf, so she can not fly 

 out with the swarm, and it will return; but the queen may be lost unless it 

 is very convenient for her to crawl back up into the hive; then if she does, 

 after the swarm comes out two or three times it will return and may ball 

 her to death because she did not go out with it. 



Now, this nearly controls swarming ; but sometimes they will wait a few 

 days until a young queen hatches in the hive, and then comes out with her, for 

 her wings must not be clipped until she has taken her wedding-trip, during 

 which she is mated. 



Clipping queens' wings to control swarming is a bad practice unless all 

 other means possible to control it fail, for often a swarm will remain clus- 

 tered out for some time before it returns, and other swarms may issue and 

 join them, and all return to one hive and give no little trouble; or a strolling 

 queen about the apiary may join them, and all take to parts unknown, and 

 thereby a great loss is sustained by the bee-keeper. 



THE PRODUCTION OF COMB OR SECTION HONEY. 



The production of comb honey in sections is the most common way of 

 securing honey here in the South in modern hives. This is the most tedious 

 way of saving honey. It involves more work and thought on the part of the 

 bee-keeper, ancf also the bees, for it requires no little work and inducement 

 to get the bees to storing honey in the sections, and then it is tedious work 

 for them to manufacture the little delicate blocks of honey. 



In order to get the best results, colonies must be as strong as possible, 

 or brought up to the honey-flow ; then the queen should be occupying all the 

 comb in the brood-apartment, or the comb full of young bees in all stage? 

 of development. There being no room below, the bees will carry the sur- 

 plus honey above and store it in the sections. The supers (top stories) should 

 be prepared as well as possible so as to help the bees. Each section should 

 be filled with surplus foundation, and well attached to it, for this is a help 

 to them, and a great inducement; while the little narrow starter attached 

 to the top of the section is not much of either. L know that the narrow starter 

 IS most commonly used, but it is poor economy in bee-keeping. Two supers 

 should thus be prepared for each colony during the winter; then in the 



