AUSTRALASIAN BEE MANUAL 91 



then be easily thrown out of the box. In a short time 

 the bees will be all in the hive, when it can be lowered on 

 to the bottom board, allowing an entrance of about eight 

 or nine inches. In hot weather the hive will be the better 

 of a temporary shade for a while, a folded sack across 

 the cover will do. 



HIVING BY CATCHING THE QUEEN. 



I have hived scores of swarms, or rather made the bees 

 hive themselves, by watching for, and catching the 

 queen, as she was leaving the hive and caging her. 

 When the swarm was circling in the air, I removed the 

 parent hive to a new stand and put the new one in its 

 place, the bees in a short time discover the queen is not 

 with them and back they come to the old stand and into 

 the new hive, when the queen can be liberated at the 

 entrance to run in with them, or can be put in under one 

 corner of the mat. The new hive may remain where it is, 

 or be removed when the bees are all in, and the old one 

 be brought back. 



I shall refer to hiving with clipped queens in the 

 chapter on Queen Rearing. Patent swarm catchers 

 that are figured in some bee books, so far as my experi- 

 ence goes, are of little or no use, and not worth the 

 trouble of making or describing. 



PREVENTION OF SWARMING. 



The most effectual method for the prevention of 

 swarming is to give ample working room in the hives at 

 all times during the swarming season, and to see that 

 they are well ventilated. Extra working room is given 

 in the first place by adding one or more stories to the 

 hive, and later on by the use of the extractor, and in the 

 case of raising section honey, removing the sections 

 directly they are finished, and substituting empty ones. 

 Abundant ventilation may be secured in hot weather by 

 pushing the hive forward until the front overlaps the 

 alighting board a couple of inches, and if need be raising 

 the cover a little. It should be remembered that the extra 



