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AUSTRALASIAN BEE MANUAL 



ITALIANISING AN APIARY. 



I have already advised beginners for the sake of 

 economy to start with black bees, and as soon as the 

 apiary is lairiy established to Italianise all the colonies. 

 If you have decided to try your hand at queen rearing, 

 then purchase, say, three tested, or select tested, Italian 

 queens from a reliable breeder as early as you can get 

 them in the season, or at any time during the swarming 

 season will do. Introduce them to strong colonies and 

 follow the instructions herein given for rearing queens. 

 If, on the other hand, you prefer to purchase all the 

 queens at tirst to Italianise your stocks, then order, say, 

 two tested and the rest unte^sted queens, and after you 

 have Italian drones flying in fairly large numbers start 

 queen rearing with eggs from your tested queens, and 

 so gradually change the untested queens that turn out 

 to have been mismated to purely mated ones of your own 

 raising, unless you are not particular about having a 

 few hybrid colonies in your apiary. 



CLIPPING queen's wrings. 



The chief object in clipping the queen's wings is to 

 prevent swarms absconding. Much has been said for 

 and against the practice, but it has been largely adopted 

 of late. 



HOW TO clip. 



Fig. 64. CUPPING 



WINGS. 



When clipping, the queen 

 should be held as in Fig. 64, by 

 the abdomen, while the two 

 wings on one side only are clipped 

 off near the stumps. 



On the other hand, if the bee- 

 keeper is not at hand when the 

 swarm issues, the queen, not 

 being able to fly, may get lost by 

 falling on the ground, and so 

 being unable to reach her hive 

 again. A tin fence, i-| in. wide, 

 tacked round the alighting board, 

 and having the upper half- 



