Septcniber, I!t(i7. 



American Hee Journal 



you should invest a dollar or so in a 

 good text-book on bees and a b<'f- 

 papcr. 



Some Swarming Experiences 



Cnndiicted by EM.MA M. WILSON. Marenijcp. 111. 



Bees Refusing to Worl< in Comb- 

 Money 5upers 



Miss Wilson: — I have just read in 

 your department of the American Bee 

 Journal the account of 2 colonies of 

 very cross Italian bees that would not 

 work in comb-honey supers, as related 

 by Miss Elsie A. Cutter. I do not know 

 that I can suggest any way to overcome 

 the crossness complained of, except by 

 the use of brimstone or a change of 

 queens, but I think I can tell Miss Cut- 

 ter how to get the bees at work, but 

 not in comb-honey supers. 



I had a very strong colony this sea- 

 son that refused to work in sections day 

 after day, when other colonies of like 

 strength were storing rapidly. I thought 

 if they would not work in sections I 

 would try to get them to work in some- 

 thing more to their liking, and so put 

 on another hive-body filled with drawn 

 combs. This seemed to take away all 

 excuse for laziness, and the bees went 

 immediately to work in this upper 

 story. 



If one does not want the home of the 

 colony established in this upper story 

 he can, after a few days, put an excluder 

 between the two hives, taking care that 

 the queen is in the lower one. It is 

 better that the bees be at work even if 

 they do not work just where one wants 

 them to. 



I note that Miss Cutter says she gave 

 her bees extracting supers, and that 

 the bees would not work in them. It 

 would be of interest to me to know 

 whether she put an excluder under the 

 extracting super. It seems almost in- 

 credible to me that a strong colony in 

 the midst of a good honey-flow, and 

 with a brood-chamber full of brood and 

 honey, should refuse to extend their 

 work in an upper story full of empty 

 combs, if there were no hindrance in 

 the shape of a queen-excluder. If the 

 excluder is kept on until brood is found 

 in the upper combs, and then inserted 

 it is most likely that the work will be 

 continued above. If I had a colony that 

 would not work under such circum- 

 stances, I would find the queen and cut 

 of? her head at the earliest opportunity, 

 and give the colony another queen. 



I will here remark that I have a high 

 regard for the working qualities of hy- 

 brid bees. It is my practice to intro- 

 duce a number of pure Italian queens 

 into the apiary every year. 



Leon, Iowa. Edwin Bevins 



Thank j'ou, Mr. Bevins. for your sug- 

 gestions. I think your plan would work 

 in most cases; I would have said in all 



cases, if Miss Cutter had not said that 

 she failed to get them to work. Your 

 plan is the same as the one used some- 

 times in our apiaries, with 'the exception 

 that we put the excluder on at the 

 time we put the upper story on, but we 

 always place a frame of brood in the 

 upper story to induce the bees to go to 

 work at once. I think you will find 

 that in that case the bees will go to 

 work just as quickly, and it has the 

 advantage of being all done at one 

 nperation. 



I am inclined to think that the 

 queen's head would come off in this lo- 

 cality if she could not be induced to 

 work in sections. 



Trained Nurse as Bee-Keeper 



De.^r Miss Wilson : — Will I be in- 

 truding, if I ask you to send a thought 

 in my direction? 



My work for some years has been 

 that of trained nurse, but with the ad- 

 vice of my physician, I am giving it 

 up. and it is essential that I engage 

 in some other line of work not quite so 

 wearing on the nerves, and I have been 

 considering and reading up a little on 

 the bee-industry, thinking that possibly 

 next spring I might engage in the work, 

 if there is the least possibility of suc- 

 cess. Will you kindly give me your 

 opinion regarding this, and also the 

 amount of money a beginner should in- 

 vest ? Illinois. 



There is no question but bee-keeping 

 is a splendid occupation for a nervous 

 woman, but there are many things to be 

 considered before advising to embark 

 in bee-keeping as an occupation. 



There are women, and women. Not 

 every woman will make a success of bee- 

 keeping. There must be a liking for 

 the business. Of course, you can't tell 

 until you have tried it. To make any 

 considerable outlay until you have tried 

 it would be reckless; best get 2 or 3 

 colonies to begin with. You can get a 

 whole lot of experience out of 2 or 3 

 colonies, and a whole lot of fun besides, 

 and gradually grow up into the busi- 

 ness, making the bees pay their own ex- 

 penses, which is much the better way 

 of doing, for if you can't make a few- 

 colonies pay, you surely can not a large 

 apiary. This may seem like a slow way 

 of doing, but in time you will come to 

 think it is the best way, as only a very 

 small outlay is necessary to begin with, 

 for a colony of bees can be bought at 

 somewhere from $5 to $10. Besides this. 



1 am quite prepared to agree with Dr. 

 Miller, that swarming is not a very 

 delightful experience, and I have been 

 wrestling with it in great shape this 

 summer. Now, don't anybody say, 

 "That's your Carniolan's." I can't real- 

 ly see that they arc bigger sinners than 

 the others in this case, at least. But 

 I have noted one thing: When you find 

 a hive where the bees have refused to 

 enter the sections — where every avail- 

 able spot in the brood-nest is crowded, 

 and out they come — these are not Car- 

 niolans. 



It seems to me as if everything in 

 the yard, with one or two exceptions, 

 was bound to swarm, and more than 

 once, if allowed. 



I read of Dr. Miller's piles, and gaily 

 1 reared a pile to see the bees pour out 

 later, as it would seem by the bushel 1 



".A queen of the present season's rear- 

 ing will rarely swarm," but they are at 

 it none the less. It goes without say- 

 ing that there is plenty of honey com- 

 ing in. 



While swarming in general does not 

 delight me. there was a swarm today 

 that did. I must tell you about it. 



In the foreground of the picture may 

 be seen a hive of peculiar shape and 

 distinguished appearance, which I call 

 "The White House." It is a hive con- 



Apiary of Mrs. Amos. 



taining 10 closed-end frames. 10.XI2 

 inches in size. By all odds the bees 

 ought to have wintered in that hive, 

 but they did not last winter. It is the 

 onl}' hive now standing in my yard 

 containing empty combs — at least. I 

 might so have written yesterday. I 

 have been intending to put bees in it 

 rather late in the season. I did rtot 

 want them in early as the hive lacks 

 the tiering-up opportunity the others af- 

 ford. 



Now, mark what happened. A swarm 

 was hived yesterday. Today I saw it 

 sailing out again into space, and I 

 thought, "Now that's to do over again." 



Not much ; those delightful bees only 

 circled a few times and went pouring 

 into the portico of the white house! 



I said to myself, "I must have out a 

 decoy or two right ofT, If bees will 

 single out the only empty hive in the 

 yard, and vote that it is a good place 



