326 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



May 1. 



honey best, and shows dirt the least, so I 

 settled on a very dark blue as the best color 

 for the purpose. When I came to repaint 

 them, which is often needed, to keep them look- 

 ing well, I found that ordinary paint dried too 

 slowly in winter to suit me. The cases would 

 seem perfectly dry; but somewhere, in the hand- 

 holes on the lower edges, there would be a 

 little paint that would rub off, and a little of 

 that intense blue paint went a long way. Sol 

 adopted asphaltum varnish. This is very cheap 

 — cheaper than paint — and a couple of coats of 

 it produce a rich glossy black that contrasts 

 well with white honey. 



One of its chief merits is that it dries so 

 quickly that any thing painted with it may be 

 handled in an hour. Its fault is, that it is easi- 

 ly marred: but a coat of it thinned with gaso- 

 line is readily applied whenever necessary, and 

 dries very quickly. Sometimes a little rubbing 

 with furniture polish is sufficient to make it 

 look new again. Carnage black is more dura- 

 ble than asphaltum, but is more expensive. 



If you want to letter or ornament your cases, 

 it may easily be done with a stub pen and thin 

 brown japan. For larger letters a wide shad- 

 ing-pen may be used. Unless you are an expert 

 you will probably find a pen better than a 

 brush. Just before the letters are dry, brush 

 over them a little gold or bronze powder. 



Blue and gold or black and gold make a very 

 pretty combination. Probably a painter could 

 improve on my methods. If he will tell us how 

 to do so, I shall be glad. A very important 

 point in selling honey is to have it look nice, 

 and a neat case helps greatly in this. 



The large retailing cases will do very well in 

 some stores, but most groceries rather prefer a 

 smaller one-story case that may be easily mov- 

 ed around, carried out of doors, or set on the 

 counter or shelves as they prefer. For their 

 convenience the cover should di'op into rabbets 

 instead of being simply laid on top, so that it 

 may be easily kept in place. J. A. Green. 



Dayton, 111., April .5. 



DOUBLING OUR COLONIES, ETC. 



PLAIN DIKECTIONS FKOM DOOLITTLE ON HOW 

 TO INCKEASK NATURALLY AND ARTI- 

 FICIALLY, AND HOW TO SECURE 

 A CROP OF HONEY. 



A correspondent writes, " I have three colo- 

 nies of bees in Root's L. hives, and wish to in- 

 crease them to six this coming season, and se- 

 cure all the honey in sections possible. How 

 shall I proceed?" If the correspondent is so 

 situated that he can allow natural swarming, I 

 would say, put the sections on as soon as the 

 hives are full of bees, and when little bits of 

 new comb are being built here and there about 

 the hive, this showing that new honey is com- 

 ing in from the fields. Now, if the liive is full 

 of bees, and no little bits of comb are being 

 built. I should withhold the sections till I see 

 these bits of comb; forif put on sooner, the bees 

 will be quite liable "to gnaw or eat holes in the 

 foundation given in the sections; for bees seem 

 to have a mania for doing something when they 

 are populous by way of tearing things to pieces, 

 on the principle that " Satan finds some mis- 

 chief still for idle hands to do."' On the other 

 hand, if I see bits of comb being built befoi'e 

 the hive was full of bees, I would withhold the 

 sections till there were plenty of bees in the 

 hive; for if the sections are put on before this, 

 much of the heat required for brood-rearing 

 will go into the sections, thus keeping the col- 

 ony from increasing in strength as fast as it 

 otherwise would. When ssvai'nis issue, set the 



hive to contain the new swarm on the stand 

 occupied by the old colony, moving that to a 

 new location, when the bees are to be hived into 

 the new hive, and the sections transferred from 

 the old hive to the new. In this way the new 

 colony will immediately enter the sections and 

 go right on completing them the same as if 

 nothing had happened. In eight days after the 

 swarm issued, open the old hive, when, as a 

 rule, the young queen will be found hatched; 

 and if so, cut off all the other queen-cells which 

 ■may remain, thus knowing that all after- 

 swarming is done away with. If the cells are 

 cut out on the sixth day, as many recommend, 

 you are not sure that after-swarming will be 

 prevented, for the bees have larvje that are 

 still young enough to be converted into queens, 

 which is often done when we have many after- 

 swarms, only they are a little later in coming 

 than what they otherwise would be. After 

 cutting the queen -eel Is, put the sections on the 

 old colony also, only I would not put on over 

 half of the full capacity for section honey, as 

 this old colony will not be liable to make as 

 much section honey as it would if it had not 

 been moved from its old stand; but both old and 

 new will make more collectively by this mode 

 of procedure than by any other with which I 

 am acquainted. If I could not allow of natural 

 swarming, then I would proceed as above till 

 swarming time arrived, and the colonies were 

 making preparations to swarm, when I would 

 take three combs of the youngest brood in the 

 hive, bees and all, being surn the queen was on 

 one of these combs, and set th( in in a new hive, 

 setting this hive on the old stand and moving 

 the old to a new stand. I would fill out this 

 new hive with empty combs if I had them; if 

 not. with comb foundation, and transfer the 

 sections from the old hive into the new. By 

 leaving five combs of the oldest brood in the old 

 hive, and all the bees which adhei'e to them 

 and the hive, there will still be bees enough 

 adhere to it to fully protect the brood so none of 

 it will chill, as frequently happens by other 

 modes of division, where too many bees return 

 to the old stand. If no queen-cells are started 

 in the old hive at the time of moving it, wait 

 twelve days about cutting out the queen-cells, 

 when we are to proceed as in the other case. In 

 cutting off queen-cells it is well to shake the 

 bees off the combs, otherwise some cells may be 

 missed, in which case swarming will as surely 

 result as it would had all been left on. The 

 above is the way I work an apiary where I wish 

 to double my colonies, and I like the plan much. 

 If the hives used are ten-frame instead of eight- 

 frame, then I would use four with the newly 

 made colony, and leave six in the old hive. 



'•who will prove me avrong?" 



On page 202 I find these words from the pen 

 of E. France: " Young children, and all young 

 living things, are apt to get out as early as they 

 can, and exercise themselves; and would a 

 young bee be contented to stay in the house 

 during its youth and do housework ? I can not 

 believe it. I believe they go out as soon as they 

 are able to do so. They want to go out and 

 see the world — ifs natural. On the other 

 hand, the old bees, like other old folks, would 

 be more inclined to stay at home and do the 

 hou<(nvork. I simply throw these thoughts out 

 as a suggestion. Who will {)rove me wrong?"' 



I am very glad friend France throws this out 

 only as a suggestion; for had he said positively 

 that it was so he might have misled many. 

 Young or old bees maybe made to do almost 

 any work not usually done by such bees, by 

 throwing the colony out of its normal condition, 

 as friend France did by taking the comb away 

 from that swarm as fast as built; but, while 



