1898 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



167 



SCALE-COLONY RECORDS ANALYZED. 



How Colonies are Affected b} the Flow, whether 



Free or Scant ; Wax Secretion ; Comb and 



Extracted ; Comparative Yields. 



Some Interesting Results. 



BY R. C. AIKIN. 



For several years my honey flows have been 

 poor. My average yield in ISUti was 10 pounds 

 or less; 1S9") and 18il4. somewhere about 20 to 

 2') pounds. The lSi)4 flow extended over a 

 period of 47 days, showing a gain of 70 poitnds. 

 This was not a net gain of ripened honey, the 

 total being obtained by adding the daily gains, 

 which, of cotirse, would shrink much in 

 process of ripening. One day only did the 

 gain reach the 6 pound notch ; and the two 

 next best days, 4>^ each. 



The flow for 1S9-') lasted 27 days, making a 

 gain of 70 pounds as against the same ntiniber 

 of poimds in the 47 da^'s the preceding year, 

 while in 189(1 the time was 2() days with a 

 total gain of 'i'.^ pounds. Notice that the 18r4 

 flow gave a total gain of 7<> pounds, but was 

 extended over a period of 47 days, very few of 

 those days going over ;> pounds, the whole 

 average being only about 1 72 per day. This 

 gave very unsatisfactory super work. While 

 the surplus was not far from 20 pounds, it 

 came in so slowly that even strong colonies 

 could scarcely be induced to work sections, 

 many colonies not doing any thing in them. 



I want here to call attention to the effect of 

 such a flow on different colonies. First com- 

 pare two general classes — those for extracted 

 ard those for comb. The extracttd-honey 

 colonies having full sets of combs and free 

 access to them, the storing would be done 

 largely in the extracting-combs, the brood- 

 combs thus relieved of pressure being filled 

 with brood. The limited quantity of honey 

 coming in, together with the great amotint of 

 bees and surplus 100m, brings about a condi- 

 tion favoring not only a less number of combs 

 containing honey in the brood-chamber, but 

 also a thin, lank, or lean condition of these 

 combs. Just see how easy it would be for a 

 beginner to get almost the entire gatherings 

 of a colony into the surplus; and the smaller 

 the brood chamber the less honey left in it. 

 Here, then, are two important factors that 

 ought not to be lost sight of, though usually 

 they are overlooked; viz., the great amount of 

 brood and the leanness of the combs, because 

 there is nothing to induce close filling, there 

 being abundance of room above. 



The comb-hone}' colony has a very different 

 condition to contend with, sections being 

 given with starters only, or ftill sheets of foun- 



dation. The inducement to occupy surplus 

 arrangements may be summed up in this or- 

 der : First, ready-built combs ; second, large 

 sheets of fotmdation as in extracting or brood 

 frames ; third, sections with full sheets of 

 foundation ; and fourth, sections with starters 

 only. If honey is coming in we may expect a 

 reasonable sei ration of wax; yet the flow being 

 so very light there is very little indticement to 

 start camh-building in a new place. There is, 

 however, plentv of wax secreted to build any 

 comb needed; but the outlook being so poor, 

 this wax is used in lengthening the cells in 

 the brood-combs rather than building in sec- 

 tions, so the light daily gain is crowded into 

 the brood-combs. 



There, friends, don't you see how easy it is 

 to get stirpltis extracted when you would not 

 get surplus comb honey, or that your extract- 

 ed may exceed in cjuantity your comb, even 

 though not one pound more was gathered by 

 those run for extracted over those run for 

 comb ? This brings in the question of wax 

 secretion and cost of comb-btiilding — a cpies- 

 tion upon which I am fotxnd upon the minori- 

 ty side. I am not prepared to make a positive 

 statement that wax secretion is either volun- 

 tary or involuntary ; but I suspect that it is a 

 little of both. I believe (and think I know) 

 that wax is secreted when there is a prospect 

 of its being needed, and always more or less 

 at all times when honey is being gathered. 



In that 47 days' flow in 1894, where the 

 average daily gain was just about 1 ;-2 pounds, 

 I did get more extracted per colony than comb, 

 but also starved a lot of the extracted-honey 

 colonies in winter, and had to feed many hun- 

 dred pounds in spring. The comb-honey col- 

 onies could scarcely be induced to work in 

 sections, except where bait-combs were. I 

 put bait-combs in many supers, some in the 

 center, some in the corners, some on one side, 

 and .'•onie on one end. No matter where I 

 put the bait-combs in the super, they ( and 

 usuallv they only) were filled. 



I have been making compaiisons as of one 

 apiary or part of an apiary run for extracted, 

 as against a similar lot run for comb. The 

 work of individual colonics will, however, 

 somewhat modify the results. If a colony run 

 for extracted be very weak, or if the queen 

 from any cause does not lay freely during the 

 flow, the disposition will be increased to put 

 honey into brood-combs. Hence it will be 

 seen that a very strong colony with a vigorous 

 queen laying freely during the flow may 

 occupy sections, and store there. I have seen 

 such cases, once the colon}' bting started in 

 the sections, almost the entire amount of 

 stores gathered being put into the sections, 

 while beneath was a great mass of brood, 

 which proves my theory that there is no lack 

 of wax secretion with which to build the 

 comb; but the gain, being very slow, will not 

 induce a disposition to comb-building. The 

 same colony run for extracted would have 

 the same conditions in a greater degree. 

 With these very slow honey-flows it is almost 

 impossil)le to induce b;es to build comb, hence 

 the great tendency to store in brood-nest when 

 stort-combs are not given. 



