1911 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



307 



FIG. 2. — W. H. HABBER CAGING HIS QUEEN-CELLS. 



division was made for increase, and also 

 prevented after-swarming. On the 24th of 

 June these nuclei were carefully examined, 

 and in each the five additional full sheets 

 of foundation had been fully drawn out and 

 filled with brood, and both hives were as 

 strong as full colonies, each queen rivaling 

 her mother in color, size, and prolificness. 

 Both colonies were ready for supers at the 

 last end of the clover-honey flow, with bass- 

 wood and sweet clover following. 



My knowledge of nature has increased 

 fourfold since keeping bees, because my in- 

 terest is drawn toward those plants which 

 furnish the existence for those creatures 

 that are born, not for evil, but for good. 



Rochester, N. Y. 



A BUSINESS MAN'S METHOD OF REARING 

 QUEENS. 



BY W. H. HABBEB. 



In my experience with queen-rearing I 

 have used a combination of different ideas 

 together with some plans of my own, which, 

 so far as I am concerned at least, bring sat- 

 isfactory results. 



I use the artificial queen-cell cups, made 

 by dipping a round stick in melted wax and 

 grafting the larvee into them, and rarely 

 pay any attention to royal jelly or unsealed 

 brood in the queen-rearing colony. My fa- 

 vorite plan is to dequeen the colony, and, 



after the brood is well capped, cut out the 

 cells that have been started and insert my 

 grafted cells. A colony thus prepared, hav- 

 ing lots of young bees, will start from 15 to 



00 cells, which cells, as shown in Fig. 2, are 

 caged at the end of five days, and another 

 set of grafted cells given. About three such 

 groujjs of grafted cells is about all that a 

 colony will stand successfully. I then di- 

 vide up the colony into mating nuclei. 



I do not make use of the very largest col- 

 onies for queen-rearing, as I prefer those 

 moderate in strength. I select five or six 

 combs of brood from strong colonies in or- 

 der to provide young bees that will not be 

 likely to swarm; and after the brood is 

 nearly all hatched I start my queen-cells. 



1 always get fine large cells that produce 

 the very best queens. 



Fig. 3 shows the honey produced in one 

 month's time by a swarm hived on shallow 

 frames June 22. The shallow frames were 

 filled with full sheets of foundation, and on 

 July 22 the super appeared full, so I placed 

 a shallow extracting-super under it. The 

 bees immediately stopped work in the sec- 

 tions, so I removed them, as the honey-flow 

 had become very light, and I wanted the 

 bees to store enough for winter. 



The unsealed sections were practically 

 full of honey; and if the flow had lasted 

 just a little longer they would have been 

 entirely finished. 



Rochester, N. Y. 



