MAY 1, 1914 



High trees that swarms did not alight on, and why. 



better i-esults can be obtained with less 

 work than with a smaller hive, in so far as 

 extracted honey is concerned. During the 

 season, if you suspect swarming in any col- 

 onies the only way to be sure of the matter 

 is to pull off the supers and examine the 

 brood-nests. Of course, when there are 

 two or tlu'ee full-depth supers on each colo- 

 ny, tliis woirk is easier described than done. 

 However, I find that many are like myself 

 on this question ; for during the height of 

 the season, when one is jumping around 

 about 16 hours of the day, such a thing as 



■going through a whole apiary looking for 

 queen-cells is out of the question. One soon 

 gets to know from external conditions, by 

 the progress being made in supers, and in 

 various other ways, how to diagnose pretty 

 well without tearing into the center of the 

 brood-nest at every visit. We lose very few 

 swarms each season — possibly not more 

 than two or three at each yard; and this, if 

 nothing else, leads me to be more than ever 

 in favor of using large hives for out-apiary 

 work. 



Mount Joy, Ont., Can. 



HIVES SO LOCATED THAT THE SWARMS ALMOST INVARIABLY 



BY RUTH C. GIFFORD 



In the spring of 1912 I moved my bees 

 to a new location along the north side of 

 the front yard, and dii-ectly south of the 

 garden. Since then I have had the pleasure 

 of seeing evei*>' swarm except one (which 

 sailed to the limb of a fine tree) settle on 

 the blackberry -vines in the garden. In the 

 summer of 1912 I watched my bees closely, 

 and found that, with the exception of the 

 swarm above mentioned, they all settled on 

 the berry-vines. This summer T again 

 watched them closely. The result was the 

 same, for they again settled on tlie ben-y- 

 vines. 



The position of the bees in relation to 

 shade and the distance from the blackberry- 

 vines must be the cause of their settling ou 

 the vines. Before T moved them to this 

 location I always had to climb trees for the 



swarms, and several times even had to use 

 a forty-foot extension ladder. 



Tlie lower half of one row of blackberry- 

 vines is 66 feet from the backs of the liives. 

 There are also some trees near by. 



Unfortunately the pictures do not give a 

 clear idea of the amount of shade, because 

 they could not be taken until the last of 

 October. Some of the hives stand in dense 

 shade, but not all the time. After half-past 

 eight there is a dense shade in front of them 

 all day, and they don't get much sunlight 

 between half-past eight and half-past ten: 

 but after that they are shaded by the side 

 branches of only one tree. 



During the swarming season I went 

 through the colonies carefully evei-y ten 

 days. I cut out queen-cells twice from 

 colonies which had them, gave extra venti- 



