542 



Malachowski's swarin-oatcher (in tlip entl of a pole. 



the matter of making increase. For definite 

 data I will refer the reader to Rambler's 

 writings as published in Gleanings for 

 1902. There Rambler's slate will show that 

 on October 1st the 50 nuclei he had pur- 

 chased the April before had reached t!ie 

 ^and total of 300 colo- 

 nies. At the time, I 

 asked him what man- 

 ner or method he fol- 

 lowed in making his 

 increase and he replied, 

 "Oh! I just let them 

 swarm and then catch 

 the swarms." A veri- 

 tication of this state- 

 ment will be seen in 

 the published picture-; 

 of his Taco Taco api- 

 ary, for in all his pho- 

 tos his swarm-catching 

 device, consisting of a 

 bamboo pole with an 

 oil-can hung on the 

 end, occupied a very 

 prominent position. 

 However. T am not C'o- 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



ing to advise letting the bees swarm natural- 

 ly, as there is a lot of energy and time of 

 the bees that go to waste by reason of the 

 natural-swarming process. 



The theory of management which, for 

 want of a better name, I will call the " out- 

 law method," is one that in years past I 

 have i3racticed in almost all kinds of cli- 

 mates and localities under all kinds of con- 

 ditions; and where the apiarist desires but 

 a moderate increase, and all possible results 

 in the production of honey, I consider it the 

 best. The method is based on the theory 

 that, while it is natural for bees to cast a 

 swarm, the colony must first reach a certain 

 condition before getting the swarming idea, 

 and that, if the colony is kept in a proper 

 condition up to and until the heavy honey- 

 tlow starts, the idea of swarming never ma- 

 tures. A colony of bees under normal cir- 

 cumstances will not start the construction of 

 queen-cells until the brood-nest is in tliis 

 certain condition. The method here advo- 

 cated is to go over the apiary regularly once 

 a week and take out from those colonies 

 which are approaching the danger-point a 

 frame or two of sealed brood, replacing 

 with empty combs or full sheets of founda- 

 tion. This must be done just enough to hold 

 down the idea of swarming, and it can be 

 done so that, when the principal honey-flow 

 comes on, the colony is in proper shape to 

 handle it. So much for the prevention of 

 swarming. 



In making the increase, place six or eight 

 of the frames of sealed brood and the ad- 

 hering bees in a hive, always taking care to 

 place a frame of honey outside of the last 

 frame of brood if the hive is not completely 

 filled, then give to the colony thus formed a 

 ripe queen-cell. The entrance of the hive 



The Malachowski frames with and without the support. 



