May, 191' 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



375 



A. 1. It is usually cheaper to requeen in 

 the fall. In the spring they are high-priced. 

 Moreover, a colony will winter better with 

 a young queen than with an old one; but if 

 a colony is queenless in the spring it should 

 be requeened, of course. Sometimes an old 

 queen shows that she is failing, and then 

 lays only a few eggs. When this condition 

 is found she should be replaced or else her 

 colony be united with a weak colony having 

 a good queen. 



2. No. On the other hand, you would 

 gain, providing the queen already in the 

 hive was inferior or failing. To requeen 

 does not necessarily cause any serious in- 

 terruption in brood-rearing. In fact, we 

 make it a practice to remove one queen and 

 cage another at one opening of the hive. 

 Usually 48 hours will compass the change of 

 a queen-mother. 



H. W. K., Pennsylvania. — When is the proper time 

 to commeuce to feed bees in spring in order to build 

 up good strong colonies? What do you advise feed- 

 ing, and what quantity ? What kind of hive is bast 

 for this section for comb honey where the bees are 

 wintered out of doors? 



I have ten colonies, and wish to get them in con- 

 dition to produce all the fancy comb they can this 

 season. 



A. It is not advisable to feed bees liquid 

 syrup much before fruit-bloom. If bees are 

 running short it is advisable to give them 

 a comb of stores from some other colony that 

 can spare it, or a slab of candy that can be 

 laid up on top of the frames. Any liquid 

 food given them in March would cause them 

 to rush out to the fields and many of them 

 be chilled and not get back. If a colony is 

 short of stores it ought to have anywhere 

 from five to ten pounds of syrup to carry it 

 along until the first honey-flow comes in. 



For your locality, if you wish to winter 

 outdoors we recommend outdoor winter cases 

 or double-walled hives. 



P. B., Minnesota. — How can one tell a queen from 

 a worker-bee in swai-ming time ? 



A. During swarming time a queen-bee is 

 very much larger than ordinary worker-bees. 

 The difference between the head, shoulders, 

 or thorax, is not very marked; but the main 

 difference is in the appearance of the ab- 

 domen, which is much larger and longer. 



J. R. L., Pennsylvania. — Last season one of my 

 colonies seemed to be outstripping all others in stor- 

 ing honey. By the middle of June they had a super 

 two-thirds full. The others had done but little in 

 their supers ; in fact, our honey-flow seldom begins 

 here before the middle of June. I noticed that this 

 particular colony had a large excess of drones; and 

 as I wanted to make this colony a prizetaker I used 

 a trap for several days and caught off all drones. I 

 know that drone comb should not have been there. 

 Well, from that time on they sulked and never put 

 another pound of honey in the super. About the 

 latter part of July it swarmed. We know bees will 

 kill off their drones when a flow of honey ceases. 

 Could it be possible by catching off the drones at 

 some particular time to cause a colony to feel that 

 the honey-flow is over ? 



A. It not infrequently happens that the 

 progeny of one queen will far outstrip the 



progeny of all other queens in the same 

 yard. When a queen goes away ahead of 

 the rest she should be used for breeding, 

 because many of her daughters will be very 

 apt to follow her lead in the matter of honey 

 production. 



We hardly believe that the removal of 

 the drones had anything to do with the 

 stoppage of the honey-flow. It was a mere 

 coincidence — that is to say, the honey-flow 

 had begun to let up about the time that 

 you applied the traps to catch the drones. 



H. C. L., Illinois. — I have been using the large 



Holtermann quadruple winter cases ; but I have 

 found that my bees have been drifting. One colony 

 in one side of the case will be considerably weaker 

 than the other with the result that the bees get mixed 

 during their playspells. What should I do to over- 

 come this ? 



A. Equalize by taking from the stronger 

 one a frame of hatching brood occasionally. 

 If thru the process of drifting the strong 

 one has most of the bees the surplusage 

 may be shaken into the weak one if done 

 immediately. If not we would give the un- 

 sealed brood to the strong one and the 

 hatching brood to the weak one. Keep on 

 giving it hatching brood from the other until 

 their strength is the same. 



U. A. S., Kentucky. — How can I distinguish the 

 playspells of my bees from robbing? 



A. The demonstration in front of the en- 

 trances in either case is much the same; but 

 a beginner may make sure that a playspell 

 will subside in a few minutes, while a genu- 

 ine case of robbing will grow continually 

 worse. When the bees are having a general 

 playspell there will be no bees struggling 

 against each other as in the case of robbing; 

 but a playspell at its height very often, even 

 to a veteran, looks like a case of robbing 

 where the colony has been overpowered and 

 the inmates of the hive are putting up no 

 defense. Where one is uncertain, if he will 

 wait just a few minutes he can easily decide 

 which it is. If a playspell it will subside 

 in a very few minutes. 



F. R. N., Alabama. — My neighbors complain that 

 my bees are driving the cattle away from their water- 

 ing-troughs. 



A. If there is iio natural creek or spring 

 near by, it is advisable to place in the yard 

 a tub or pail of water having floats in it. 

 If the water is sweetened a little at the 

 start, the bees will soon learn its location. 



L. B., Illinois. — Does the Illinois law forbid put- 

 ting beehives close to a country road? If .so, how 

 close can I put them to the road? 



A. There is no general state law anywhere, 

 so far as we know, that forbids putting bees 

 close to a country road; but as a matter of 

 precaution, we would advise setting the bees 

 back a hundred feet, more if it is practicable. 

 If the bees can be located on a hill so that 

 the line of flight will be above the traflic of 

 the road, they can be much closer, but it is 

 a good rule to put bees as far away as possi- 

 ble from a common highway. 



