G L K A N I N G S IN B E K C tl Ti t I' H E 



ArRiii, 1921 



c 



TALKS TO BEGINNERS 



By the Editor 



ON the firsh 

 warm day 

 in April the 

 Ijegiiiiicr \vill be 

 i 11 t e r e s ted to 

 note the activ- 

 ity at the en- 

 trances of the 

 hives of his new- 

 ly acquired colo- 

 nies. If they are strong, many bees will be 

 seen going to and from the hives in quite a 

 businesslike manner. Some of the returning 

 bees will be seen with little balls of pollen on 

 their legs as they run into the hives. This 

 pollen varies in color, depending upon its 

 source, and by watching the bees as they 

 Avork on the flowers it is possible to learn to 

 distinguish by its color the pollen from the 

 various flowei's. Some of the returning bees 

 which appear to be heavily laden may be 

 carrying nectar, while others may be carry- 

 ing homo loads of water. 



Opening the Hives. 

 In the South the beginner can now open 

 his hives to examine his colonies, choosing 

 a warm day when the bees are working well: 

 while in the far North it may be best to wait 

 till early in May, but being sure that the 

 liives are heavy with honey in the meantime. 

 Ojiening the hives and taking out the combs 

 for examination too early in the spring is 

 sometimes detrimental, but even in the 

 North this may be done without injviring 

 the colony if it is done on a bright, warm 

 day when" the bees are working freely. "When 

 such a day comes the beginner may as well 

 see the many interesting things that are 

 inside the beehive. 



Before opening the hive the beginner 

 should see that his smoker is properly light- 

 ed and going so well that it will not go out 

 when he quits puffing for a while; then he 

 should put on the veil and tie it down so 

 snug that no bees can get under it. The 

 beginner will feel safer the first time if he 

 wears a pair of good bee-gloves, tho later he 

 jirobably will not use them. 



Now try out the smoker again and if it is 

 going well approach the hive at one side, not 

 in front. It is well to give a light puff or 

 two of smoke at the entrance to subdue the 

 guards. This is not always necessary, and the 

 beginner will soon learn to judge the tem- 

 per of the bees at different times. 



Remove the outer cover, if a double cover 

 is used; then by means of the hive-tool pry 

 the inner cover up at one corner, at first 

 less than one-eighth of an inch, so smoke 

 can be blown thru the opening without any 

 bees being able to come out. Next pry the 

 adjacent corner of the cover loose, then lift 

 one end of it, and, as this is being done, blow 

 in a few puffs of smoke under the cover 

 and over the frames, being careful to send 

 a little smoke to the far end of the hive be- 

 fore the cover is entirely removed. Lay the 

 cover upside down in front of the hive en- 

 trance, so the bees that were adhering to it 

 can readily crawl into the hi\e. 



ILJ 



N(»w gi\(' a 

 few light ]mffs 

 (if smoke over 

 the tojis (if the 

 f r a m e s (not 

 d o w u between 

 th(Mn) to drive 

 the bees down 

 a m o n g the 

 combs. The 

 amount of smoke needed will depend ujjon 

 the temper of the bees at the time they are 

 being handled, but only enough smoke should 

 be used to keep them under control. Too 

 much smoke stnmpedes the bees and ninkes 

 it more difficult to handle them. 



How to Take Out the First Frame. 

 If the combs are of the self-spacing type, 

 crowd the entire set of frames, toward the 

 opposite side of the hive by using the hive- 

 tool as a lever between the first frame and 

 the side of the hive. This will give a space 

 for removing the first frame. If enough 

 space can be made in this way, tlie outside 

 comb may be removed first, but if this comb 

 has attachments to the side of the hive or 

 is bulged with sealed honey, it may be bet- 

 ter to remove the second or the third frame 

 first. Pry the frames apart far enough to 

 permit the easy removal of the frame se- 

 lected. It may be necessary to raise the first 

 frame slightly, one end at a time, by means 

 of the hive-tool in order to enable the oper- 

 ator to take hold of the ends of the top-bar 

 with the fingers. Now lift the frame gently, 

 being careful to avoid rolling the bees 

 against the adjacent comb. When the first 

 comb is out stand it on end, leaning it 

 against the hive where it will be out of the 

 way. Any or all of the remaining combs can 

 now be removed and examined at will, but 

 care should be taken to keep the bees con- 

 stantly under control. After a little experi- 

 ence the beginner will learn when more 

 smoke is needed, by watching the behavior 

 of the bees. If many of them line up in 

 close formation, with heads upward, be- 

 tween the top-bars of the frames, watching 

 every move of the operator, they should be 

 driven down again among the combs by a 

 few jjuffs of smoke. 



What to Look For. 

 Lift out a comb from the middle of the 

 hive, hold it by the ends of the top-bar of 

 the frame, and look it over carefully, as it 

 should now reveal many things of interest. 

 Note that some of the cells are covered or 

 ' ' capped, ' ' while 

 others are open. 



In the upper cor- 

 ners of the comb 

 there should be 

 some sealed honey. 

 Note the appear- 

 ance of the cap- 

 pings; then, to be 

 sure that this is 

 Caiiped brood in cells at soalpd lioncv, tear 

 the left, pollen in cells ., • 



at the right. away the cap- 



