May, 1921 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



FROM THE FIELD OF EXPERIENCE 



281 



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NATURAL SWARMING 



Some Advantages in Permitting Bees to Swarm 

 When Producing Comb Honey 



In our good seasons where colonies breed 

 up early, some are apt to swarm before the 

 clover flow. Even in 10-frame hives they 

 may swarm by the middle of May, whereby 

 the working strength of these, our best colo- 

 nies, is nearly all lost. When producing 

 comb honey it was a common practice to 

 take out a frame or two of brood from sucli 

 colonies and fill in with empty combs, giv- 

 ing the removed brood to a weaker colony. 

 This is a mean trick. Why not conserve 

 the strength of these colonies by giving 

 more room for the queen, by adding a shal- 

 low chamber of good brood combs, and 

 have these colonies growing stronger for 

 the honey flow, the same as if running for 

 extracted honey? By so doing we ought to 

 get big returns from these colonies, and 

 have something to brag about the rest of 

 the year. 



I don't think it pays to Ijolster up weak 

 colonies. In early spring I double up all 

 weak colonies. After that I preserve the 

 individuality of each colony, and see to it 

 that no colony has acquired the swarming 

 fever by the time the clover flow opens. 

 Putting on section eases early will not help. 

 They must have a place to put brood, or 

 honey that may be moved to give more 

 room for the queen. 



Colonies that have not acquired the 

 swarming fever before the honey flow may 

 not start queen-cells for some time; and, 

 when they do, ordinarily the swarm will 

 issue about eight days afterward, or when 

 the cells are capped over. This gives time 

 for some good work in the sections. 



But in the meantime about 60 or 70 per 

 cent of the colonies in the yard are getting 

 ready to swarm, and I am not going to hin- 

 der them. Why? For a number of reasons. 

 First, we expect a good fall flow. I want 

 two colonies instead of one for that, and 

 there is plenty of time between flows for 

 building up to gather it. After I put on 

 the section supers, I will not hinder in any 

 way the "will to work," which I may have 

 created, or the effort to carry out nature's 

 law of increase, because they are doing their 

 best, both in brood-rearing and honey-gath- 

 ering. Do the wrong thing at this time 

 and see how the bees will sulk. I will not 

 take any brood from a colony before it 

 swarms, as it needs it all. I will not over- 

 haul a colony and pick off queen-cells to 

 keep it from swarming, for to do so does 

 not prevent swarming; besides, overhauling 

 the whole yard every few days is too much 

 labor. 



All young bees from eggs laid after June 

 lll-l.") will not gather any white clover 

 honey, and most of them will have died 



before the fall flow opens. These bees are 

 boarders. After swarming the queen will 

 occupy only the minimum space, not more 

 than two-thirds of that needed before 

 swarming; hence, less brood to care for and 

 more honey in the sections. Again, for several 

 days previous to swarming, the queen 

 slackens egg-laying and will not lay any to 

 speak of until the third day after swarm- 

 ing; but honey is being stored rapidly, and 

 should go into the sections, not the brood - 

 chamber. Hence, I hive the young swarm in 

 a rather small brood-chamber, less than 

 7-Langstroth frame capacity, just enough 

 for the queen. I want the white honey in 

 tiie sections at this time. 



Over the brood-chamber I place a queen- 

 excluder, then one or two sex-tion cases, 

 and the unfinished work from the old hive 

 is placed over all. The old hive is moved 

 to one side and the swarm is placed on the 

 old stand. Now I have the added impulse 

 to work to build the new home, and no 

 brood to feed for six or seven days. 



Earlier writers treated a colony after 

 swarming as two colonies, and tried to 

 make each store comb honey. Yet the 

 honey flow is over before any young bees 

 can emerge fiom eggs of the young queen. 

 We have only a divided colony, and I am 

 going to handle it as such. I want the old 

 hive weakened so that it can build up only 

 for the fall flow. This does away with 

 after-swarms. 



I never read of a good plan to utili/.e 

 "boarders," the surplus bees at the end of 

 the honey flow. But 40 years ago Eev. O. 

 Clute of Iowa City, la., said to me: "I di- 

 vide the brood and make two colonies and 

 let them build up for winter." I know he 

 did that, for that spring he had sold $1,4(M) 

 worth of increase. Eoland Sherburne. 



Lone Tree, Iowa. 



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HOSPITAL YARDS 



Precautions and Suggestions on the Treatment for 

 American Foul Brood 



A big step toward the eradication of 

 American foul brood could be made if every 

 beekeeper would absolutely avoid the shak- 

 ing treatment of diseased colonies in an 

 apiary of mostly healthy stock. In large 

 yards, this very procedure disseminates the 

 disease just about as much as tho one were 

 to open a diseased hive and allow a dozen 

 other healthy ones to help themselves. Ac- 

 cording to my theory, when the shaking 

 treatment is applied, the colony so treated 

 is thoroly demoralized by smoke and manip- 

 ulation, causing many bees to take wing; 

 and in their frenzy they drift into other 

 hives and present to the household their 

 contaminated honey. Of course, the treat- 

 ment of one or two colonies at the proper 



