Mav, 1921 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



all the queen-cells that are built iu this top 

 super, tho this is not always necessary. 



Colonies treated in this way usually do 

 not swarm if additional supers are given as 

 fast as needed, tho they may do so if the 

 honey flow is long. 



To Control Swarming When Producing 

 Comb Honey. 



Wlien producing comb honey, the first 

 super should be given when the bees begin 

 to add new white wax to -the old dark 

 combs in the brood-chamber. The sections 

 in the comb-honey super should contain 

 foundation, preferably full sheets filling 



Fig. 



-Old hive turned Link toward new one 

 after swarm has entered. 



the sections almost completely. If possible, 

 the first super should contain at least one 

 section in which the comb is already built, 

 saved over from the previous year; This 

 "bait" comb should induce the bees to 

 begin work in the first super promptly. As 

 soon as the bees commence working on the 

 outside sections of this first sujier, a second 

 super should be given. If the bees are 

 working well and new honey is being stored 

 thruout the first super, the second super 

 should be placed below the first one; but, 

 if the bees are not working in all sections 

 of the first super, the second super should 

 bo placed on top of the first one. 

 How to Hive a Swarm. 



If a swarm issues look for the queen (if 

 she has been clipped) on the ground in 

 front of the hive while the swarm is coming 

 out. When the queen is found put her into 

 a Miller queen-catcher and introducing 

 cage or any kind of wire-cloth cage in 

 which she can be confined. Lay the cage 

 down near the hive in the shade; then move 

 the hive from its stand, turning the en- 

 trance to one sid#, as in Fig. 1. Place a 

 new hive where the old one stood, having 

 frames filled with full sheets of foundation, 

 anil, if available, one empty comb. Trans- 

 fer the supers from the old hive to the 

 new, put back the covers on both hives, 

 and thrust the cage containing the queen 

 into the entrance of the new hive. 



The bees may return and enter the new 

 hive without clustering, or they may cluster 



and return later. As they are returning 

 none of them should be permitted to enter 

 the old hive. To prevent this, it may be 

 necessary to cover the old hive with a 

 cloth or move it farther away. When most 

 of the bees have entered the hive the queen 

 sliould be released among them. 



If a queen trap is used to catch the 

 queen as the swarm issues, instead of clip- 

 ping the queen, the procedure is the same 

 except that it is not necessary to look for 

 the queen; but after the swarm is out, the 

 old hive set to one side and the new one is 

 in its place, the queen trap may simply be 

 put on the new hive and the slide pulled 

 out to permit the queen to enter the hive 

 when the swarm returns. 



After the swarm has entered the hive and 

 tlie- excitement has subsided, the entrance 

 of the parent hive should be turned toward 

 that of the swarm, as in Fig. 2. 



A day or two later the parent hive should 

 be turned with its entrance close to that of 

 the swarm (Fig. 3), and on the seventh day, 

 choosing a time when the bees are working 

 well in the fields and preferably early in 

 the afternoon when many young bees are 

 taking their play flight in front of the par- 

 ent hive, it should be moved to a new 

 location at least 20 feet away for increase. 

 In moving the parent hive away it should 

 be handled carefully to prevent disturbing 

 the bees, so tliat the field bees going out 

 will not note the change in the location of 

 the hive. When this is done most of the 

 voung bees, which have become field work- 



Fi£- 



old hive .set clobc to new, 

 moved iuvay on seventh day. 



ers during the week, as they return from 

 the fields will now enter the new hive on 

 the old stand where they should be most 

 useful, so depleting the parent colony of its 

 bees that after-swarming is usually pre- 

 vented; and since most of the workers arc 

 held together in the new hive on the old 

 stand the yield of honey should not be re- 

 duced on account of the swarm having 

 issued. Usually the parent colony does not 

 produce any surplus honey the same season, 

 but it should be in excellent condition for 

 winter. 



