Fkhrlarv, 1922 



G ]j K A N I N G S IN B E E C U L T U H E 



103 



for tlu' lioiicy How ;i.s wluMi Die ooinbs are 

 more iiciirl.v |K'ii'(H-t ; while in otlu'rs tho 

 iH'civi'c'lJt'r used full shoots of foundation in 

 tho biood-framos aud by careful manago- 

 niont when the combs were built secured 

 nearly perfect combs, having almost all of 

 its cells of the size for rearing worker bees 

 instead of drone-cells or badly distorted 

 cells tliat are neither drone size nor worker 

 size. Colonies of bees supplied with a set 

 of good combs are worth considerably more 

 than colonies having crooked combs or 

 combs having a large percentage of drone- 

 cells or misshapen cells, for these will have 

 to be replaced by good combs before the 

 colony can be in first-class condition. Some 

 colonies are of scrub stock that may be 

 cross and ugly to handle, poor honey gath- 

 erers or too much inclined to swarm to be 

 profitable in storing surplus honey; while 

 other colonies are of good stock, their an- 

 cestors having been selected for years for 

 gentleness, energetic work, good wintering 

 and less tendency to swarm. Some colonies 

 may have at this time only a few pounds 

 of hone}', not enough to last until nectar can 

 be had from spring flowers; while others 

 may be supplied with 30 to 40 pounds of 

 honey. Some colonies have only enough 

 bees to occupy one, two or three spaces be- 

 tween the combs when the outside tempera- 

 ture is near the freezing point; while others 

 are so strong that the cluster of bees occu- 

 pies six, seven or eight of the spaces be- 

 tween the combs at freezing temperatures 

 outside. In some colonies the bees will have 

 aged so much during tho winter that they 

 will die off faster during the spring than 

 young bees can be reared to take their 

 places, so they can not possibly attain full 

 strength in time for the honey flow without 

 help; while in other colonics having better 

 conditions for winter, the bees are still 

 young in the spring when they begin brood- 

 rearing, enabling them to build up rajaidly to 

 great strength. Some colonies have old 

 queens that will not be able to lay enough 

 eggs during the spring to enable the colony 

 to build up to profitable strength in time; 

 while other colonies have young queens able 

 to furnish enough eggs to build up mam- 

 moth colonics in time to gather the crop of 

 honey. It will thus be seen that colonies of 

 bees in the spring are worth all the way 

 from the value of the wax in the combs and 

 the kindling wood in the hive (about $1.00), 

 minus the cost of rendering the wax and 

 making the kindling, up to $20 or more for 

 strong colonies having a good queen of good 

 stock, in good hives, having good combs and 

 supplied with 25 to 30 pounds of honey. 

 How to Judge the Colonies. 

 With such a variation in tlie value of colo- 

 nies of bees, how can a beginner choose 

 good ones? Out of all these qualities, since 

 it is good colonies of bees that are wanted, 

 the most important things to look for at this 

 time are the size of the cluster and the 



amount of lioncy in tlic lii\c Mosl of 1lic 

 other defects can \n' leniodied lalor without 

 sj)oiling the chance of securing a crop of 

 hoiu'v. 



.Tiie size of the cluster can 1)0 determined 

 by opening the hive and looking down from 

 the top to see how many of the spaces be- 

 tween the combs are occupied by the bees. 

 The cluster should occupy not loss than four 

 of the spaces between the combs when the 

 outside temperature is near freezing. In well- 

 packed hives they should occupy five or 

 more spaces, and in a bee-cellar they should 

 occupy not less than six or eight spaces. 



Some idea as to the amount of honey in 

 the hive may be had by lifting the hive, 

 then lifting an empty hive, noting tlie dif- 

 ference in weight. A more accurate way, of 

 course, is to weigh them. The hive that is 

 well supplied with honey should weigh 25 

 pounds more tlian an empty liive and combs 

 of the same kind. 



In selecting colonies, if the choice lies be- 

 tween a colony that was a last season 's 

 swarm and the parent colony from which it 

 or some other swarm came, it is usually bet- 

 ter to choose tho parent or old colony, for 

 it is the one which has a young queen. 



Often colonies can be purchased for less 

 than they are woith from people who do not 

 know how to make them productive. It is not 

 often possible to buy bees at a bargain from 

 a successful beekeeper. In buying full colo- 

 nies it is therefore usually necessary to get 

 them from a breeder or dealer or from some 

 one who has not been successful in beekeep- 

 ing. Usually the latter class of colonies are 

 not in first-class condition; but, if they are 

 strong and well supplied with honey, the 

 beginner will gain some valuable experience 

 by buying them and putting them in good 

 condition. For the ambitious beginner who 

 has a little time to devote to it, it is a great 

 pleasure even to purchase bees in box hives 

 and transfer them to modern hives. To pur- 

 chase unproductive colonies and make them 

 l)roductive brings a feeling of satisfaction 

 in achievement that is worth something. 



In deciding on the price to pay for bees 

 in box hives, odd-sized hives or poorly made 

 and ill-fitting hives, the beginner should 

 study his catalog of beekeepers' supplies to 

 find the cost of new complete hives, for this 

 must be added to the price paid for the bees 

 if the old hives are not usable. By study- 

 ing the catalog carefully the beginner will 

 be enabled to judge as to the value of the 

 modern hives in which bees may be offered 

 for sale in his vicinity. Factory-made hives 

 .■ire usually made more accurately than those 

 made by hand or at a local planing mill. 

 The standard size used most extensively in 

 this country is the 10-frame Langstroth hive. 

 The 10-frame Jumbo and tho 11-frame Jumbo 

 (Modified Dadant) are also standard sizes 

 and are preferred by some producers of ex- 

 tracted honey. 



