1905 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



473 



^4^; 



THE HERSHISER NON-SWARMING SYSTEM 

 FOR OR WITHOUT INCREASE. 



How it Resembles the Sibbald Non-swarming 

 Plan; their Points of Difference 

 Explained. 



BY O. L. HERSHISER. 



Referrinpr to your editorial discussion of 

 what you have styled "The Sibbald Non- 

 swarming Plan for Increase," pp. 358, 359, 

 it seems to be unnecessary for you to admit 

 that Editor Hutchinson has made a ' ' good 

 scoop," inasmuch as you published in your 

 journal for May 15, 1903, p. 435, one of my 

 series of articles on comb-honey production, 

 which contained a description of my non- 

 swarming system, which is practically the 

 same as the one described by Mr. Sibbald. 

 In fact, the essential distinguisning features 

 and manipulations described by him are iden- 

 tical with those advised by me, and the 

 points wherein he slightly departs from my 

 system are immaterial; and right here it 

 may be observed that all scientific apiarists 

 make proper exceptions to general rules to 

 meet the peculiar local conditions. The dif- 

 ferences between my system and what he 

 has described are: 



1. He waits until queen-cells are started 

 before making the shift, the supers being 

 on the hives prior to the manipulations, re- 

 quiring the removal of the super and an ex- 

 amination of the combs to discover whether 

 or not there are queen- cells present. I 

 build up my colonies to great strength by 

 the use of double brood-chambers, which, 

 with plenty of good stores, proceeds much 

 more rapidly than with the single story, and 

 make the first shift when both brood-bodies 

 are full of bees, and just a short while prior 

 to the time when they would swarm natu- 

 rally, at which time there will be no chilling 

 of brood as a result of the division. This 

 period varies in different localities and with 

 different seasons. With well-wintered colo- 

 nies and in a favorable season the first shift 

 might be made in apple-bloom time, in ap- 

 ple-growing localities, especially if the in- 

 terim between apple-bloom and white clover 

 affords a continuous light flow of honey. It 

 is unnecessary to make an examination for 

 queen- cells when the proper time arrives for 

 making the division. 



2. When Mr. Sibbald makes the first shift, 

 in taking the frame of brood from the par- 

 ent colony he must make sure, by examina- 

 tion, that the queen is left therein. That 

 can be done only by searching until you find 

 her; otherwise you are not sure that you 

 will leave her in the parent colony. By my 



method I drive her into the lower brood- 

 body with a few puffs of smoke, and, as I've 

 never known a failure to accomplish this de- 

 sired result by this method, I think it may 

 safely be styled infallible. Thus no tedious 

 search for the queen is necessary. 



3. Another inconsequential difference is 

 that, at the time when honey commences to 

 be brought in rapidly, and after about all 

 the brood has emerged from the combs in 

 the upper brood-body, I drive or shake the 

 bees into the lower body, at which time I 

 substitute the first comb-honey super for 

 the upper brood-body, using the latter for 

 an extracting- super for this lower brood- 

 body which has been removed. 



In conducting an apiary for both comb and 

 extracted honey the system has the merit of 

 obtaining the largest possible yield; and the 

 comb honey is especially fancy, as the sec- 

 tions are not put on until the honey-flow is 

 near or quite at hand; hence they will not be 

 propolized so much as they would be if left 

 on the hive a great length of time. 



My non-swarming system, as announced 

 nearly two years ago, is superior to the 

 same as modified by Mr. Sibbald, just in 

 proportion to the time saved in not being 

 obliged to make examinations to ascertain 

 if queen-cells are present; the time and an- 

 noyance saved in not being obliged to hunt 

 for and find the queen, when making the 

 first shift, to be sure she is left in the par- 

 ent colony; and the great advantage in hav- 

 ing the very strong colony by reason of the 

 use of a double brood-body, giving every fa- 

 cility for rapid breeding during the fore 

 part of the season to supply a multitude of 

 field workers for the season when they will 

 be of the greatest use to us. 



Those who are opposed to shaking at all 

 times need not do so by my system. When 

 substituting the super for the upper brood- 

 body, drive the bees and queen into the low- 

 er brood-body with a few puffs of smoke. 

 The field bees remaining in such upper sto- 

 ry, after it is placed on the parent hive, will 

 return to the hive under preparation for 

 comb-honey production. 



My comb-honey colonies being supplied 

 with young queens just at the opening of 

 the main honey-flow, reared in the same 

 colony, together with a brood-chamber sup- 

 plied with narrow strips of comb made from 

 starters, offers a practical safeguard against 

 swarming. These narrow strips of comb in 

 the brood-chamber keep the pollen from go- 

 ing into the sections. 



The preferable way of supplying young 

 queens to the new colonies is to rear queen- 

 cells from our choicest stock for this pur- 

 pose, thus improving the whole apiary, and 

 getting the queens to the laying age at the 

 season best suited for this system. As the 

 object of this system is to prevent swarm- 

 ing, it is inadvisable to unite the old colony 

 with the old queen to the new one. If that 

 is done there would be the likelihood of a 

 return of the impulse to swarm, especially 

 in a long-continued honey-flow, by reason of 

 the presence of the old queen. 



