74 MANUAL OF APICULTURE. 



almost certain to do, especially if one of the combs placed above con- 

 tains some brood a piece of queen-excluding zinc placed over the open- 

 ing between the two hives will keep her above, and three weeks later, 

 when all the brood in the combs below has matured, the box hive may 

 be removed and the combs transferred to frames, if worth using in 

 this way ; but if old or composed of drone cells or very irregular in 

 sliape these combs may be rendered into wax, after extracting any 

 honey that may happen to be in them. Inverting the box hive will 

 generally cause the bees to remove what honey they have stored in the 

 combs. This honey will be utilized in building out the foundation 

 placed in the added story, or, having these combs completed, the bees 

 will store in them whatever remains. Should the queen fail to enter 

 the superposed hive, the plan may be adopted of driving her with her 

 workers into the added story, as described on page 72. When the 

 lower combs have been nearly deserted it will be safe to assume that 

 the queen has gone into the upper hive with the main force of workers, 

 and the excluder zinc may be inserted. 



QUEENLESSNESS IN SPRING. 



The loss of a queen during winter or early spring can generally be 

 discovered by noticing just at nightfall, after the first or second general 

 flight, which colonies are restless and continue to buzz excitedly when 

 the others are humming in a contented manner or have quieted down 

 for the night. The workers of the queenless colony run in and out 

 excitedly, searching over the front of the hive. Should it be opened 

 they will not resent the intrusion, but, remaining on the combs, will at 

 once set up a loud and prolonged buzzing. These symptoms become 

 less pronounced from day to day. If a comb containing brood be 

 inserted during this period it will be hailed with evident delight, man- 

 ifested by the eager crowding of the bees from all sides toward it. A 

 contented hum replaces the sound of mourning, and if young worker- 

 larvae are present preparations, as decribed on pages 88-89, are begun 

 at once to rear a queen. However, if much reduced in numbers the 

 colony should be joined to one with a queen, or several queenless ones 

 united. The latter may be smoked and simply shaken or brushed 

 together. But bees that have been queenless long when added to those 

 that have not yet missed their own queen will frequently be killed at 

 once. The queen should therefore be taken from her own bees and 

 caged for thirty-six to forty- eight hours in the hive which has previ- 

 ously been queenless, and her own bees added when she is released. 

 (See page 94.) A board leaned against the front of the hive will cause 

 the bees to note their change in location when they fly out and they 

 will then easily find their new quarters when returning from their 

 flight. 



