29 



A Simple Diary. 



The bee-year from the apiarist's point of view begins, therefore, in September. 

 But since we have made a little progress with the spring conditions we may as well 

 continue. Every beginner in bee-keeping should keep a diary for the first year, at 

 least as a guide for the future. It need not be in any way elaborate, just a sheet of 

 note-paper lying convenient on which to make brief jottings like these : — 



February 22 — Willow blooms ; pollen carried in. 



March 13 — A few dandelions ; plentiful April 7. 



March 15 — First examination of hives ; temperature, 65°. 



April 12 — Early pears. 



April 18 — Early plums ; pollen plentiful. 



May 3 — Nectar and pollen above immediate needs. 



May 19 — Dearth of nectar ; feeding. 



June 1 — First clover-blossom. 



June 19 — Honey-flow starts. 



These items are simply suggestive, as the apiarist should make it his business and 

 pleasure to know every plant visited by bees in his locality, also their date of blooming. 

 In most regions there are breaks in the flow of nectar and these should be anticipated, 

 as during a dearth brood-raising will be stopped, with serious loss at the time of the 

 honey-flow unless feeding be done. The end of fruit-bloom often marks the beginning 

 of one of these periods. 



March. 



Early this month, sooner if possible, lift the hive off the bottom board and clean 

 off the dead bees and other waste matter. The simplest way is to take a spare board, 

 remove the complete hive, place the new board on the stand, then swing back the hive 

 to its place. The operation takes but a minute, so there ought to be no disturbance to 

 the inmates. The old board is now cleaned off and used for the next hive. While 

 lifting the colony one learns roughly its condition as to stores. If light, it must, of 

 course, be fed with as little disturbance as possible, because during this month and 

 next the bees may cluster in a compact ball round the queen — ball her — when the 

 frames are disturbed, and a balled queen is apt to disappear at an early date. Smoke 

 is rarely necessary at this time, provided the bee-keeper is gentle and avoids jarring 

 the frames when returning them to the hive. In the south end of Vancouver Island 

 there ought to be brood in three or four frames about the middle of the month, but, of 

 course, the space occupied by the young in the outside of the nest will be very small. 



April. 

 In the coast regions, during the latter half of March and the first week of this 

 month, there is apt to be a cool spell, with cloudy or wet weather which prevents bee- 

 flight. Brood-raising frequently comes to a stop, so that when the warm weather 

 returns there may not be a single egg in the frames. However, as soon as pollen again 

 comes in freely, the queen resumes her duties, laying so freely that by the 20th 

 there is generally brood in as many as five frames. The young bees begin to hatch out 

 about the end of the month, when they are very much needed, as the old ones that 

 carried the colony through the winter are dying off very rapidly. In fact, for a few days 

 at the end of April the low-water mark of population is apt to be reached ; then the 

 tide turns, the working force is rapidly added to, and almost as if by magic the frames 

 become covered with bees. During this month the great source of nectar and pollen in 

 most regions of the Province is the dandelion, but in some parts of the dry belt there is 



