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THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL 



Replies by Prominent Apiarists. 



[It 18 useless to ask for answers to 

 Queries in this Department in less time 

 than one month. They have to wait their 

 turn, be put in type, and sent in about a 

 dozen at a time to each of those who answer 

 them ; get them returned, and then find 

 space for them in the Joubnal. If you are 

 In a "hurry" for replies, do not ask for 

 them to be inserted here.— Ed.1 



BnilflinE Worker Comti, 



ftnery? No. 264.— What is the best way 

 to get natural comb built with the best 

 results : i. e., in getting all-worker comb, or 

 nearly so ?— Cleveland. 



Allow newly hived swarms to build 

 it.— W. Z. Hutchinson. 



New swarms, young queens, small 

 crop. Worker comb-guides or foun- 

 dation.— Dadant & Son. 



Get it while the colonies are not 

 very strong ; or else from swarms just 

 hived.— A. J. Cook. 



I use comb foundation. — H. D. Cut- 

 ting. 



Keep strong, prolific queens, and 

 contract the brood-nest, giving the 

 bees room just as fast as the queen 

 can ttll the combs with eggs. No 

 drone comb will be built as long as 

 the queen fills the combs with eggs as 

 fast as they are built.— G. AV. Dem- 



AREE. 



Have it built in weak cplonies— or 

 between drone combs— or in a strong 

 or weak colony which has been moved 

 so as to lose most of its field-force ; 

 or, better still, on wired frames of 

 foundation.— C. C. Millek. 



Put in starters ; give enough drone 

 comb fully built to supply the demand 

 of bees, and cut out drone comb when 

 it is built in frames where not de- 

 sired. Ordinarily foundation will be 

 found far the cheaper and better for 

 the purpose. It requires the knowl- 

 edge and experience of a Doolittle, 

 and a locality similar to his, to get 

 good results in worker-comb building 

 without the use of foundation. I pre- 

 fer foundation about 6 to 7 feet to the 

 pound for the brood-chamber, fixed on 

 wired frames.— J. E. Pond, Jr. 



1. Hive swarms on full sheets of 

 worker foundation, securely held to 

 proper position by wires. 2. If you 

 do not use full sheets use guides of 

 foundation not more than J^ of an 

 inch wide, and the whole length of 

 the top-bar, and hive on them. 3. 

 Use swarms of brown German bees. — 

 James IIeddon. 



Get it built by swarms just hived, 

 or nuclei, the latter preferred, hav- 



ing a young laying queen. If swarms 

 are used, contract the hive to 5 or 6 

 frames, and put on the surplus ar- 

 rangement. If no foundation is used 

 in either, worker comb will be built 

 below and drone comb above. If 

 foundation is used in the sections, 

 worker comb will be built in both as 

 a rule.— G. M. Doolittle. 



The best way is to give the bees (if 

 a swarm) a small brood-chamber, 

 with starters of heavy foundation 2 

 or 3 inches wide. By way of caution 

 I will say that it is not best to hive a 

 swarm in a small brood-chamber — the 

 space must be ample or the swarm is 

 very liable to swarm out. The con- 

 traction is to be effected on the third 

 day after hiving. Colonies with young 

 queens are not apt to build much 

 drone comb, but instinct teaches 

 them to do it, and in my opinion a 

 colony does better with a few square 

 inches of drone comb. — G. L. Tinker. 



Strange Actions of Bees, 



Query, No. 265.— Last summer I had 

 several colonies that acted as if about to 

 Bwarra, but instead they would crawl into 

 the adjoining hive. They did not seem to 

 fight or rob, but simply to make it lively for 

 a short time ; then they would return to 

 their own hive and quiet down. They re- 

 peated that several times during the sum- 

 mer. They did not do very well in storing 

 honey. Can you tell the cause of their 

 actions ? — Iowa. 



No.— W. Z. Hutchinson. 



Discontentment, I should think.— 

 H. D. Cutting. 



Perhaps the hives were too close 

 together. I never had bees to act in 

 the manner you have described. — 

 G. L. Tinker. 



I cannot say, as I never have seen 

 bees act so. If I had a colony that 

 repeated such bad actions, I would 

 re-queen it.— James IIeddon. 



You do not say whether the bees 

 took wing as if they were going to 

 swarm , and you do not state how far 

 the hives were apart. As you state 

 it, I infer that the hives were too 

 close together, otherwise the bees 

 would not have " crowded " into the 

 adjoining hive. In a poor season bees 

 will do any and everything but gather 

 honey, if you manage them badlv.— 

 G. W. Demaree. 



This conundrum cannot be an- 

 swered satisfactorily, as not sufficient 

 data is given to enable one to form a 

 definite opinion. I should judge, 

 however, that the colonies might 

 have been queenless. Possibly they 

 might have been lacking in stores. If 

 neither of the above conditions. I 

 give it up. When the diagnosis of a 

 diflBcult case is wanted, every symp- 

 tom should be given ; and even then 

 a personal examination may be need- 

 ed in order to make a correct diagno- 

 sis.— J. E. Pond, Jr. I 



Late in Occnpying tlie Sections. 



Query, No. 266.— One of my old and 



large colonies, although lively, and seemed 

 to be doing well, and cast two swarms, did 

 not go into the honey-boxes to store honey 

 until in the fall. What was the trouble with 

 them ? — Iowa Falls. 



Perhaps the swarming business. — 

 C. C. Miller. 



Too many swarms came from it. — 

 W. Z. Hutchinson. 



In this locality it would be too many 

 swarms.— H. D. Cutting. 



Colonies that cast second swarms 

 seldom make any surplus. They were 

 left too weak in numbers to enter the 

 honey-boxes.— G. L. Tinker. 



Too many swarms. One swarm 

 from a hive gives the best results in 

 surplus. AVith the second swarm 

 went what what would have been 

 your surplus, had they staid. — G. M. 

 Doolittle. 



They did enough besides. If our 

 bees send out two good swarms, we 

 usually ought not to expect much 

 honey.— A. J. Cook. 



Considering the honey-flow of your 

 locality, I surmise that your bees did 

 so well in swarming that they did 

 nothing else.— James Heddon. 



They were weakened by casting 

 two swarms just at the time when 

 they ought to have been working in 

 the honey-boxes, and the early honey- 

 harvest was over before they got 

 strong enough to enter the surplus 

 boxes. They recovered their strength 

 in time for the fall harvest. In my 

 location no colony can cast two 

 swarms and give any surplus honey, 

 unless they store it before the first 

 swarm issues.— G. W. Demaree. 



Who can tell without an examina- 

 tion (and sometimes not then) what 

 causes the peculiar vagaries of our 

 bees ? Probably the combs were 

 spaced too wide apart in the brood- 

 chamber. Bees sometimes refuse 

 absolutely to go into sections, but 

 since I have adopted the plan men- 

 tioned in the Bee Journal a while 

 ago, I find no trouble ; that plan is, 

 shave combs to Jg-inch wide and put 

 them into the brood-chamber just bee- 

 space apart, putting in sections as 

 soon as the honey-flow begins.— J. E. 

 Pond, Jr. 



System and Success. 



^^ All who intend to be systematic in 

 their work in the apiary, should get a copy of 

 the Apiary Register and commence to use it. 

 the prices are reduced, as follows : 



For 50 colonies (120 pages) $3 00 



" 100 colonies (220 pages) 125 



" 200 colonies (420 pages) ISO 



The larger ones can be used for a few col- 

 onies, give room for an increase of numbers, 

 and still keep the record all together in one 

 book, and axe therefore the most desirable. 



