1898. 



THE AMEKICAN BEE JOURNAl.. 



199 



your questions, however, I should say your quickest way would be 

 to set out the plants. If you could see one plant in blossom or seed 

 you could then recognize it, and very likely you might find a good 

 (leal of it growing wild right about you. It seems rather inclined 

 to grow in fence-corners and shady places when growing wild, and 

 is not inclined to increase rapidly. In such positions it stands the 

 winter well, but in the open ground is inclined to winter-kill, at 

 least in this locality. I think it will not do so well in sandy as in 

 stronger soil, but I may be mistaken about this. Now, if the expe- 

 rience of others is different, and they have found flgwort worth 

 cultivating, by all means let us hear from them, but let it be those 

 who have had it under cultivation lU years or more, as a great 

 many, I think, started with it years ago. 



2. One way is to have a queen-trap at the entrance, then take 

 a look at the cage Monday morning. 



Rcariug Queen§ — <(ueei)Ie§s Colonie§. 



1. How soon can queens be reared with safety of mating 

 with drones ? 



2. I have two queenless colonies on top of other strong colo- 

 nies with plenty of combs, honey and bees for each hive. What 

 time should I set them off to themselves to rear them a new queen? 

 Or would it be best to leave them where tbey are ? 



My bees have been bringing in pollen and honey on warm days 

 for some time. Combs were -^t full of brood Feb. H). Miss. 



Answers. — 1. When you find drone-brood sealed, you may 

 then begin to rear queens, so far as concerns drones being ready. 



2. You don't say whether these colonies on top have communi- 

 cation with colonies below, or are entirely separate. If there is 

 communication, probably they are by this time part and parcel of 

 the colony below, and may be considered as all one colony. If sep- 

 arate and queenless they will not rear a queen, either where they 

 are or anywhere else, without having young brood given them. If 

 you want them to rear a queen by giving them brood, you can 

 move them at once or leave them till the young queen lays. 



A Non-Swarming Colony. 



1. I have a colony of bees that have not swarmed for 8 years. 

 I bought the queen from a breeder in Illinois. During these years 

 they have not changed color, which is remarkable, as I am sur- 

 rounded by black and hybrid bees. Can it be possible that the 

 original queen is still in the hive ? 



2. I am anxious to introduce some of this stock into my other 

 colonies. How should I go about it and not interfere with my 

 honey crop ? I have 50 colonies, all at this time in good condition. 

 We have had a very open winter, very little snow, and just enough 

 cold weather to let us fill our ice-houses. Va. 



Answers. — 1. I haven't the slightest idea the same old queen 

 is there. It's probably not so very often a queen lives half that 

 time, altho there have been cases recorded where a queen was six 

 years old. 



2. Hard to tell just what may be the best way, so much may 

 depend on circumstances. One way may be to have queen-cells 

 ready, and when a colony swarms cut out all quoen-cells in the old 

 hive and give a cell of the choice stock. If you want to change the 

 queens of the other colonies, you can dj it toward the close of the 

 honey harvest without interference. 



Increase by Dividing — Dummies — lO-Franic Hives 

 — Clianging from Kiack§ to Italians. 



1. I wish to increase the number of colonies by dividing. They 

 are in 8 frame dovetailed hives. Can I successfully make three out 

 of one by supplying queens, and have them in good condition when 

 clover bloom comes ? How would you proceed ? How without 

 giving queens ? 



2. In using dummies, is it necessary to use chaff or plain 

 board ? Must the empty space be filled with them or not ? 



3. I am just a beginner and have only a few hives. I have 

 thought of changing to 10-frame hives, as I think I would like them 

 better. Do you think it advisable in my locality (Trumbull Co.)? 



4. Would you advise me to change from black to Italian stock? 

 My bees are a little mixt, and are hard to handle. They are good 

 workers. Are the yellow as good ? Ouio. 



Answers. — 1. I'm afraid you're rather wild in your expecta- 

 tions. If I could each season make sure of making three colonies 

 of each one, taking the entire season for it, without getting a drop 

 of honey, I think I'd stop fooling with a honey crop and raise an 

 annual crop of bees. Some years I might do it, but other years 

 1 couldn't. But I wouldn't dream of starting in the spring, the 

 best season I ever knew, with 30 colonies, and have 'M colonies 

 ready for the clover harvest. If I wanted to have the advantage 

 of the clover crop, I wouldn't think of increase until the beginning 

 of harvest at the earliest, and Id study carefully all that's said in 

 the text-books about increasing, and then take the plan that 

 seemed best adapted to my circumstances. In any case, I'd keep 

 most of my colonies, what might be called fairly strong colonies, 

 all the time. By supplying queens, you would probably do well to 

 follow the nucleus plan as lately mentioned and described in this 

 department, and you could hasten matters considerably by furnish- 

 ing queens, instead of waiting for the bees to rear their own. 



2. Either one will do. It isn't necessary to have the space filled 

 solid. For example, if you want to fill the space usually filled by 

 two brood-combs, you can have a single dummy measuring 23-3 

 inches through, or you can have two dummies an inch thick, or 

 three dummies of ''K-inch stuff, or a single one of these last will do 

 if you're not afraid the bees will build in the space. 



3. If you don't expect to give them very much attention, the 

 10-frames will be safer for winter, and possibly may be best in any 

 case, but I think likely, it you give them closest attention, it may 

 be better to have the S-frame hives and use two stories, whenever 

 needed. 



4. You will probably find the Italians better workers, and gain 

 by the change. 



Transferring — Putting in Frames of Foundation. 



1. I have two good colonies in box-hives. I %vould like to trans- 

 fer them in the spring into new hives. I also would like to get 

 one natural swarm from each. How can I best succeed? How 

 would it do to put in full frames of foundation (say five) it being a 

 lO-trame hive, then after the first swarm comes out place the new 

 hive where the old one stood, place the old one in front of the new 

 hive, make a bee-pass between each opening, of screen wire, then 

 open a hole in the top of the old hive, smoke by spells, and compel 

 them to vacate. After smoking down well, take old hive away. 

 Would this plan work? If not, tell me why, and a way that is better. 



2. I am putting in two full frames of brood-foundation for all 

 my natural swarms this year. Should I put them in together, or 

 put an empty frame between them ? 



3. I have a colony that has been in an old hive for a number of 

 years. Last summer it cast two fine swarms in June. A month 

 after it seemed that the old hive had nothing but drones. The first 

 of August I killed most of them. What was the cause of so many 

 drones ? Did the drones come back from the young swarms cast, 

 or was the queen dead ? or was it the fault of the old comb in the 

 old hive ? I introduced a new queen, after which the bees seemed 

 to feel better. Is there any use to molest the old comb in that hive 

 this spring ? The bees are in good condition now. Ind. 



Answers.— 1. Better leave the bees in the box-hives till they 

 swarm, and hive the swarm in a frame hive. Set the swarm in 

 place of the old hive, putting the old hive beside the swarm. A 

 week after swarming set the old hive in a new place. Two weeks 

 later transfer the old colony, at which time there will be no chance 

 to injure any brood. 



2. Perhaps it will be as well to put an empty one between. 



3. It is possible that there is an unusual amount of drone comb 

 in the hive. Possibly the colony was queenless, and a queenless 

 colony will welcome all drones that may come from other colonies. 

 If there was never trouble before or since as to a superabundance 

 of drones, the comb is not likely to be at fault, and need not be 

 disturbed. _ 



Working for Both Comb and Extracted Honey. 



I am thinking of running an out-yard the coming season, and 

 would like to work it partly for comb honey. Do you think the 

 following plan would be likely to work: 



Work the colonies for extracted honey until they get well at 

 work in the surplus, then place a super of tections filled with foun- 

 dation under the extracting-super. Do you think it would be likely 

 to cause swarming as much as it would if the sections were placed 

 on at first ? Would they be likely to complete the extracting-super 

 before beginning the sections ? Please tell what you think about 

 this plan. New York. 



Answer.— If you use full-sized combs in the extracting-super, 

 unless there is a pretty heavy harvest, there would be danger that 

 your super of sections would not be finisht in good time. With 

 shallow extracting-combs the matter will be helpt. You probably 

 would be troubled less with swarming than to put on the sections 

 at the start with no extracting-combs. If the extracting-super is 

 large and the colony not strong, or the harvest poor, the sections 

 would be little workt, and vice versa. 



The "Golden" Comb-Honey management. 



What is your opinion of Mr. Golden's method of producing 

 comb honey ? Do you think it superior in any degree to the ordi- 

 nary method of treating a swarm and the colony it issues from ; 

 Should you approve of it, please say what you think of adopting 

 the same tactics with colonies that do not swarm. Seems to me if 

 it will do under one set of conditions, it ought to do under the 

 other. Don't you think it would result in pollen in the sections ? 

 or is that which a friend tells me true, viz: That when the queen 

 is confined the bees cease to carry in pollen ; as, during her confine- 

 ment, and unlike queens of our own species under like conditions, 

 she is producing no progeny that would require feeding. 



South Africa. 



Answer.— I have no experimental knowledge on the subject, 

 and could hardly give an opinion that would be of value. But I 

 may say that the popular notion that a colony with a caged queen 

 carries in no pollen is somewhat out of the way. If you should see 

 the many combs loaded down with pollen that I have seen in such 

 cases, you would feel very sure that caging a queen does not stop 

 the gathering of pollen, altho it lessens its consumption. 



