Mar. 16, 1899. 



americafn bee journal 



167 



but bees, and the temperature has been too low to be good, 

 but it was impossible for me to keep it warmer. I am afraid 

 when warm weather comes, and the frost melts, the bees 

 will get wet and damp, and perhaps die. Wisconsin. 



Answer. — It is quite possible that no great harm may 

 come from the frost in the hives, if it is only on the sides 

 and not directly over the cluster of bees. But a cellar that 

 is so cold as to let frost gather in that way in the hive is 

 not a fit place to winter bees. Can't you heat up the cellar 

 in some way for a few hours ? If there is an inside door 

 connecting with the kitchen, leave that open at night, keep- 

 ing a g-ood fire in the kitchen. If you can't do that, take 

 down some heated stones or iron, or take down jug's of hot 

 water. But don't try hot water unless tightly corkt so steam 

 cannot get out. A stove with fire in it would be the thing, 

 but it isn't likely you can have that. If the bees are uneasy 

 and spot their hives with diarrhea, take them out the first 

 day warm enough for them to fly, say on a bright day with 

 the thermometer at 45 or 50 degrees. 



, Swarms from Clipt Queens. 



Should two swarms issue from hives containing clipt 

 queens at the same time, and cluster on the same place, 

 on returning to the hives, would they all return to one hive, 

 or go to the hives thej' came from ? Ili.inois. 



Answer. — Generally they go back to the same hives 

 from which they came, but sometimes all go to one hive. 

 Sometimes they will do neither, but go to some other liive 

 where there is a big commotion because of swarming a short 

 time before. " ' 



Worms in Hives— Eight-Frame Hives. 



1. I have some bees in box-hives. I lost one colony last 

 fall with worms ; how do you clean them out, and when is 

 the right time ? 



2. I expect to use the 8-frame dovetail hives next season. 

 Do you think the bees will winter in them on the summer 

 stands ? The thermometer gets as low as IS or 20 degrees 

 below zero. New Jersey. 



Answers. — In box-hives you must depend upon the bees 

 to clean out the worms, as there's no way 3'ou can get at the 

 combs to dig- out the worms. Strong colonies will not allow 

 them to make great headway, especially if the bees are 

 Italian. 



2. Very likely they will winter all right, but 10-frame 

 hives will be safer, for colonies are likely to be stronger and 

 to have larger stores for winter. In either base thev should 

 have some protection for winter. 



Moving Bees— Using Queen-Excluders with Sections. 



1. I have bought a place and will have to move my bees 

 about 2,'i miles. XVhich do you think is better, to take' them 

 right out of the cellar and move them, or set them out in 

 the yard and let them have a good flight, and then move 

 them ? 



2. What do you think of using the queen-excluding zinc 

 with sections ? I thought some of trying it with a few 

 hives, and giving them sections about the second or third 

 day after hiving. My object in doing this is to give them 

 lots of room in order to prevent swarming. Wisconsin. 



Answers.— 1. Decidedly, let them have a flight before 

 hauling. 



2. Under ordinary circumstances there is no need to use 

 a queen-excluder with sections, but it's a good thing to do 

 so when sections are put on immediately after hiving. But 

 there is no danger of bees swarming- within some time after 

 being hived. Your idea is all right, however, to give plenty 

 of rpom in supers. 



A Queen Rearing Drones or Workers First. 



Would a queen that was superseded late in the fall, after 

 the bees ceast flying, be likely to rear first drone or worker 

 brood, and why"? 



Case : A colon}' of blacks was transferred late in the 

 fall, and after some weeks a weak queen crawled out of the 

 hive, was pickt up, and soon died. Earlj- in the spring capt 

 brood was noticed and thought to be from laying workers. 



as no queen could be found. On introducing a new queen 

 a black one was found in the hive, and captured. The in- 

 troduction was not a success, and in taking care of the 

 frames a cluster of worker-brood was found on the same 

 frame as the drone or supposed laying-worker. I have 

 thought perhaps the queen was not fertilized, and her first 

 duty was to rear drones for that purpose, hence my question. 



Missouri. 

 Answer. — Whatever a queen might think about it. she 

 never would be fertilized by a drone of her own progeny, for 

 after she commences once to lay she will never be fertilized 

 afterward. If reared in the fall, she might be fertilized in 

 the spring, and then would be likely to lay the same as any 

 other queen, principally worker-eggs. 



Taking Bees Out of the Cellar for a Flight. 



I have 75 colonies of bees in the cellar. Thej' were all 

 right up to the first of this month, but now they do not seem 

 to do well ; the bees are dying fast, and the hives are dauby. 

 Will it be better to take them out of the cellar as soon as 

 the bees can take a flight, even if there is a little snow on 

 the ground, or later ? 



We had honey-dew here last summer, and the bees 

 got a lot of that stuff. It was the first time that I saw 

 honey-dew in this place ; but we get good honey here. In 

 1897 I got 1,925 pounds of comb honey from 16 colonies, 

 spring count, which I sold at 15 cents a box. Last year 

 there was no honey. I got only 1,500 pounds of fall crop 

 from 30 colonies, spring count. Minnesot.\. 



Answer. — Yes, I'd take them out for a flight the first 



day it's warm enough. If snow is on the ground it may be 



of some advantage to make some effort to keep the bees 



from sinking in it. If very little, the ground about the 



hives might be swept. Otherwise the snow might be trampt 



down hard, or something might be used to cover the ground, 



perhaps straw. 



^•-•~*' 



Transferring from a Box-Hive and a Tree. 



1. I have a colony of bees in a bos-hive, and I would 

 like to transfer it into another hive. How shall I do it, and 

 when ? 



2. I know of a colon}' in a tree, and I would like to take 

 it home and put it in a hive. How can I go ahead with that, 

 and when would be the best time ? Pennsylvania. 



Answers. — 1. Directions for transferring are given in 

 the text-books, and hardly belong in this department. You 

 will probabl}' be as well satisfied to wait till after the bees 

 swarm, and transfer 21 days after the swarm issues. 



2. It depends upon circumstances what is best to do. If 

 other trees are near by, it may not be a hard thing to take 

 the bees home in the log where they now are. By means of 

 a rope you may ease the falling of the tree when you cut it 

 down so that the combs will not be broken. Tie one end of 

 a long rope to the upper part of the tree, throw the other 

 end over some part of a neighboring tree, and then when 

 the tree falls you can let it down gradually. Then cut oflf 

 the log above and below where the bees are, haul it home, 

 and you can transfer it when convenient, either before or 

 after swarming. 



^ • »■ 



Changing Location of Hives and Arranging Them. 



1. When is the best time to remove bees from their 

 usual place ? 



2. Have you any special method of removing colonies ? 



3. Is it best to have colonies widelj- separated, or in 

 groups ? Kentucky-. 



Answers. — 1. If their location is to be changed it is 

 better to make the change before bees do much flying. If 

 bees are moved after they have markt well their location, 

 they are likely to go back in considerable numbers to their 

 old location. It will be some help, after they are moved, to 

 put up before the entrance a board so as to hinder direct 

 flight as much as possible. 



2. No, just pick up the hives and carry to the new place. 



3. There is some advantage in having them in groups, 

 making it more convenient for the bee-keeper than to be 

 obliged to travel over much ground. A good way is to have 

 them in groups of four, one pair standing back to back to 

 the other pair. A space of four inches is enough between 

 hives, and four feet or more between groups. 



